Curly the Farmhouse Pig

From pumpkin to porch

1. 1

   Prep the pumpkin and pick your window

   Choose a tall, round pumpkin with a smooth patch on one side roughly the size you want the pig. Cut a lid or, better, a wide access hole in the back so you can reach the inside and add an LED later. Scoop the guts and thin the carving wall from the inside to about one inch so light passes through more easily. A consistent inner wall makes even shading much simpler.

2. 2

   Transfer the pig design

   Tape your stencil flat over the smooth area, snipping the edges so it hugs the curve. Poke closely spaced dots along the body outline, the snout, the ears, the four legs, and the curly tail. Remove the paper and connect the dots lightly with a washable marker. Keep the pig centered so the legs sit above the widest part of the belly.

3. 3

   Shade the body for the glow

   With a lino or ribbon scraper, gently skin off just the outer orange layer inside the pig's body outline. Work in even passes and keep the depth uniform so the whole shape lights up the same. Pause and shine a flashlight from inside to spot dark patches, then scrape those a little more. Leave the snout, ears, legs, and tail alone for now so they stay dark against the glow.

4. 4

   Add the small dark details

   Use the tip of a detail knife or a small gouge to lightly define the snout ring, the inner ear line, and the curl of the tail. These are shallow etch lines, not full cuts, so they stay dark and crisp. Keep the ears and tail attached to the surrounding skin with small bridges so nothing snaps off. Go slow, since thin details are easy to overcut.

5. 5

   Make the accent cutouts last

   If you want brighter spark points, cut fully through only tiny spots such as the eye and a sliver at the tip of an ear. Do these openings last, after all the shading is done, so the pumpkin wall stays sturdy while you carve. Cut with slow, sawing strokes and let the blade do the work. Keep cutouts small so the soft body glow stays the star.

6. 6

   Light it and photograph

   Set a battery LED inside, warm white or amber for a cozy barn feel, and skip open candles near thin walls. Rotate the light until the belly and back glow evenly, adding a second LED if one corner stays dim. Wipe off any marker lines with a damp cloth. Shoot at dusk on a porch or farm stand step to catch that warm lantern shine.

Written with AI to match this design