Rotting Zombie Skull Sculpted Pumpkin

From pumpkin to porch

1. 1

   Choose a tall pumpkin and map the face

   Pick a large, firm pumpkin with a smooth flat area on the front, since you need thick wall to sculpt into. Leave it whole rather than gutting the top, or cut a small access hole in the back later. Sketch the skull with a washable marker, placing the deep eye sockets high, the collapsed nose in the center, and the gaping jaw low. Keep everything inside the front face so the ribbed sides stay as a border.

2. 2

   Rough in the main skull planes

   Using a large ribbon or loop tool, shave away the skin and a shallow layer of flesh across the whole face to establish the raised brow, cheekbones, and jaw. Work in broad passes and step back often to check the big forms before adding detail. Leave the highest points, the brow ridge and cheekbones, closest to the original surface. Take your time, since you cannot put pumpkin back once it is gone.

3. 3

   Dig the eye sockets and collapsed nose deep

   Switch to smaller loop tools and carve the eye sockets much deeper than feels natural, hollowing under the brow so they hold heavy shadow. Do the same for the triangular nose cavity, angling the cut inward and upward. These deep pockets are what sell the dread without any light at all. Stop before you break through the wall, keeping a solid backing so the sockets stay dark.

4. 4

   Sculpt the ropes of rotting flesh

   With a fine detail loop, carve the sagging ropes and folds that drape across the cheeks and around the jaw. Work in flowing lines that hang downward, leaving thin raised ridges between your grooves to look like torn, drooping skin. Vary the depth so some folds catch light and others fall into shadow. This is the sculpted texture that makes it look rotting rather than clean bone.

5. 5

   Carve the gritted teeth with bridges intact

   Outline the gaping jaw and shape each tooth as a raised block, carving the gaps between them only partway down rather than punching through. Leave small bridges of pumpkin at the top and bottom of the tooth row so the teeth stay strong and attached. Round and nick a few teeth so they look worn and grim. Skin-peel the teeth so they glow a shade paler than the shadowed mouth around them.

6. 6

   Add light, seal, and photograph

   If you want a faint inner glow, cut one small vent through the deepest part of an eye socket and mouth from the back, saving these full cutouts for last. Drop in a battery LED, never a candle, so the flame cannot catch the thin sculpted ridges. Rub cut edges with petroleum jelly to slow drying and keep the folds crisp. Shoot it in daylight first to show off the shadow work, then again with the LED on.