Heart-Eyed Sugar Skull Pumpkin

From pumpkin to porch

1. 1

   Pick a big round pumpkin and open the back

   Choose a tall, wide pumpkin with a smooth front face so the symmetrical design has room to breathe. Cut a hatch in the back rather than the top, which keeps the front wall unbroken for carving. Scrape the inside front wall down to about one inch thick with a loop tool so light passes through easily. A thinner, even wall makes both the scrollwork and the big cutouts cleaner.

2. 2

   Transfer the sugar skull pattern

   Tape your stencil flat against the front, snipping the edges so it hugs the curve without wrinkling. Poke the outlines with a pushpin or a transfer wheel, spacing dots close together along the tight scroll curves and heart edges. Peel the paper and connect the dots lightly with a pencil so you can see the diamond, hearts, scrolls, and teeth clearly. Double check that the left and right sides mirror each other before you cut.

3. 3

   Carve the fragile cheek scrolls first

   Start with the small floral scroll flourishes at the cheeks using a narrow detail blade. Cut these while the surrounding wall is still solid, because they are the most fragile parts once the big eyes are opened. Make short, controlled strokes and let curls stay connected to the surrounding rind at their base so they do not snap free. Take your time here, since these thin shapes are what give the skull its Day of the Dead character.

4. 4

   Cut the diamond, teeth, and nose

   Move to the diamond on the forehead and the small nose opening, keeping the little bridge that splits the nose into two halves. Carve the row of teeth along the jaw as separate slots, leaving the vertical rind strips between them so the teeth read as individual squares. Keep an adult on the sharp tools and always push the blade away from your holding hand. These medium cuts are good practice for your knife control before the largest openings.

5. 5

   Open the two big heart eyes last

   Save the large heart-shaped eye sockets for the final cuts, since removing that much rind weakens the whole face. Score the heart outlines fully, then gently push each piece inward and out through the back. If a heart is large, cut it in two halves and remove them one at a time so the wall does not crack. Clean up the edges with a light bevel from the inside to help the light spread.

6. 6

   Light it and take the photo

   Drop in a battery LED, ideally a warm flickering one, and set it low so the glow rises through the hearts and scrolls. Photograph in a dim room, on a mantel or table, with the camera slightly below the face for drama. Mist the cut edges with water and refrigerate the pumpkin overnight between showings to slow shrinking. If the scrolls start to curl, a quick water spritz freshens them.