EXTREME
Photograph by Mike Thomas
Hack-O-Lanterns
Pumpkin-carving websites are usually family friendly, but a few take pumpkin carving to the extreme. Probably the funniest one out there is extremepumpkins.com, which proffers advice for avoiding the tedium of classic carving.
Wielding jigsaws, routers, Sawzalls, and the like, Tom Nardone and his buddies hack their way through literally dozens of pumpkins. The site includes sections like “Power Tools” and “Fire, Light, and Pyrotechnics,” which advise such things as “What a Regular Person Would Use. Why You Shouldn’t” and “Road Flares. Awesome.” This site will give you all the resources you need to hack up, blow up, and light up your pumpkin. He also has tips on preserving your jack-o-lantern, his favorite roasted pumpkin seed recipe, and an amazing gallery of images from his popular pumpkin carving contest (check out the Balinese pumpkin for a little global perspective).
Other websites add to the mix by suggesting linoleum tools for surface detail, handsaws, and different Dremel tool tips to use. Everyone has a different opinion on his or her favorite tool, but most agree that since pumpkins are 90% water, torching is nearly impossible. Extreme Pumpkin Carving (Fox Chapel Publishing) is also the title of a recent book by Vic Hood, an authority on historical restoration, and Jack Williams, a woodcarving expert. These guys disdain power tools (you sacrifice control), but do amazing things with everything from kitchen knives to carving gouges and chisels. Think gargoyles at Notre Dame rather than foaming brains and flaming heads. The book has two step-by-step projects as well as instructions for many more, plus tips on bringing out the Renaissance craftsman in you.
And if you get hit with post-Halloween depression, there’s always Funkins, a carvable styrofoam pumpkin alternative, or the world of competitive gourd carving to sustain you until next October.
For more great pumpkin-carving resources go to makezine.com/03/pumpkin.
Arwen O’Reilly is MAKE’s editorial assistant.