Comments on: Pumpkin Carving Templates

Pumpkin Carving Templates

Pater Aletheias — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 05:49:43 -0800

Looking some some ideas for cool jack o'lanterns? These free templates could help. From HP, Dremel (scroll down), eHow, DLTK, Pumpkin Masters, Hershey's , Reader's Digest and SpookMaster. Or watch the videos on the Do It Yourself Network for more carving tips and tricks.

By: three blind mice

three blind mice — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 06:00:51 -0800

Bash in one side and call it a Burmese monk. No special tools required.

By: DU

DU — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 06:08:16 -0800

The carving I've got down (I made myself some pumpkin saws this year). However, what with one thing and another, I can't do the carving on Halloween itself. I generally do it the weekend before, but this year my pumpkin got all mushy and gross after just 2 days. Is there a way to prevent that or am I going to have to figure out a way to do it on the day?

By: Mike D

Mike D — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 06:19:07 -0800

Speaking as a parent... and a whiner... can someone please calendarize this post for a repeat next year -- On October _2_1st? "O'Lantern... Jack O'Lantern" (from "Carve and Let Die")

By: Pater Aletheias

Pater Aletheias — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 06:23:49 -0800

DU: I've read that covering the pumpkin with a light coating of petroleum jelly helps preserve it a while, but I haven't tried it myself.

By: GrammarMoses

GrammarMoses — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 06:25:46 -0800

These guys are pumpkin-carving overachievers -- outstanding in their field, you might say.

By: DU

DU — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 06:28:49 -0800

I thought about a coating of vaseline on the cut parts but I had a pretty extensive design and I got lazy. Maybe hairspray would speed that up? I should practice in the off season.

By: Smart Dalek

Smart Dalek — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 06:32:19 -0800

You know who else was into Jack O'Lanterns? The Headless Horseman.

By: GrammarMoses

GrammarMoses — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 06:33:45 -0800

From the article accompanying the link above: Professional carver Hugh McMahon of New York specializes in etching portraits into his pumpkins. He is fielding a growing number of requests to do the faces of brides and grooms. "It's a new concept in wedding portraiture," he says.

By: Peecabu

Peecabu — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 06:36:31 -0800

Yeah, my pumpkins turned into a gelatinous pile of goo as well. And I used petroleum jelly on the carved bits and rubbed citric acid a ll over the inside. Still...goo. Icky, icky, green moldy goo. Bleh. What I've started doing for the difficult/tricky carving is using 'craft' pumpkins and a hot (750 degrees F) exacto blade. It creates some amazing, amazing carvings. You know they're cool when kids will stand around staring at your pumpkin patch *before* they come get candy. Heh. Seriously, craft pumpkins are about $20 each for massive ones, and once they're carved, they're good forever, you just have to find a place to store them. I stuffed last year's with tissue and put them up in the attic in a box. Throw some lavender or rosemary in the box with them, and critters/bugs won't go anywhere near the box, and then next year, you've got extra decorations. And you can still let the kids do their jack o' lanterns a couple of days before Halloween.

By: DU

DU — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 06:52:34 -0800

I've never heard of craft pumpkins. Sounds pretty awesome. OTOH, I want to do none-traditional pumpkins (geometric patterns, say) which I think be cooler on a regular pumpkin.

By: shiu mai baby

shiu mai baby — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 07:16:58 -0800

Hey Peecabu, got any pictures of your handiwork? I'm dying to see them. Also, how does one heat an exacto blade to 750F?

By: F Mackenzie

F Mackenzie — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 09:06:56 -0800

Experiment on keeping a halloween pumpkin fresh

By: Acey

Acey — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 11:04:11 -0800

I like it traditional.

By: bwg

bwg — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 15:16:29 -0800

Zombie Pumpkins.