Halloween Pumpkin Carving Design Tips

"Hi! This is Shana Bethune on behalf of Expert Village, and I'm here to talk to you about preparing a design to carve into your pumpkin. So, before you begin drawing a design on your actual pumpkin, it's good to work out a few ideas on paper first. The first thing you want to think about is the size and shape of your pumpkin. You want to make that sure the design you choose will fit onto your pumpkin properly. So, take a piece of paper, and draw a shape that's roughly the size of your pumpkin. Now, there are all sorts of complex designs that you can carve. Some involve ghosts and movie stars and witches and lots of detailed things, but if you're new to pumpkin carving, or working with children, it's good to start with a basic design. Use a lot of angles in your design, don't try to do anything round, because angles are a lot easier to cut. Also make sure that the shapes you're drawing are large enough to cut. For eyes, triangles are usually the best. And when you're making a mouth, start with a semi-circle in your drawing, and then you can add things, like square teeth. For the mouth, slight curves are okay because they're large enough, and you won't have too much trouble cutting them. If I choose to make a circle for the eye, I'd have a lot of trouble getting around those tight curves. Once you've settled on a design, hold it up to your pumpkin to make sure it fits."