How to carve a pumpkin

Carve a Pumpkin

pumpkin

If you follow these instructions you could create a Jack o' Lantern that will last about 10 days in chilly weather or if it's in a warm room about five days.

To carve a pumpkin successfully you'll need the following:

a paper and pencil
a pumpkin that is at least 9 in. tall with a nice green firmly attached stem
several layers of newspaper
a long handled spoon
a big bowl
a black water-based felt pen preferably with a big blunt tip
a sharp thin knife
a small dish of water
some paper towels
a nightlight candle (you can buy these in packs of anything from 10 to 50 in supermarkets, drugstores, and DIY stores)
a saucer, a plate, or something similar to place the pumpkin on, (so it will need to be as big as the bottom of the pumpkin)
a jam jar lid
long handled matches

Directions:

Firstly try out your pumpkin design by drawing several sample faces on the piece of paper until you have the design you like. Enjoy trying out different designs and remember, you can be as creative as you wish!

Spread the newspapers over the table, and put the pumpkin on top. Use the felt pen to draw a circle on the top of the pumpkin around the stem. Make sure the circle is large enough for you to be able to put your hand inside it.

Using the sharp knife cut out the lid. Try to cut a nice clean line so there won't be any jagged edges where light can escape. The knife will work better if it's kept clean so use the small bowl of water to dip your knife in frequently. Remember to cut at a slight angle towards the centre of the pumpkin.
When you have cut all around, gently test the lid to see if it will lift off easily by holding the stalk and gently pulling. If it doesn't pull off easily cut over the same line again. Don't pull so hard that the stalk comes away from the pumpkin.

Once the lid will come off easily, clean away the stringy pulp from the bottom of the lid.

Using the big spoon (and your hands!) Scoop out the stringy pulp and seeds from the inside of the pumpkin. Place the pulp and seeds in the large bowl for throwing away later. Alternatively you could save the seeds and either put them on the bird table for the birds to eat, or make toasted pumpkin seeds which is a delicious snack. You can find out how to toast your pumpkin seeds here on the All Info About vegetarian site.

Look carefully at your pumpkin and choose the smoothest, roundest side of it to draw your face onto. If you make mistakes while you are drawing simply rub off the marks with damp kitchen paper.

Try and keep the features on your pumpkin in the centre not too close to the top and not too close to the bottom. If you do this your pumpkin face will be lit up much more effectively once the candle is inside and will be a much more solid structure and therefore less likely to collapse.

Try and make sure that each feature is large enough so that a good amount of air and is light can get through. Try not to cut any narrow slits.
Don't cut to the features too closely to each other (they may decay into each other very quickly).
If you cut the mouth too large you may find the pumpkin will quickly collapse at the mouth.
If you are going to carve teeth into the mouth or pupils into the eyes, try to keep them relatively big because if they are too small they will quickly shrivel up.

Use the sharp knife to cut out each feature at an angle towards the centre of the pumpkin and keep cleaning your knife as necessary.

When you have cut out the features, place your hand inside the pumpkin and press gently to force out each feature. If one of the pieces won't come out easily recut along the lines. Be sure to remove any of the remaining stringy pulp or seeds from the cut out areas as you go along.

Using the spoon, the knife, or your hands make a smooth flat spot inside the pumpkin at the base for the candle to stand on.

You must place the pumpkin on a saucer or plate or whatever other receptacle you have prepared. This is for safety purposes because you won't be able to tell when the bottom of the pumpkin has rotted and if you try and pick it up when the bottom has rotted away the candle will fall out and could cause a fire.

Place the small saucer or upturned jam jar lid in the base of the pumpkin and put the candle on top. Light the candle using the long handled matches. Place the pumpkin lid on top. Turn out the light and look at the effect your Jack o' Lantern creates. If you are happy with it - congratulations - however you will probably find some fine tuning is needed. If so then blow out the candle and, using the sharp knife, gently whittle away at the features that need correcting then repeat the process until you are happy with the finished effect.

To ensure your pumpkin lasts as long as possible, a cold place rather than a warm room is the best location for it. You can also take a tip from the professionals and mist the outside of your pumpkin with lemon juice to keep it fresh for longer.

Here are some great free pumpkin carving templates which you can use if inspiration is severely lacking! These templates can be printed out to help you carve an unusual Jack o' lantern.
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DON'T FORGET to visit the All Info About Family Science site where they have some fabulous, award winning information on Pumpkins,and the Family Screen Scene site where you can find all kinds of fun things to do with Halloween.


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