Starfish and Seaweed Glowing Pumpkin Carving

From pumpkin to porch

1. 1

   Pick a smooth pumpkin and prep it

   Choose a pumpkin with a large, flat, blemish-free area on the front for the starfish. Wipe it clean and let it dry so your stencil sticks flat. Cut a lighting hole in the back or bottom rather than the top, which keeps the front face uninterrupted. Scrape the inside wall behind the design down to about one inch so light passes through easily.

2. 2

   Transfer the stencil

   Tape your starfish, seaweed, and bubble pattern securely to the front. Poke through the outlines with a pin or transfer tool, marking the star's arm edges, each bump, the bubbles, and the seaweed strands. Peel the paper and connect the dots lightly with a marker if it helps. Keeping the dots close together makes the fine texture easier to follow later.

3. 3

   Peel the starfish body for a soft glow

   Using a lino or ribbon gouge, skin off just the top layer of skin across the whole star body, leaving the flesh a few millimeters thin so it glows dim orange. As you clear this layer, leave each bump standing as a small raised dome so it stays slightly darker and reads as texture. Work slowly and shallowly here, since this shading step is what makes the star look three-dimensional. Do not cut all the way through anywhere on the body.

4. 4

   Deepen the arm outlines

   Go back over the deep grooves that separate and define the five arms and cut those a bit deeper than the peeled body. These deeper channels will glow brightest along the star and give it clear shape against the dim body. Keep steady, even pressure and let the light lead your eye. This two-depth contrast is the heart of the design.

5. 5

   Shade the seaweed shallow

   For the drifting seaweed strands, peel only a thin skim of skin so they stay dim and dreamy, softer than the star. Keep each strand narrow with gently curved edges so they look like they are floating in current. Leave small gaps of untouched skin between strands so they do not blur together. Resist the urge to cut through these, since their faint glow is the point.

6. 6

   Cut the bubbles last and light it

   Save the small bubble dots for the very end and cut each one cleanly all the way through for the brightest accents. Doing these last keeps the pumpkin sturdy while you work the delicate texture. Drop in an LED puck or battery light rather than a candle, since the even light shows off the shading best. Rub a little petroleum jelly on the cut edges to slow drying, then photograph it after dark on the step.