How to Make a Jack O' Lantern

Jack O' lanterns are a cool and festive way to celebrate Halloween. Here are some steps for you to make your very own ignis fatuus!

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• pumpkin
• ice cream scooper
• pumpkin carving kit (optional)
• candle/electric light

1. Pick out a good sized, fresh and solid pumpkin. Try to get one that doesn't have many marks or scratches.

2. Next using the serrated knife in your kit, or a regular kitchen knife, begin to cut the top portion of the pumpkin off. Remember to have enough space from the stem. This portion that you cut off will be the lid for the pumpkin.

3. Once the lid is removed, Dig inside of the pumpkin and take out guts. You can try using your hands for the big chunks, then use an ice cream scooper to scrape the walls of the goo.

4. Make sure to accurately scrape the inside face where you'll be carving out to place the light. Some of the stringy insides of the pumpkin could hang down and block the light.

5. Remove any extra goo-ness from the bottom of the pumpkin lid, again, so that the strings don't hang in front of the light (or put out the light!)

6. At this point you can either decide to use a design template from the carving kit to make your design, or go ahead and do it your self, it's totally up to you.

7. If you decide to use the template, place the paper design on the face that you'll be carving press the plastic poker through the design, outlining the gray images.

8. Take off the paper, then simply carve out the dots (pretty much the opposite of connecting the dots!) to make the design in your pumpkin.

9. And finally, after you've done all the scooping and gutting and carving, place a long lasting candle, or electric light (with a rope) inside of your pumpkin!!!
   
   Happy Halloween!

Resources

• www.pumpkinpatchesandmore.org/makeajackolantern.php

[FrazzledNanny]

on 2/20/2009 We always used our hands to get the goo out. Thanks for the great tips. Well written! 5*

[TeryLynne]

on 10/8/2008 Great ideas and wonderful pictures. 5*

[4G64]

on 10/8/2008 nice article!

[Ballzy]

on 10/7/2008 Great Article! 5*

[argyle]

on 10/7/2008 An ice cream scooper is a great idea to get the guts of the pumpkin out! I always end up bending my hand at unbelievable angles using a spoon. Thanks, I'll be using your tips this year.