This year we used three different tool sets to carve pumpkins:  A set of wood chisels, a Dremel tool, and an electric drill.  Here are this year’s three designs.

All Pumpkins:

• Before carving designs into pumpkins, all pumpkins were washed. We then cut open the tops and removed all the seeds so that Adam could roast them later.

Design 1:  Adam’s “Oogey Boogey”

• Before cutting his design, Adam drew an outline of Oogey Boogey on his pumpkin.
• Adam then cut out his design with a Dremel tool and a generic drill bit. If you do this yourself, be aware that cutting with this tool will heat the pumpkin up enough to slightly cook it, resulting the tool throwing about some goopy bits as it works.
• The result:

Design 2:  Mady’s Banshee

• First, I drew a rough sketch of the banshee on the pumpkin.
• Then I carved out the eyes and mouth with an angled chisel.
• Then I made an outline of the face with a V-shaped chisel and carved out the nose.
• I used a flat-edge chisel to carve out the face. I left more face around the eyes and mouth for contrast, and carved away more flesh from the brow and cheeks so they would light up better.
• Finally, I used the angled tool to slash away at the sides of the pumpkin to create a mess of tangled hair.
• Warning: The surface of the pumpkin can be very slick.  Be sure to always cut away from yourself to avoid injury.  Also, this method definitely took the most work out of the three.  Adam was able to carve both his pumpkins in the time it took me to carve mine.
• The result:

Design 3:  Adam’s Mirror Ball

• This was the easiest design by far. Adam just took an electric drill and covered the pumpkin in holes.
• The result:

Let us know what you think, and which method you’d want to try!

Happy Halloween!