Many people default to using a marker to draw out their pumpkin’s design, but a pencil can actually work better. Pencil markings give you more freedom while carving and can easily be erased when you’re done carving if necessary.
What You’ll Need to Get Started
Pumpkin carving is fun, and some people are known to make some really incredible designs. However, the act of carving up a jack-o-lantern of your own is a fairly simple process that doesn’t actually require too many tools. With these essentials, you’ll be good to go!
Carving pumpkins does mean that you will need a pumpkin. Pumpkins come in all shapes and sizes, but it is generally easier to carve the larger ones since there is more room to work. Find the perfect pumpkin to fit your vision. If you’re looking to spice things up, there are plenty of alternative fruits and vegetables that work—like squash, apples, turnips, and even pineapples!
A Carving Kit
You need to have the right spooky tools to bring your artistic vision to life. The easiest approach is to head over to the store or shop online for a basic pumpkin carving kit. These kits will give you carving tools, as well as design supplies to make carving your pumpkin nice and easy. If you don’t want to use a kit, you will need something to draw with, a knife, and preferably something to scoop out the insides of your pumpkin with.
After your pumpkin is carved, you can bring your work to life by placing a light source inside. Some people use candles, but others find that flameless candles or other small lights can work even better and offer more colours.
Cleaning Supplies
Pumpkin carving is a ton of fun, but it is also a messy business! Before you dive in, make sure you have some cleaning supplies to clean up the mess once you are done having all that fun! It’s a good idea to put down some sort of sheet or newspaper first, to collect all the juices and messy bits.
Once you’ve got all of your tools in line, you can dive right into the pumpkin-carving process. Making a jack-o-lantern is easy with these simple steps.
How to create jack o lantern face
Jack o’ lanterns have been a Fall tradition for centuries! Did you know they originated from an Irish myth, and used to be carved out of turnips? For the history of jack o’ lanterns you can visit www.history.com. There are many different ways to carve a pumpkin! Here are some tips for carving the perfect jack o’ lantern this fall, after you have picked your beautiful Eckert’s pumpkin it’s time to begin!If you choose to paint your pumpkin, they will last longer, and any size will do!
- For carving, larger pumpkins are better.
- Try to avoid pumpkins with any mold or bruising. (They will go bad faster)
- If your pumpkin is dirty from being in the field, it is fine to wash it with warm soapy water.
- You normally begin carving a pumpkin by cutting off the top to create a lid. It is necessary to cut at a 45 degree angle so that the lid will have a place to rest once replaced. (If you make the cut straight down it will fall through)
- Another way of pumpkin carving is to cut a hole in the bottom. By making your cut at the bottom of the pumpkin it allows you to fix a leaning pumpkin, and also allows a flat surface for the candle to light your jack o’ lantern with (If you do it this way, be sure that there is a good amount of ventilation for your candle so that the inside of your pumpkin does not get scorched.)
- Once the hole is made into the pumpkin you can begin to scrape out the insides, be sure to keep the seeds -they make a tasty snack! To scrape out the pumpkin guts it is helpful to use a large spoon or ice cream scooper.
- Once the pumpkin is scraped clean, it is helpful to soak the pumpkin for an hour or two in bleach water (1teaspoon bleach/1 Gallon of water) This will help to make your freshly carved jack o’ lantern last longer, and to prolong shriveling, rub the interior of the pumpkin with petroleum jelly.
- Now it is time to get creative! It is always fun to create your own jack o’ lantern pattern, just draw on with a marker and begin carving! If you choose to print a pattern off of the Internet, or purchase one from a store it is now time to tape it to your pumpkin. (It is helpful to cut slit in the paper so that it bends to fit the rounded sides of the pumpkin.) Poke holes along the pattern lines so that they are easily seen and are ready to be carved along.
- A serrated knife or tools that are specifically designed for pumpkin carving are used to carve the face of your jack o’ lantern.
- When finished carving, it is time to light the candle. Teal lights are the perfect size to light the inside of a pumpkin, and any battery powered light may be used as well. -If you choose to use a candle to do the job, you can sprinkle ground nutmeg or cinnamon on the inside of the pumpkin walls and when heated up with the candle it will create a wonderful Fall aroma!
- Place your jack o’ lantern outside and watch it glow!
Pumpkin Seeds with Cinnamon & Salt
4 cups pumpkin seeds
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
vegetable oil cooking spray
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a cookie sheet and spread the seeds out in an even layer.
Lightly sprinkle with salt and cinnamon. Bake for about 5 minutes, then stir. Season with salt and cinnamon again continue baking stirring occasionally for about 20 minutes or until seeds are toasted.
Jack-o’-lantern Craft
It’s Halloween time! That means it’s time for jack-o’-lanterns! This jack-o’-lantern craft is lots of fun, and has a great fine motor skill activity built into the making of it where little ones practice a bit of sewing! Little ones will also love stuffing the jack -o’-lantern to make it puff up like a pumpkin, and choosing what kind of face to give their jack-o’-lantern. You might like to put a face on both sides of your pumpkin, like we did, so you can also practice opposites (we did happy and sad!) or just have more fun with silly faces! For some great pumpkin face ideas, watch our Super Simple Songs videos for Can You Make A Happy Face? and Five Little Pumpkins! Happy Halloween!
Things you’ll need
- two paper plates
- black construction paper for the face
- green or brown construction paper for the stem
- hole punch
- orange craft paint
- paintbrush
- glue stick
- something to stuff the pumpkin with: tissue, newspaper and plastic bags all work great!
Steps
Paint the bottom of two paper plates orange, and set aside to dry.
Cut out the shapes for your jack-o’-lantern face from black construction paper and glue them into place.
Line up your paper plates so that the pumpkin is in upright position with the faces facing out. With a hole punch, punch holes around the edges while holding both plates together. Space the holes about one and a half inches apart. Don’t worry if the plates get a little squished during this process, we are going to puff it out later!
Now it’s time to sew the two plates together! It helps to wrap a piece of tape to the tip of the yarn – this will make it easier to stick through the holes. Sew both plates together with orange yarn but leave an opening of 3 holes!
Stuff your pumpkin with the stuffing of your choice. Tissues, newspaper or plastic bags work well. You may want to check your pumpkin string and make sure it is tight enough and that both plates are close together. Once your pumpkin is stuff, finish sewing the yarn into the remaining holes and tie a knot to secure it into place.
To finish off your pumpkin you can add a stem cut out from brown or green construction paper, and add it to the top of your pumpkin. Just add some glue and stick it into the top of the pumpkin between the plates.
Ta-da! A spooky, squishy jack-o’-lantern!
For more fun and learning with Halloween pumpkins, watch Caitie’s Classroom’s episode all about jack-o’-lanterns!
Original content © 2019 Super Simple. Not to be reprinted without express written permission. Terms of Service.
See more content about:
- Emotions
- Holidays & Celebrations (All)
- Holidays & Celebrations – Halloween
More fun Stuff
Let’s Be Friends!
Kids songs, shows, crafts, activities, and resources for teachers & parents! Take a look around, explore our themes tab, and don’t forget to sign up for the Super Simple newsletter!
Popular Crafts
© 2006-2023 Skyship Entertainment. | All rights reserved.
