Tomorrow is the day. We are so close to Halloween I can taste it. One of my favorite activities to do on Halloween is creating the perfect jack-o-lantern to sit on my front porch that night to greet all the trick-or-treaters. Because of this, today’s post is going to include some easy pumpkin carving tips to create the perfect jack-o-lantern this Halloween.
The history of jack-o-lanterns has always fascinated me. When they first started being made, they were created from all sorts of gourds and vegetables, not just pumpkins. The purpose of them was to light the front of your house and scare away any evil spirits that might come knocking. Check out this site for the entire story of the jack-o-lantern!
The history of Halloween as a whole has also interested me. I just love to hear about how legends and traditions start, it’s super cool how superstition can turn into something an entire country celebrates.
I’m pretty bummed that Halloween is going to be over in less than two days! October goes by way too fast, and not fast enough. Do you know what I mean? I’ll never get enough pumpkin spice lattés, and soon enough, the world will be focused on egg nog and peppermint mochas.
Life is funny that way isn’t it? Anyway, if you are looking to celebrate the last of Halloween with some jack-o-lantern art, here are some pumpkin carving tips. Stay until the end of the post to get some free printable pumpkin carving stencils and a recipe for roasted pumpkin seeds! So many awesome things!
Why Carve Pumpkins?
I already mentioned the history of carving up a gourd, but why would you want to do it now, if you don’t believe that it chases away evil spirits? Well, there are plenty of reasons, and I am not so sure that we should brush off the spirits one. Are we sure we want to risk not putting out a jack-o-lantern?
But anyways, here are some reasons to carve pumpkins:
- Creativity: Using your creativity is super fun and good for your well-being. Let it out.
- Connect with your inner child: You may think you are too old for pumpkin-carving, but I promise you, there is no age restriction on having fun.
- Enjoy time with friends & family: Get a couple of pumpkins and make an event of carving them
- Get a little messy: Life is so much about staying clean and orderly. It is so fun to stick your hands into a pumpkin and pull all the guts out!
Alternatives to Carving Pumpkins
Don’t feel like getting into the mess? That’s okay! There are plenty of options for you if you still want to decorate a pumpkin without the hassle of clean-up and knives. I actually wrote a whole post about this, so click here for more information!
But, here is a brief summary of some of the ideas:
- Paint your pumpkin!
- Use construction paper or other craft supplies to decorate your pumpkin
- Carve a foam pumpkin from the craft store
Pumpkin Carving Tips: How to Carve the Best Pumpkin
Here is a step-by-step process of carving the best pumpkin out there.
Supplies:
- Pumpkin
- Newpaper or other table covering
- Carving Kinfe (can buy a pumpkin-specific one at a craft store)
- Bowl (for pumpkin guts)
- Pumpkin carving stencil (if you want)
- Tape (for stencil)
- Push pin or threading needle (for stencil)
- Pick the perfect pumpkin
- Whether you go to the pumpkin patch, or your local grocery store, make sure to pick the perfect pumpkin
- You want a large canvas, so much sure you are getting a big, bright orange pumpkin!
- Prepare your area
- Carving a pumpkin can get messy, so best to be prepared
- If you can, carve your pumpkin outside, somewhere easily washed off with a hose, do so. Pumpkin guts can go flying
- Or, you can carve inside, using newspaper or another disposable cover to keep your table clean
- Open up your pumpkin
- You can’t carve your pumpkin wihtout opening it up!
- There are two options, the classic way of carving a circle on top, which is my personal favorite, or carving a circle on the bottom. I personally like going from the top because it is easier to balance my pumpkin while carving. But both work
- Pick a place and carve a circle large enough for your hands to fit. Make sure to carve at an angle so the top can be placed back on once you are finished
- Pull the Guts out
- The best way to do this is with your hands, and maybe a spoon to help scrape the sides of your pumpkin
- Don’t be afraid to get messy, get in there and scrape all the pumpkin guts out, putting them in a bowl, so you can roast the seeds later!
- Select the front of your pumpkin, where your design will be
- This is a very important decision
- Choose the best side of your pumpkin that you think would work best with the design you have planned
- I usually choose the flattest side
- Prepare your design
- Grab your printed out stencil and tape it to your pumpkin
- With a needle or pushpin, make an imprint around the outside of the stencil with small pokes. Make sure to do every line
- Once finished, remove the stencil and you will have an outline of your design
- Get to carving
- Time for the real action
- Don’t worry if it’s not perfect, this is about fun and creativity
Roasted Pumpkin Seed Recipe
So you’ve carved your pumpkin, what do you do with the insides? I cannot carve a pumpkin without making roasted pumpkin seeds. I have been doing this since I was a kid, it is one of my favorite parts of Halloween. It creates such a tasty snack to enjoy. However, they usually go really fast in my house.
The best part about them is, there are infinite possibilities for seasoning. Well, maybe not infinite, but there is certainly a lot, here are some options. I’m personally a sweets lover, but here are some of the options:
- Cinnamon and sugar
- Salt
- Garlic Powder
- Chilli Powder
- Cajun Seasoning
- Everything but the bagel seasoning
- A Mix of all of these
- Literally anything you have in your spice rack
These roasted pumpkin seeds are delicious, you will love them!
Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
Ingredients
- 1 bowl pumpkin seeds
- 1 tbsp avacado oil
- 1 tbsp seasoning
Instructions
- Take all the seeds out of your pumpkin and place them in a strainer
- Strain seeds until they are clean, with no pumpkin pulp left over
- Lay pumpkin seeds flat on a towel to dry for a couple of hours
- Preheat oven to 425
- Once dry, move pumpkin seeds to baking sheet and put into preheated oven
- Bake for 5
- Pull pumpkin seeds out of oven, drizzle avocado oil and seasoning of choice over the seeds
- Mix seeds with hands or spatula until evenly coated
- Place back in oven for 10-15 minutes, or until crunchy
- Enjoy
Free Printable Pumpkin Carving Stencils
Alight, here are a couple of easy and printable pumpkin carving stencils to use while creating your perfect jack-o-lantern!
Halloween brings out all my favorite activities, cooking, crafting, and eating. These pumpkin carving tips have helped me create the perfect pumpkin that will light up my front porch.
Although I will miss the festivities and fun that fall brings, I know that winter has just as many exciting adventures. I look forward to spending time, wrapped in a cozy cacoon watching Hallmark Christmas movies and sipping hot cocoa.
