During a little date-night dinner at the Cheesecake Factory I see it. While treating myself to a Scooter's latte I see it. In the aisle of the grocery store, I see it. Pumpkin-flavored everything!! Just one more thing to love about the fall. With just one more week until Halloween I plan to be showing my love for Pumpkins a lot more... and I can't wait!
- firm and healthy - don't buy one that as firm as wood because carving it will be tough, but just firm enough to be protective. Also, avoid pumpkins with bruises or nicks because it may already start to rot and is not long for this world.
- hollow sound - this is what you should hear when tapping your pumpkin because the sound you hear will indicate the pumpkin's density. The more dense, the thicker the walls will be and the tougher it will be to see the details of your carving.
- squat, round shape - the tall, oblong ones are usually stringier inside, thus making it harder to make precise cuts.
I'm not sure if I have the patience to carefully search for the 'right' pumpkin because all I'm thinking about is cutting into it! You can basically carve anything you can think of and whatever support you need can be located on the world wide web. For me, I've narrowed the field to a few designs:
- Skull
- Witch
- Monogram
- Traditional Jack 'O' Lantern face
As much as I would love to carve 4 different pumpkins, I think I'm gonna need help to narrow it down... so what would you suggest?
If you want more ideas for carving your own pumpkin, I suggest visiting The Pumpkin Lady. You can buy the exact pattern to carve on your pumpkin or you can do what I'll do and free-hand it.
