Halloween Experts » Halloween Decorations

Choosing and Preparing Your Pumpkin

Annie — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 02:04:11 +0000

We have talked about designing the perfect Jack O’Lantern. We have discussed the varieties of pumpkins available. We examined carving tools and carving alternatives. Now, as the season creeps closer, as Halloween season is wont to do (insert creepy laugh here), it’s time to think about selecting and preparing your pumpkin for carving. You may choose to purchase a pumpkin from a retailer, but consider that these have been bounced around from the patch to the store and mauled by many others making their choices. If possible, choose your pumpkin at a farmer’s market, roadside produce stand or, best of all, go right to the pumpkin patch to make your choice.

What to Look For:

1. Choose a pumpkin that has no soft spots, bruises, or discoloration on the skin.

2. Any size pumpkin will do, but the bigger, the better! Carving patterns can be enlarged easily, but shrinking them makes the detail work harder, if not impossible.

3. Look for a pumpkin that has a firmly attached stem attached. This is the sign of a healthy pumpkin. NEVER lift the pumpkin by its stem! Not only could you lose the handle for your lid, but you can damage the pumpkin and make it age quicker.

4. Select a pumpkin with a flat bottom (or side, depending on your design), as this will make it easier to display your masterpiece without having it roll away.

5. Check the bottom of your pumpkin for damage or soft spots. This can be the thinnest part of the pumpkin. If you pick it up, and it feels particularly heavy and the weight shifts when you tilt it …put it back. You don’t want to know what can grow inside a rotting pumpkin.

Once you get your pumpkin home, you need to prepare it. These steps are important if you want to keep Jack smiling for a while:

1. Choose your opening. If you are cutting a “lid”, then your first cut will be an angled cut, so that you lift out a cone shaped wedge around the stem. Angling the lid cut will keep the lid from falling into the pumpkin. Make your cut big enough to give you room to do the scooping and scraping you will need to do in a few minutes. You may choose, instead, to remove the bottom of the pumpkin and set it down over the light source you choose. If using a candle, you will still need to cut a vent in the top, and the top will scorch.
***NOTE: this should be the ONLY angled cut you make on your carving. All other cuts should be made perpendicular to the surface.

2. Once the pumpkin is open, remove the “brains” or “guts” with a sturdy scoop. While scooping, remember that the front edge, or design side of the pumpkin needs to be thinned to 1/2 to 1 inch thick, to make the more intricate cuts easier.

3. DON’T SKIP THIS STEP!!! Before you begin carving your design, fill a tub with cold water. It should be deep enough to submerge your pumpkin. Let it float and fill with water, so that it settles gently toward the bottom of the tub. Let it soak overnight. The pumpkin will absorb the water and become very firm, making your carving much easier. If you add a little bleach to the water, it will retard mold that might form on your Jack O’Lantern.

4. Once carved, coat all cut edges with petroleum jelly to prevent shrivelling.

5. If you are serious about keeping your pumpkin fresh for a long time, bring it in from the porch every night, and moisten it, using a plant mister, put it in a plastic bag in the refrigerator. Remember that you must dry all surfaces before putting it out for display, to prevent mold from growing.

Pumpkin Carving Alternatives

Annie — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 14:39:32 +0000

My mother was not the most creative or artistic mother in the car pool. Oh, let’s be honest…there wasn’t a car pool. When the family dinosaur died, I had to hoof it, the mile and a half to school. That long walk gave me plenty of opportunities to see the creative efforts of other moms during the Halloween season. I remember the most wonderfully carved pumpkins, some with cat faces and others with scary faces that were attached to scarecrow bodies. One of my favorites adorned the porch of a school friend, whose mother turned their front porch into a mini-haunted house. The jack o’lanterns she carved guarded the entrance, and both invited and warned guests of what awaited them. They had skeletal arms attached that seemed to enable them to drag their ungainly, legless pumpkin bodies up and down the stairs.

The jack o’lanterns we had at home were simple. Mother allowed us to draw the faces on the shells and she did the carving. Too many lines, and my mother simplified the design. She wasn’t very artistic, but, I didn’t say she wasn’t smart. So, if you are like my mother, clever, but not feeling very creative, I have some examples of alternatives to carving the family jack o’lantern. I have also included a couple of ideas for jack o’lantern accessories that will dress up even your most simple design.

The makers of Mr. Potato Head found pumpkins to be a perfect palette to expand the uses of their designs. The “Pumpkin Push Ins” are available in Witch, Pirate, Princess, Fireman and, my personal favorite, Ninja! You can also buy a bucket of non-specific face and body parts to create your own unique 3 dimensional pumpkin. Just remember, since these add-ons actually pierce the skin of the pumpkin, you won’t be able to use it later for cooking purposes.

Along the same lines as the push-ins, but with a unique twist, are the many ideas from “Pumpkin Wear”. The accessories made by Pumpkin Wear include decorations that attach to the pumpkin to make it a Scarecrow, Witch, Black Cat, Spider, and more. I particularly like the spider, that has a votive candle at the end of each leg. These might work best as indoor decorations or centerpieces, but they certainly are a unique way to turn an ordinary pumpkin into something extraordinary!

Another alternative to carving your gourd is painting. Your pumpkin paintings can be as simple or as complex as you want. Sketch out your idea, and use fine-line dry erase markers to mark it on the skin of the pumpkin. Any good acrylic craft paint will work for your purposes. Don’t limit yourself to the flat acrylic paints. Try some metallic, flourescent, glow in the dark, or glitter paints for special effects. Even if you are making a carved design, painting might enhance your masterpiece. Another reason to consider painting your pumpkin is that, after Halloween, you can still cook it down and use it to make pumpkin pie, bread or other pumpkin goodies!

Right Tools for the Job

Annie — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 08:02:46 +0000

If you are carving a simple Jack O’Lantern, then simple tools are the right choice. The basic carving equipment includes:

Dry Erase markers, if you are free-handing your Jack O’Lantern design. They wipe off with no trace!

An icepick or awl to mark your design into the skin of the pumpkin, if you are using a carving pattern.

A sharp, long bladed knife, to cut the “lid” and make any long smooth cuts in your design.

A scoop, to remove the pumpkin guts and seeds, and also to thin down the wall of the pumpkin on the side you will be carving. You will want the thin wall of the pumpkin no more than 1/2 inch thick.

A small, sharp, thin-bladed knife, for more intricate cuts.

Is it time to try something more complicated, or more adventurous this year? Then consider the following list of additional tools that I recommend for more versatility in your carving experience.

A jig saw. Used gently, and especially on really large pumpkins, this can be a huge time-saver!

A drill saw. Pictured here, the drill saw, usually used for dry wall, allows you to cut in any direction without repositioning the blade.

Linoleum cutters. If your carving pattern includes areas that will remove the skin, but leave some of the flesh for shadow effects, linoleum cutters are an excellent sculpting tool. The solid round handles make for a comfortable grip when working on large areas.

Dremel tool. This small handheld drill is capable of the most precise and intricate cuts and saves hours of painstaking labor. It is such a popular method of carving pumpkins, that Dremel makes a model specifically for that purpose!

Exacto Knife. A good set of Exacto knives are a must have for any craftsman, and they will prove very useful for the tiniest and most precise cuts. I have a set of blades that mount into a comfortable handle, and have been known to substitute a jig saw blade for some carving purposes.

Armed with the proper tools, there is no pumpkin carving design that should prove too difficult. Just add patience and about 4 hours of free time to your list of materials!

Anatomy of a Pumpkin

Annie — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 20:03:29 +0000

As Halloween draws closer, it’s time to start planning your pumpkin carving for this year. In the next few weeks, I will post one article per week dedicated to designing and sculpting the best Jack O’Lantern that has ever graced your porch. The first step in this process is knowing your pumpkin!

The pumpkin is a squash, a fruit, of the same family as cucumbers. They probably originated in Central America. Seeds from pumpkin like plants have been found in Mexico dating back to 5500 B.C. They were a staple of the Native American diet. When European explorers and settlers learned of the plant, they sent seeds back home. Today, pumpkins are cultivated all over the world.

Pumpkin is a rich source of Vitamin A and potassium. It has a high fiber content. Depending on how it is prepared, pumpkin can be a very healthy food source. Historically, pumpkin has been used medicinally as a cure for freckles and a treatment for snakebite. Today, the consumption of pumpkin seeds is known to promote prostate health for men.

Pumpkins come in all shapes and sizes, from “Baby Boo” miniature pumpkins that fit in the palm of your hand, to the giant, prize-winning varieties that can weigh upwards of 1500 lbs. They come in a rainbow of colors, from the common orange, to green, white and blue varieties. They can be smooth skinned, or extremely rough. Each variety suggests new and unique designs!

The basic components of a pumpkin are as follows:

The Stem: Located on top of the pumpkin, the stem is usually brownish green. It was the umbilical cord that connected the fruit to the vine, and brought in nutrients from the main body of the plant. When choosing a pumpkin, it is best to find one with the stem still firmly attached. Never lift your pumpkin by the stem, or it will break off. This will become the handle for the “lid” of your Jack O’Lantern.

The Shell: This includes both the skin, also called the rind, the shiny orange outer covering, and the pulp, also called the meat or the flesh, the part that is cooked and used in many wonderful recipes.

The Blossom End: When the pumpkin vine produces blossoms, each is a potential pumpkin. the scar where the blossom used to be attached is what we consider the bottom of he pumpkin.

The Guts, Brains, Goop: Actually, they are called the fibrous strands that fill the cavity in the middle of the pumpkin. These gooey strands contain the pumpkin seeds.

The Seeds: Pumpkin seeds can be planted to produce the next season’s crop of pumpkins. They are made up of the seed shell and the nut inside. There are many excellent recipes for snacks and foods made from pumpkin seeds. (See our recipe section!)

Watch for upcoming posts for choosing the design for your Jack O’Lantern and the proper pumpkin and tools to use for it.

Dancing Ghosts

Annie — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 13:45:43 +0000

When decorating your yard for the Halloween Season, you want a durable project that will withstand the changeable fall weather. Decorations that are reusable, year after year, not only justify the cost, but make your annual decoration plan a lot easier. These simple instructions will show you how to make a ring of ghosts, who will dance around a tree, artificial campfire, or grave marker in your yard or “haunted graveyard”. These directions will make 6 ghosts. You may need more to go around a larger tree or area.

Materials:
6 white flat sheets (queen size were used in this project)
3 boards, 1″x2″, 8 feet long (or 6 pieces of PVC pipe 4 feet long can be used)
Plastic grocery sacks, newspapers, black markers, heavy tape
Heavy black thread or non-reflective fishing line

Directions:
Cut the boards or PVC pipe into 4 foot sections. Cut one end of each at an angle, to make it easier to insert it into the ground. Pound these gently into the ground with a hammer. You don’t want to set them in too firmly at first, until you get a feel for how big your circle will need to be. This will depend on the size of your finished ghosts.
Next, make the heads, by stuffing a white plastic grocery bag with crumpled newspaper. Alternatively, you could use large styrofoam balls. Secure a head to each stake with tape (duct tape works well for this).

Drape a sheet over each head, so that you have an equal amount of fabric hanging on each side. At this point you can secure the sheet to the head in any of several ways: You can tie the head at the “neck” with string or fishing line, or, for the “neckless” version we have pictured, try gluing the very top of the sheet to the plastic bag head, or, stitching it there with fishing line and a darning needle.

With the permanent black marker, you may draw faces on your ghosts, or leave them blank, for an eerie effect. Tie the sheets together at the sides, as pictured, for the ghosts’ joined hands. If desired, attach fishing line to each knot and tie them to a tree branch to raise the hands to different heights and keep them off the ground. For the free standing ghosts, you can make your stakes longer, or your placement a little further apart to keep the ghost “hands” from dragging on the ground. If you choose to make the free standing ghost circle, try placing an artificial campfire in the center. Light your “campfire” with the flickering electronic pumpkin lights available at many party stores and Halloween shops.

Finish the project by pounding the stakes securely into the ground with a hammer. The ghosts can be stored and reused year after year. Watch this site for other ghostly yard decoration projects!

Halloween in a Jar

Annie — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 13:09:34 +0000

This Halloween craft project is similar to a Christmas snow globe, although the liquid used in the jar is clear corn syrup. It’s a great project for preschoolers, with the help of an adult. Watch for more “…in a jar” projects to come!

Materials:

Clean empty jar (tall baby food or small jam jar size) with leakproof screwtop lid

Marbles, glass stones or small pebbles.

One plastic spider, ghost, witch or other Halloween figure (the largest you can find that will fit in the jar without touching the sides. An excellent source for these figures would be cake decorating picks, as we have pictured here.)

Halloween confetti with bat, spider and pumpkin shapes.

Silicone caulking

Instructions:

1. Add a layer of marbles or aquarium gravel to the bottom of the jar.

2. Add a selection of Halloween confetti pieces.

3. Coat the inside of the lid with silicone caulk, almost to the edges. Press pebbles or gravel into the silicone to create the “ground”. Glue your Halloween figure to the center. If using a decorating pick, break all but about 1/4 inch of the “stem” off with a pliers and insert the remaining stub into the silicone, to secure it.

4. Pour in clear corn syrup to fill the jar. If you are adding a figure glued to the lid, remember to allow space for this so the syrup doesn’t overflow.

5. Screw on the lid and invert the jar. For safety’s sake, you can run a bead of silicone caulking around the lid to secure it permanently. Activate your Halloween scene by shaking or inverting the jar so you can see the confetti and marbles floating slowly around.

Halloween Luminaries

Annie — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 18:08:46 +0000

Our project for this week will help you provide atmosphere and charm to your Halloween decorating! Luminaries are most traditionally made from small paper bags, and contain a small votive candle or tea light to add the soft glow with which to line walkways and stairs. Our luminaries will be sturdier, reusable, and nearly free! They can be used for any occasion, but lend themselves particularly well to the Halloween season.

Here is what you will need:

Empty soup cans, washed and dried with the labels removed.

A permanent marker

A towel

A hammer

A couple of nails of different sizes

Orange and/or Black spray paint (try metallic colors too!)

Wire coat hangers

Here is what you do:

Choose a simple Halloween graphic to use as a pattern. Clip art, which can be found for free online, is an excellent resource for patterns. Using the permanent marker, draw your pattern on the clean, dry soup can. Any marks will eventually be covered by paint. Fill the soup cans with water, and freeze them overnight.

Lay the towel on a flat surface to soak up any water from the ice melting and keep the cans from slipping around while you work. Using the hammer and nails, punch holes in the can, about every ¼ to ½ inch along the lines of your pattern. The ice will keep the can from collapsing while you work on it. If you want to hang your luminaries, make sure you punch 2 extra holes at the top on either side of the can for the handle.

Once your pattern has been “punched”, put the cans in warm water to melt the ice inside, and then dry the cans thoroughly. Spray paint the sides and bottom of the cans. If you are making hanging luminaries, cut a length of coat hanger wire about 12-14 inches long, and thread it through the top holes on either side of your lantern, like a bail handle.
When your luminaries are completely dry, add a votive candle or tea light.

This is a great family project, and your finished luminaries will add a touch of Halloween charm to your sidewalk or patio! As stated earlier, luminaries can be used for any occasion: weddings, Christmas, 4th of July, birthdays… Don’t wait for Halloween to let your imagination light up your decorating!

Grave Expectations

Annie — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 20:43:05 +0000

If Halloween is the night that the dead walk the earth, then what better place to visit than a graveyard? Since many spooky cemeteries spring up on the lawns of the living during this eerie time of year, we have gathered some actual epitaphs, poems and prose, from real tombstones. You might find inspiration here for making your own entertaining headstones for your Halloween decorating.

“Here lies an honest lawyer, And that is Strange.”
- Tombstone of Sir John Strange, in England

“I am ready to meet my Maker. Whether my Maker is prepared for the great ordeal of meeting me is another matter.
- From the headstone of Sir Winston Churchill

“Stranger ! Approach this spot with gravity! John Brown is filling his last cavity.”
- on the headstone of a dentist in England

“She did it the hard way.”
- from the tombstone of actress Bette Davis

“That’s All, Folks!”
- from the headstone of Mel Blanc, voice of Bugs Bunny, Porky Pig, Elmer Fudd, et al.

“All in all, I’d rather be in Philadelphia.”
- epitaph that W. C. Fields, actor & comedian, proposed for his headstone.

“I TOLD you I was sick!”
- from the tombstone of a well known hypochondriac, Key West, FL

“Here lies the body of Emily White. She signaled left, and then turned right.”

“Here lies Groucho Marx
and Lies and Lies and Lies
P.S. He never kissed an ugly girl”

“John Edwards who perished in a fire
None could hold a candle to him.”

“Here lies Lester Moore.
Four slugs
From a forty-four.
No Les
No More.”
- found on a old headstone in a western cemetery

“Returned – Unopened”
- on the headstone of a spinster postmistress in North Carolina

“Owen Moore
Gone away
Owin’ more
Than he could pay.”
- a tombstone in Battersea, England

“She always said her feet were killing her
but nobody believed her.”

“Here lies an Atheist
All dressed up
And no place to go.”

“Here lies John Timothy Snow,
Who died fighting for a
Lady’s honor
(She wanted to keep it).”
-headstone in Tombstone, Arizona

“Well, I’ve played everything but a harp.”
- from the headstone of actor Lionel Barrymore

“Involved in a plot.”
- from the tomb of poet and satirist Dorothy Parker

Carving: Not Just for Pumpkins Anymore!

Annie — Thu, 27 May 2010 17:04:04 +0000

It’s summer here in the U.S., but we like to keep our Halloween skills sharp. We’d really like to try out some new pumpkin carving techniques that we’ve seen, but pumpkins aren’t in season. Then, we remembered a summer cookout we attended some years ago, where they used a carved watermelon lantern as a centerpiece. This lantern was carved with a tropical scene; palm trees and a setting sun, and as the day lengthened into evening, it provided a welcoming glow to the party.

That memory got us thinking about what other kinds of fruit and vegetable carving might be possible, and so we began looking around for ideas. Here are some of the wonderful, amazing and, wow, sometimes unbelievable ideas that we found!

Watermelon seems to be a good alternative to pumpkin carving. They have roughly the same kind of anatomy: sturdy skin, thick rind and soft, scoopable “guts”. The great part of carving watermelon, is that the inside is edible, while a pumpkin’s is not. We found a lot of great ideas for watermelon carving, from simple to very intricate.

Just as in pumpkin carving, the skin of the watermelon can be cut away entirely, pierced, or removed in layers. In this example, cutting through the green rind to expose the red meat of the melon, makes a striking contrast. The addition of the carrot beak and olive eyes, attached with toothpicks, complete the look of this fruit sculpture. We think this would be a delightful centerpiece for a summer graduation party!

We can only imagine the time and planning that went into this incredible carving. It might not be for beginners like us, but it’s so beautiful, we just had to include it to show you the possibilities. Our research indicates that you should start small, so we will be practicing on potatoes until we are good enough to attempt something of this magnitude! We are certainly looking at watermelon in new and exciting ways!

Melons aren’t the only thing we want to try carving! When we were young, we remember visiting an antique store, where we found the most wonderful doll. It was an old woman with a shawl, and her face was so perfectly wrinkled, and almost leathery. The store owner told us that she was a dried apple doll. We did the research at the time, learning how to carve and dry the apples to make the “shrunken heads” that can be hung and used as eerie decorations at Halloween, as well as the basis for these homemade art dolls. Unfortunately, we had many interests at the time, and our plans for an army of shrunken apple heads got lost in the shuffle. These images might be just what it takes to get us back on that track! These to require patience, however, since the apples can take 4-6 weeks to dry completely.

There’s not a lot of carving involved in making this flock of sheep from cauliflowerr florets, olives and black-eyed peas for the eyes. We haven’t been able to figure out what the legs are made of yet, so please, if you have any ideas, let us know! We do know that these are excellent after school snacks, served with a little dip. The kids love to make them, too!

There are hundreds of ideas out there for fruit and vegetable carving! So, if you are like us, and need to keep your Halloween skills up to snuff, or if you’re just feeling a need to be artistic with produce, check around the internet for more wonderful and whacky ideas for carved fruits and vegetables. We have to leave you with one final watermelon carving, because it is PERFECT for Halloween and you know, that is our passion. Ladies and Gentlemen, and Zombies of all ages, we give you…the watermelon BRAIN!!!!

How To Create a Backyard Haunted House

Annie — Fri, 21 May 2010 18:22:12 +0000

Whether you are planning a Halloween party, or providing entertainment for your neighborhood trick or treaters, the holiday would not be complete without a haunted house. Providing a scary place with surprises around every corner will attract more kids than a bag of goodies you could hand out. There are a few things to consider when planning your haunted space, and we have listed some here, along with suggestions on how to achieve spooky on a budget!

Choose a theme. This should include consideration of the age of the children who will be touring your haunted space. Younger children may be frightened of some effects that will delight older children. There are three kinds of haunted house attractions to include: the kind that startle, the kind that set a scary atmosphere, and the kind that just gross everyone out. The path should include many sharp turns, and your attractions should be positioned just around the corners for maximum effect.

Fences, porch and large trees in the backyard will supply the base for the walls for your haunted space. Sturdy clothesline can be strung between the house and these elements, with poles for support every six feet. Old sheets, pinned to the clothesline, that reach to the ground will make great corridors. You can purchase these at second hand stores very inexpensively. The sheets can be spray painted in dark, spooky colors and patterns, to add to the atmosphere. Provide lighting by using strings of Halloween lights, usually available in purple and orange, to cast an eerie glow. Black lights and strobe lights will also help set the mood, and still give enough light to safely navigate your haunted maze. Make sure that you include an open area, partway through, both as a feature, and to provide an “escape” for kids who might become too frightened to continue. This open area is the perfect place to build your haunted graveyard. Using plastic headstones and body-sized patches of potting soil, make “fresh” graves. Use plenty of fake spider webs on all your outdoor elements to add to the creepiness.

Scary props can be purchased, rented, or homemade. Stuff clothing to make dead bodies. Stuff a cloth bag to make a head and add a scary mask for personality. Alternate these with the occasional volunteer, dressed as zombies or vampires, who can reach out and startle your visitors. Use Halloween sound effects, or music CD’s to add to the mood. A well-placed fog machine will help create that perfect haunted atmosphere, and will also disguise some of the normal, everyday things that might remind your guests that they are just in your backyard, not the haunted grounds of Dracula’s castle.

Some things to remember:

1. Encourage visitors to stay on the marked path, both for safety and to keep them from pulling down your walls & props.

2. If using dry ice, instead of a fog machine, make sure it is only handled by adults, since exposure to skin can cause injury.

3. Have volunteers positioned along the path who can help children “escape” if they become too frightened to continue.

4. Place old pieces of carpet over extension cords, to prevent tripping.

5. Remember to keep your scary scenes dimly lit to add to the fright.

6. If using jack o’lanterns as decorations or lighting, use battery operated lighting in them, to reduce the chance of a fire hazard.