Squirrels, Ghosts, And Moonlight: Tales From October (2020 Wallpapers Edition)

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From curious squirrels embracing the autumn season and cats finding a new favorite spot in a Halloween pumpkin to ancient traditions and the history of art — inspiration lies everywhere, as our new collection of wallpapers shows.

For this October edition, artists and designers from across the globe once again challenged their creative skills and designed wallpapers to spark your imagination and make the month a bit more colorful as it already is. Just like every month since we embarked on this creativity mission more than nine years ago.

The wallpapers in this post all come in versions with and without a calendar, so no matter if you want to count down the days to a big deadline or stick with your favorite design after the month has ended, we’ve got you covered. Speaking of favorites: As a little bonus goodie, you’ll also find a best-of from past October editions at the end of this post. Thank you to everyone who shared their wallpapers with us — we sincerely appreciate it! Happy October!

All images can be clicked on and lead to the preview of the wallpaper,
We respect and carefully consider the ideas and motivation behind each and every artist’s work. This is why we give all artists the full freedom to explore their creativity and express emotions and experience through their works. This is also why the themes of the wallpapers weren’t anyhow influenced by us but rather designed from scratch by the artists themselves.

Submit your wallpaper

Did you know that you could get featured in one of our upcoming wallpapers posts, too? We are always looking for creative talent, so if you have an idea for a wallpaper for November, please don’t hesitate to submit it. We’d love to see what you’ll come up with. Join in! →

Hello Autumn

“Did you know that squirrels don’t just eat nuts? They really like to eat fruit, too. Since apples are the seasonal fruit of October, I decided to combine both things into a beautiful image.” — Designed by Erin Troch from Belgium.

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with calendar: 320×480, 800×480, 1024×1024, 1280×800, 1366×768, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
without calendar: 320×480, 800×480, 1024×1024, 1280×800, 1366×768, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440

Bird Migration Portal

“October is a significant month for me because it is when my favorite type of bird travels south. For that reason I have chosen to write about the swallow. When I was young I had a bird’s nest not so far from my room window. I watched the birds almost every day; because those swallows always left their nests in October. As a child I dreamt that they all flew together to a nicer place, where they were not so cold.” — Designed by Eline Claeys from Belgium.

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with calendar: 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
without calendar: 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440

Twisted Seasons

“For me, October represents a tiny and narrow but fast transition between summer and winter, between clarity and darkness. Twisted seasons are reflected in an hourglass that can be twisted fast in both ways. After October, the snowflakes herald the winter when you can find me on the slopes in the Alps. As of April, the solar glow heralds summer. But in between seasons, I’m lost and cannot wait to twist the hourglass. The sooner the transition, the better. In 2020 everything has to be renewable, so just flip this wallpaper around, and you can recycle it for April and start to dream of summertime.” — Designed by Cesar De Greve from Belgium.

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with calendar: 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
without calendar: 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440

Beautiful Autumn Is Calling

“Bright autumn days are here, the richest season of the soul. It’s like another spring when every leaf is a flower!” — Designed by Capermint from Canada.

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with calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1440×900, 1440×1050, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
without calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1440×900, 1440×1050, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440

Game Night And Hot Chocolate

“To me, October is all about cozy evenings with hot chocolate, freshly baked cookies, and a game night with friends or family.” — Designed by Lieselot Geirnaert from Belgium.

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with calendar: 320×480, 1024×1024, 1280×1024, 2560×1440
without calendar: 320×480, 1024×1024, 1280×1024, 2560×1440

Magical October

“‘I’m so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.’ (L. M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables)” — Designed by Lívi Lénárt from Hungary.

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with calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440
without calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440

Pumpkin Cat

“Personally I find the month of October very pleasant. We are switching from summer to autumn and everyone is still full of energy from last summer. Here and there you see the first pumpkins appear. I get a warm feeling every time I see one. Every year I also cut out pumpkins to put outside. Last year my cat crawled into one of my carved pumpkins, she thought it was a great place to sleep in. That memory, and the warm feeling I have when I see a pumpkin, I wanted to merge in one illustration.” — Designed by Merel Vanoutryve from Belgium.

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with calendar: 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1440×900, 1440×1050, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
without calendar: 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1440×900, 1440×1050, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440

Casper The Unfriend Ghost

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with calendar: 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440, 3840×2160
without calendar: 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440, 3840×2160

Happy Halloween!

“The world turned upside down to a new normal, and wearing a mask is no scarier. Wear a mask and scare COVID off from the world. Happy, spooky Halloween!” — Designed by Zennode Technologies from Kerala.

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with calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
without calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440

Hunter’s Moon

“I based my calendar on the Hunter’s Moon or ‘Blood’ Moon. The name Hunter’s Moon dates back to the first nations of North America. It got this name because the deer fatted itself during summer and hunters tracked and killed their prey by the autumn moonlight. I wanted to represent both the deer and the moon in my calendar.” — Designed by Wannes Pappijn from Belgium.

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with calendar: 800×480, 1280×800, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 2560×1440
without calendar: 800×480, 1280×800, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 2560×1440

Fall Is Here!

“With these rainy days and the cold weather summer is really over. I created this wallpaper to make you all feel warm and cozy with beautiful fall colors on your desktop.” — Designed by Melissa Bogemans from Belgium.

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with calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
without calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440

The Pumpkin

“I’m a big fan of pumpkin carving, it lets you design on a weird canvas, and that makes it fun! I’m also a fan of ‘Less is more’, and that’s why I made this so simplistic.” — Designed by Ciel Brys from Belgium.

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with calendar: 320×480, 800×480, 1280×720, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1440×900, 1920×1080, 2560×1440
without calendar: 320×480, 800×480, 1280×720, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1440×900, 1920×1080, 2560×1440

The Art Of History

“History has always fascinated me. I started looking for people who changed the world and history and who were born in October. I discovered different people like John Lennon, Picasso, Niels Bohr, … In the end it was Gandhi who gave me the most inspiration. It’s a work in which you see the variety of colors that are both a call against racism and inequality and also a wink to Picasso’s oeuvre.” — Designed by Johannes Hermans from Belgium.

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with calendar: 320×480, 1125×2436, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
without calendar: 320×480, 1125×2436, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1440, 2560×1440

El Padre Del Cubismo

“‘Only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die having left undone,’ said one of the greatest artists of the 20th century — painter, illustrator, printmaker and sculptor, co-founder of Cubism and co-inventor of the art technique of collage. Pablo Picasso, a Spanish artist who spent most of his adult life in France, is renowned as one of the most prolific artists ever, with over 150,000 works, and the artist whose works, more than 1,000, were stolen. On October 25th, we celebrate 139 years since Picasso’s birth. Thank goodness for artist’s names, otherwise, art classes would be delighted trying to remember all the 23 words in Pablo Picasso’s name.” — Designed by PopArt Studio from Serbia.

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with calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1440, 1980×1200, 2560×1440
without calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1440, 1980×1200, 2560×1440

Breast Cancer Awareness Month

“As a lot of people may or may not know, October is breast cancer awareness month. Within our family we like to support this as much as we can because two of my mother’s best friends and my second cousin have died from this. We still think about them a lot, and especially one of them as she was like a second mother to me.” — Designed by Bo Vandaele from Belgium.

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with calendar: 640×480, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
without calendar: 640×480, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1440, 2560×1440

Blue Moon

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with calendar: 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
without calendar: 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440

Oldies But Goodies

Hidden in our wallpapers archives, we rediscovered some almost-forgotten treasures from past October editions. May we present… (Please note that these designs don’t come with a calendar.)

First Scarf And The Beach

“When I was little, my parents always took me and my sister for a walk at the beach in Nieuwpoort, we didn’t really do those beach walks in the summer but always when the sky started to turn grey and the days became colder. My sister and I always took out our warmest scarfs and played in the sand while my parents walked behind us. I really loved those Saturday or Sunday mornings where we were all together. I think October (when it’s not raining) is the perfect month to go to the beach for ‘uitwaaien’ (to blow out), to walk in the wind and take a break and clear your head, relieve the stress or forget one’s problems.” — Designed by Gwen Bogaert from Belgium.

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without calendar: 320×480, 1280×1024, 2560×1440, 2880×1800

Hanlu

“The term ‘Hanlu’ literally translates as ‘Cold Dew.’ The cold dew brings brisk mornings and evenings. Eventually the briskness will turn cold, as winter is coming soon. And chrysanthemum is the iconic flower of Cold Dew.” — Designed by Hong, ZI-Qing from Taiwan.

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without calendar: 640×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1080×1920, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×960, 1366×768, 1400×1050, 1600×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1440, 2560×1440

Transitions

“To me, October is a transitional month. We gradually slide from summer to autumn. That’s why I chose to use a lot of gradients. I also wanted to work with simple shapes, because I think of October as the ‘back to nature/back to basics month’.” — Designed by Jelle Denturck from Belgium.

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without calendar: 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440, 2880×1800

All The Things

“During our rebrand, everyone in our team got their very own icon, each one has been custom illustrated by a lovely man called Paul, who wears glasses. The icons have all been chosen to represent something personal to each individual as well as all the other usual suspects you’d expect from an icon set.” — Designed by Engage Interactive from the United Kingdom.

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without calendar: 800×600, 1024×768, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×960, 1400×1050, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1440, 2560×1440

Haunted House

“Love all the Halloween costumes and decorations!” — Designed by Tazi from Australia.

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without calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×960, 1600×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1440, 2560×1440

Autumn Is In The Air

“October reminds me of autumn, the season where you see fall leaves, squirrels, the weather that’s changing. Ever walked into the woods when it’s autumn? You can hear the magical sound of the wind blowing away the leaves. The woods are the most beautiful at fall, everything starts to color into yellow, orange, and brown. And you can meet some nice squirrels at the corner of a tree.” — Designed by Delphine Wylin from Belgium.

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without calendar: 320×480, 1280×1024, 1680×1050, 2560×1440

Watercolor Autumn

“There is nothing like being surrounded by beautiful, fiery, natural art for 2.5 months every year. This piece was inspired by the falls I remember back in my New England hometown.” Designed by Rachel Ladew from the United States.

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without calendar: 640×1136, 1280×800, 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1920×1200, 2048×2048, 2560×1440

Dope Code

“October is the month when the weather in Poland starts to get colder, and it gets very rainy, too. You can’t always spend your free time outside, so it’s the perfect opportunity to get some hot coffee and work on your next cool web project!” — Designed by Robert Brodziak from Poland.

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without calendar: 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440

Flying Home For Halloween

“You can only fully master the sky wearing an aviator hat and goggles. Like this little bat, flying home to celebrate Halloween with his family and friends.” — Designed by Franke Margrete from the Netherlands.

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without calendar: 320×480, 360×480, 376×668, 768×1024, 1024×1024, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1366×1050, 1440×900, 1536×864, 1600×900, 1920×1080, 1920×1440, 2560×1440, 2560×1600, 3840×2160

Create More

“The colors of the sun inspired me.” — Designed by Hitesh Puri from India.

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without calendar: 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440

Rain And Acorns

“Waiting at the bus stop when it’s raining in October can be a sad and wet experience. The bus is late, the dry spot is taken by other people and you’re just standing there in the rain with your hands in your pockets with nowhere to go. Acorns must have a hard time like that too! Waiting in the rain for the squirrels to come and pick them up.” — Designed by Casey Dulst from Belgium.

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without calendar: 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440

Say “Bye” To Summer

“And hello to autumn! The summer heat and high season is over. It’s time to pack our backpacks and head for the mountains — there are many treasures waiting to be discovered!” Designed by Agnes Sobon from Poland.

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without calendar: 1280×800, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440

Tea And Cookies

“As it gets colder outside, all I want to do is stay inside with a big pot of tea, eat cookies and read or watch a movie, wrapped in a blanket. Is it just me?” — Designed by Miruna Sfia from Romania.