A crescent and three stars
The moon is drawn as a large black crescent opening to the upper right, with three stars of different sizes scattered in the gap. Everything is black, so all four shapes are cut right through: the moon glows as a wide yellow curve with the stars twinkling beside it. The design uses no shaved areas, so 2 tones and 3 tones give the same stencil.
At the default medium size it prints about 6 × 4.8 inches on one page. The summary under the preview counts four holes and no bridges.
Carving tips
The crescent’s two points are the only thin parts. Cut toward each point from the middle of the curve, never outward along it, and finish the tips with the smallest saw you have. The stars have five points each: cut each point as a small V, two strokes that meet at the tip, instead of trying to steer round it.
Pick a side of the pumpkin that is fairly flat across its width: the crescent is wide, and on a strongly curved face the paper creases and the outline goes out of shape. Smooth the paper down from the middle outward as you tape it.
Pairing it with other designs
The moon works on its own or as the back of a set. Carve the bat at Small size on a second pumpkin, or the witch on a broom, which has a shaved full moon of its own. For a first carving, the easy stencils page lists the other designs with big, simple shapes.
The design on this page
| Design | Difficulty | Tones | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Moon and stars | Easy | Cut only | Large shapes, few pieces, nothing floating |
All designs were drawn for this site. Every other design is one click away under All in the picker, and the pumpkin stencil maker also turns photos into stencils.