Ornate Boo Word Pumpkin With a Friendly Ghost

From pumpkin to porch

1. 1

   Pick a firm pumpkin and transfer the design

   Choose a large, evenly rounded pumpkin with a smooth face and no soft spots, since relief work needs solid flesh to sculpt into. Tape your pattern flat against the front and poke the main outlines with a pin or transfer tool. Mark the letters, the ghost, the leaves, and the scroll lines so you can see how they all connect before any cutting. Since this is a sculpted design, you can carve it with the pumpkin left whole and lit later through a small back door.

2. 2

   Score all the outlines first

   With a fine detail knife or a V gouge, trace along every outline you transferred, cutting only about a quarter inch deep. Outline the letters, the ghost, each leaf, and the curling scrolls. This gives you clean edges to sculpt against and keeps the raised shapes from tearing when you lower the background. Take your time on the tight curls, using short controlled strokes rather than one long pull.

3. 3

   Lower the background around the letters

   Switch to a wider loop or ribbon tool and peel away the skin and top flesh in the spaces between the raised shapes. Work down to a shallow, even depth so the BOO letters, ghost, and leaves stand proud of the recessed background. Keep the walls of each shape slightly slanted rather than undercut so they stay strong. Leave thin bridges of flesh where a scroll meets a letter so the whole design holds together.

4. 4

   Shade and round the raised shapes

   Now sculpt the surfaces that stay raised. Gently round the edges of the fat letters and shave the ghost so its body swells forward and its trailing edge thins out. Scrape veins into the oak leaves and soften the scroll tips so they look like they curl. Vary how much skin you remove to create light and dark tones, since bare flesh reads lighter than untouched skin.

5. 5

   Add the ghost face and fine details

   Carve the ghost's two round eyes and open mouth a little deeper than the rest so they read as soft shadows. Clean up any ragged spots along the letters and refine the scrollwork curls. Step back often and check that the word still reads clearly from a few feet away. Brush out all the shavings so the recessed background stays clean.

6. 6

   Light it and photograph it

   Set a battery LED puck or string inside, reaching it through a small hole cut in the back or bottom so the sculpted front stays intact. A warm white light makes the peeled background glow dim orange while the raised letters catch the edge light. Rub a little petroleum jelly on the cut edges to slow drying and keep the design crisp. Shoot photos both lit in the dark and unlit on the counter, since this design looks great either way.