Leaping Gymnast With Stars Etched Pumpkin

From pumpkin to porch

1. 1

   Pick a firm pumpkin and clean the face

   Choose a pumpkin with a smooth, wide front and few blemishes since the gymnast needs room to stretch. Wipe the carving area with a damp cloth and let it dry. A large rounded shape like the one pictured gives the leap plenty of space and lets the stars trail up onto the shoulder. Set it on a towel so it does not roll while you work.

2. 2

   Transfer the leap and stars

   Print a leaping gymnast silhouette along with a shooting star and a few small stars. Tape the pattern smoothly onto the front, easing out wrinkles over the curve. Trace the outline with a pounce wheel or poke dots along every edge with a pin, including the pointed toes and raised arms. Peel back the paper and, if the dots are faint, connect them lightly with a washable marker.

3. 3

   Outline the silhouette with a shallow score

   Using a small detail knife, score just through the skin along the entire figure and each star. Keep the blade shallow, you are marking a boundary, not cutting through the wall. Take extra care around the thin legs, pointed toes, and the tips of the arms so they stay crisp. This score line gives your peeling tool a clean edge to stop against.

4. 4

   Peel the figure for a soft glow

   Switch to a ribbon or loop tool and remove only the top layer of skin inside the silhouette, exposing the pale flesh underneath. Work in long smooth strokes that follow the length of each limb so the surface stays even. Peel to a consistent depth, roughly an eighth of an inch, so the whole figure lights up the same warm tone. Do the big body area first, then carefully clean out the narrow legs and arms.

5. 5

   Peel the stars and shooting trail

   Etch the small stars and the curved shooting-star tail the same way, keeping the trail thin and tapering. Leave narrow ribs of untouched skin between close shapes so nothing runs together. Since this is an etched design, you can skip full cutouts entirely, but if you want the largest star to pop, you may cut cleanly through just that one shape and leave the rest peeled. Step back often to check that the leap reads clearly from a few feet away.

6. 6

   Light it and take the photo

   Because nothing large is cut open, warm this pumpkin from behind or set a small LED puck inside through a lid or back hole so light bleeds through the thinned skin. Use LED lights rather than a candle, which will not glow evenly through etched flesh anyway. Try it in a dim room and adjust the light until the gymnast and stars shine soft orange. Snap your photo at night for the best contrast.