Pumpkin Fall Centerpiece

Hi, I'm Evette Rios, here on eHow.com. And I wanted to share with you guys a way that you can use a pumpkin for something a little bit more than just a jack-o-lantern. How about a vase? So what you want to do is you want to start with a nice pumpkin like this. It's got a nice big size, but it's not too big. It's perfect for this size of vase that I have, which is actually going to go inside of it. So you want to make sure it's a little bit taller than the vase that you have. And you also want to check the stem. It's got to have like a nice firm stem. So you kind of try to lift it up and if the stem is really firmly attached that's a good thing. And if it's not that means the pumpkin is a little bit old and it probably will rot a little bit sooner than it should. So I've got a pretty good one here. And then to carve it, to actually carve out the top, I love to use a drywall knife. You can get this from any hardware store. But seriously, this is the best pumpkin carving tool ever. Better than all those kits and everything. It's hardcore, nice and sturdy, so you can really get in there, and it cuts the pumpkin like butter. I'm telling you, it's great. So you just cut the top off like that. And want to make sure that the opening that you cut is just a little bit bigger than the size of the vase. So I cut one right here, check it out. And you don't have to go crazy, it doesn't have to be a perfect circle, it doesn't have to be amazing, but the idea is just to make it big enough so the vase fits in it and the flower you're going to put in there are going to cover up any imperfections in the opening. So then to get the stuff out of the inside you can use all sorts of stuff, you can use a measuring cup, you can even use the lid of a jar and kids, this is the perfect thing to get the kids involved in because they love all that yucky stuff. And then of course take out the seeds and roast them. Because they're delicious and they're really good for you. So once you've got your pumpkin nice and cleaned out like that, just grab your vase, and now I'm going to take this and put it right inside. Look at that. Fits right in there like a glove. And then I got some flowers, and use you know, fall flowers, whatever is available. Mums are great. Sunflowers at the beginning of fall are really easy. Clovers, things like that. And I'm just going to slip that right in there. Just a premade arrangement. Something super easy. And there you go. You have an instant Thanksgiving centerpiece or fall centerpiece, that is going to impress your family and friends and is going to last through the season, which is pretty cool. Thank you so much for watching, I'm Evette Rios, here on eHow.com and come back again because we've got lots of holiday entertaining tips just for you.