Sculpting the Gourd

by Andi Agnew
October 25, 2007

I have carved pumpkins since I was a child. As kids, my sister and I carved the typical triangles and jagged mouth for a traditional jack-o’-lantern. A few years in a row, we painted the outside of the pumpkin instead of carving it, in hopes of preserving the fruit a bit longer. Then I discovered these wonderful things called carving kits. I purchased one at Target, and for just two or three bucks I got several patterns and some tools for carving: a couple of tiny saws, some hole-punching tools and a scooper.

Pumpkin carving goes back several centuries to old pagan and Celtic traditions. The word “Halloween” is derived from All Hallow’s Eve, which was and still is celebrated the night before All Saints’ Day on Nov. 1. Gourds and even turnips were carved and lit with coal or candles to welcome friendly spirits and ward off evil ones. Because pumpkins are not indigenous to the Old World, some believe that Christopher Columbus and other explorers brought pumpkins to Europe from the New World.

The first objective for a pumpkin-carving project is to find the perfect pumpkin. I chose mine from the Farmer’s Market at the Fairgrounds. You can carve any size or shape of pumpkin, but my preference is for a mid-sized round one. For 10 bucks, I got two round-ish gourds. (I knew I needed a backup in case I messed up the first one.)

The patterns in my kit ranged from basic to advanced. I chose a cute little bat for its big blocky pattern. Before I go on, I should say that you do not have to go purchase one of these kits to make a killer jack o’lantern. If you have any drawing ability whatsoever, you can draw anything on a piece of paper and transfer it to the pumpkin. Do a spooky King Edward Hotel or Frank Melton with fangs if you want.

The next step is to cut the top off the pumpkin and clean it out. This is the grossest and most time-consuming part. Cut around the stem of the pumpkin to make a hole just large enough to get your hand in with a spoon. Set the top aside and commence scraping out the insides of the pumpkin. The scooper that came with the carving kit was pretty useless, so I used a big metal spoon. Save the seeds and toast them in the oven if you like pumpkin seeds. Otherwise, toss all the stuff on your compost heap.

Once you have cleaned out the pumpkin, find the smoothest side, cut out your pattern and tape it down. It was a bit tricky to get the pattern to stay in one spot while I transferred it, but it was not too hard. To transfer the pattern, take the hole-punch tool (or an ice pick if you are not using a kit) and poke holes along the outline of your pattern. There was a little wheely tool included in my kit that was supposed to cut down on hole-punching time, but like the scooper, it was pretty useless.

After you have punched holes along the outline of the pattern, you can take the paper off the pumpkin. Keep the pattern nearby, though, so you can remember exactly which parts are for cutting out and which ones are for keeping. Using the provided saws or a good sharp knife, carefully cut along the dotted lines. It may take some work to punch out the chunks that you cut, but some careful maneuvering will get it done. You also may need to clean up the lines a bit by shaving off more from the inside of the pumpkin.

Once you are finished, you should have a pretty good-looking jack-o’-lantern. If you are old school, the next step is to take a taper candle, melt some wax onto a piece of foil so it will stand upright, place that inside the pumpkin and light it. You can place the “top” back on the pumpkin while the candle burns for a few minutes—it will create a black spot on the inside of the “top.” Cut a hole out where the black spot is and you will have a “chimney” so the candle won’t go out or burn the pumpkin down.

I am not-so-old school, so I put a votive candle inside and left the top off. Or, you can put a small flashlight inside if it will stand up on its own. There are many variations on how to illuminate your pumpkin.

It’s up to you where to display your work of art. I decided to set mine outside, and it looked great at night. Unfortunately, a few days later, some tiny gnats got to it and were trying desperately to turn my jack-o’-lantern into their moldy home sweet home. My advice for those who want their masterpiece to last longer than a couple of days is to put it inside your house, maybe in a window. Just be careful about leaving candles unattended. I would hate to hear about someone’s house burned to the ground and all that was left was a charred pumpkin.

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