I view pumpkin carving as the oldest and most difficult fall tradition. As a child you might remember scooping out pumpkin guts and chasing your siblings around with them while your mother and father did the actual carving. As a teenager, you held carving parties with your friends that (sometimes) went well? But now, as a full-blown adult living in the dorms, pumpkin carving is more challenging than ever.

You want to bond with your roommates, so you pony up a couple of extra dollars for some pumpkins, lay a newspaper on the ground (to avoid a complete and utter mess), and turn on a scary movie. But the question still remains: what will your design read this year? Halloween town, or spunky hipster? Hopefully, as you get your carving tools ready, this article will guide you in the right direction.

Who says spooky season has to be all Jack ‘O Lanterns and ghosts? A pumpkin with a minimal pattern design might be a trendy change of pace. Some simple circles along the groove of the pumpkin would let out light in an artsy way. Once you put a candle in your pumpkin, it could be the “selfie lighting” gold mine of the hall.

Cookie cutters offer another fabulous way to make pumpkin carving into an easy, fun experience as the possibilities are endless. Make your Halloween pumpkin into a Christmas pumpkin or  even a Valentine’s Day pumpkin for your fall lover.

If you are already into the full swing of spooky season and want your pumpkin to reflect that, I applaud you. You can never go wrong with a classic Jack O’Lantern design. If you want to mix it up this year, and are feeling extra school spirited, try carving Mac the Wildcat into your pumpkin. Who knows, you might even end up on President Miles Davis’ Instagram page.

Not in the mood to go the full nine yards this Halloween? There are many easy pumpkin carving ideas that you could do with your roommates that do not involve a full carving kit and the mind of an artist.

Painting your pumpkin might be the best move. Channel your inner Bob Ross and paint something fun with your roommates. It may even be a good way to decompress after a stressful midterm. Cheap, water-based paints are the way to go as they will wash out if there is a mishap (which there probably will be).

Fall traditions can follow you to college with some creativity and motivation. I would encourage everyone to get in the spectacular spirit of spooky season by turning on some music and getting to carving, painting, or cookie cutting.