I am always impressed by the amazing jack o lantern photos I see around this time of year. Some awesome shading effects are possible with the right tools and an enviably deep skill set. I've got the tools (pretty much) and the interest, but knowing that I really didn't have an idea for how sculpting in the medium of “pumpkin” would feel I figured I would stick with a more traditional design instead of swinging for the fences this year.
In addition to a knife and a set of manual woodworking tools I used a Dremmel and a power drill for this attempt. I used the advice of a couple of websites out there that you should wrap your power tools in a loose plastic bag to prevent them from getting all covered in goo. I was a little worried about overheating the tools but I was a lot more worried about being involved in what I think the kids nowadays call an “electrocution fail”. Short bursts with the Dremmel ensured I didn't overheat it.
My dull scroll saw bit was good for smoothing out rough areas but I was surprised that a much sharper bit would be required for quick, controlled cuts. It was taking far too long to cut the main outlines and the one time I tried to rush it I nearly cut through Jack's septum when the tool got away from me. From that point on I used a 3/8-inch bit in the drill to perforate the large cutout areas and a knife to remove the bulk.
The area between the nostrils is about 3/8 inch wide which. I have learned, is about as thin as I want to go, structurally speaking, but it is thin enough to see through even without a lot of light...
Blah, blah, blah... You know, this started off boring and is flaming out quickly. I am glad I learned what I learned, but let's just take this article to see the rabbits.
The pumpkin turned out fine. My two-year-old was at first delighted with the pumpkin and then, 10 seconds later, was terrified of it. He said “I don't want the jack o lantern to sing,” then buried his face in my shoulder. Although I couldn't agree with him more, having to sincerely reassure someone that a pumpkin is not going to spontaneously burst into song is definitely one of the stranger things I have done in my life.
Later, after trick-or-treating we learned that a single Reese's Peanut Butter cup enables a toddler to vibrate their molecules through solid matter.
Bathtime was fun.
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