How to Carve a Pumpkin

Everyone loves Halloween, and everyone loves jack-o-lanterns. Ever wonder how to carve one??

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• A sharp knife
• A pumpkin
• A spoon
• An idea of how you want your pumpkin to look
• A bowl

1. The first thing you should do is take your pumpkin and look at it. Try to visualize what you want it to look like. It doesn't have to be the "classic" jack-o-lantern face, it can be anything you want it to be. It's good to visualize before you start carving away because you can't correct mistakes very easily.
2. Some people like to trace their ideas on the pumpkin as a guideline, but some just free-hand it. Do whatever you like. I like to trace. You can use a pencil or a sharpie, or whatever you choose.
3. Cut the top off, or the side, or whatever part you want to dig the insides out from. You can trace this part too if you want to make it artistic or whatever.
4. Start digging out the seeds and the nasty stuff. Put it in the bowl. An easy way to get this stringy stuff detached from the pumpkin is to firmly shave it all off with a knife. Once you have a good amount of it off, use the spoon and dig all the rest out. Don't forget the top that you cut out. Clean that too. If you want to bake the seeds then save them!
5. This is so creative. Now you can start carving the rest. Do whatever kind of face or object, or abstract thing you want. Be creative! Show off!
6. To see these different jack-o-lanterns, click on the picture. Next, put a candle inside, light it and enjoy. Some people like to put the tops back on, but this will burn your pumpkin. Just tilt it to the side so that the candle can breathe, or just keep the top off. There's really no rules, it's Halloween! Have fun!

Tips & Warnings

• Don't let very small kids carve their own pumpkins. That can be really dangerous!