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Pumkin Carvings

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12K views 46 replies 15 participants last post by  RCIAG 
#1 ·
Hey i wonted to start a Thread for any Pumpkin Carvers out there.. I didn't see one on the forums so i hope I'm not duplicating this thread..

Here is a sample of the pumpkins i have carved over the years and patterns i drew out:

My Black Pearl Pattern and carving

http://i117.photobucket.com/albums/o56/viper141/Carvings/BlackPearl2006-2.jpg

Scary Scarecrow carving

http://i117.photobucket.com/albums/o56/viper141/Carvings/DSCF3283.jpg

Just a Pirate skull and Cross Bones

http://i117.photobucket.com/albums/o56/viper141/Carvings/DSCF1928.jpg

Just a basic Haunted House

http://i117.photobucket.com/albums/o56/viper141/Carvings/DSCF3288.jpg


Please if you need any patterns or help let me know as i will be happy to assist you in any matter... I have about 3Gigs of HD space (and growing) dedicated to Pumpkin carving patterns from kid easy to extremely hard. My patterns vary in subject from Disney to military and all the in between's...
 
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#2 ·
Well hello there! While I am no expert, I too take my pumpkin carving very seriously. Every year I try to out-do myself by either doing a really intricate pattern or something really unique. Usually I don't copy a pattern directly. Here's a few things from my past...

My big idea last year was a spin-off of the cannibal pumpkins with the big pumpkin eating the little pumpkins. I created the Revenge Pumpkin by having the little pumpkins gnawing on the big pumpkin.


I'm not sure what to do this year. I've always wanted to do a Headless Horseman. Or should I try something with shading like you see the experts do.

Thanks!
 
#3 ·
Hey Vampire nice to see a fellow carver on board.. I have a couple of headless horseman carving stencils, if you would like to see them let me know, also i have pumpkin carving software that i use to make custom shading and carving stencils from any digital picture... Over the years i have been participating in different Halloween (primarily pumpkin carving) forums and know a lot of people that do custom work so if i cant do it i know someone who might help..
 
#7 ·
Great thread. I was just thinking of starting one as it would be a cool way to keep all the carvings together.

I haven't done any real pumpkins yet, but I've started on my horror cinema wall-of-fame display for my movie theater haunt. These are the tiny little craft foam pumpkins about the size of sugar pumpkins.

Sam from Trick-r-Treat


Bonejangles from The Corpse Bride


Zero from Nightmare Before Christmas


Stay Puft Marshmallow Man from Ghostbusters
 
#8 ·
Hey Witchymom those are some great carvings..... I do have some witch templates if your interested i would be more than happy to pm them to you...

Also with most if not all carvings no matter how complex they are you are going to need the right tools.. I found this saw on zombie pumkins a few years ago and have found it to be indispensable with fine to medium details... It was a little cheaper when i bought it but i guess inflation...

http://www.zombiepumpkins.com/shop-pro-pumpkin-carving-tool.php

You can get an idea of a great cutter and i know exacto has a set like this but made with steel and you can get it at any hobby shop... I like the wood as it easier to handle when your hands are wet.. I hope this helps and would love to see your carving after the Holiday...
 
#11 ·
wow excellent thread as i am in my second year to carving a pumpkin it will help seeing other chef-d'oeuvre !
here is my little attempt to carve some for a friend last year


mostly twilight ,new moon and a Dachshund

this year i am trying to find some ww2 related pattern to include


Frenchy
 
#17 ·
I actually do have that pattern it was originally called "Revenge" I have it in a PDF format so i will need you to PM me your emil address so i can e-mail it to you. One thing with Zombie's patterns you can only print them of the site once you join so i got the one's i printed and converted them to PDF so i'm able to keep them...
 
#19 ·
Anyone have any tips on making your own carving tools? Last year I drew a particularly intricate pumpkin design and wound up breaking several Pumpkin Masters detail saws due to the amount of curving and twisting required. I'm probably too rough on them, I don't pre-punch and I stab the saws right into the pumpkin. I wound up buying about 5 sets worth of tools during clearance but I'd rather just build my own. So far what I've done is buy a large jigsaw blade assortment (Lowes had a Skil set for about $10 with every size blade from huge to moderately small) and cut up some white water line pipe (1/4" ID, 3/8" OD) to 4" lengths. Jigsaw blades have a 1/4" base. I then used some white epoxy putty (Aqua Mend, which I can't find anymore. Everyone seems to carry J.B. Weld's Water Weld putty which is more expensive) to glue the blades into the handles. I roughed up the inside of the pipe and the ends of the saw blades so the epoxy wouldn't just break free and twist. I also bought some 3/8" ID clear tubing to use for blade guards.

The smallest jigsaw blades, however, do not seem small enough to have fine detail. I bought some coping saw blades to make smaller saws out of but they seem just as weak and/or weaker than the Pumpkin Masters version. I've also thought about filing down the small jigsaws so they're even narrower, and sharpening the tips to be able to poke them through the pumpkin. I'm sure I'll also stab myself plenty of times if I do that, though.

I'm surprised there aren't more free archives of pumpkin patterns out there. I think I'd rather keep buying Pumpkin Masters, which actually come with tools and printed patterns than pay for a membership where all I get is the image for a one-time print. I usually freehand the designs (use orange or red sharpie and erase with alcohol) onto the pumpkins anyway rather than spend the time copying and resizing patterns for pumpkins that are too big or too small, but I know most people can't do that. I prefer to go with scary faces than pictures of things.
 
#20 ·
I have a small pumpkin carving battery powered tool which uses a jigsaw or sawsall like blade a few years ago. I find it does good work for small stuff, I don't know what you have in mind, but I'm not sure if it would do really tiny stuff. Have you considered just using the blades and no handle? Maybe a box cutter? Not sure.
 
#23 ·
Well I finally carved a test pumpkin tonight with the tools I've made so far. The jigsaw blades cut much faster than the other saws. However I did run into one interesting problem, I wound up with pumpkin mush all over the place while working. Pulling out one of my sets of Pumpkin masters saws, I see that the teeth are "upside-down" (cut on the push stroke) so as to push all the goo into the pumpkin and not out onto the face. Oops. I'll have to figure out a way to turn them around. They do work -much- better as far as cutting out big things like the lid and large areas. Not so good for details, though I did manage to carve a semi-passable Revenge of the ZP into a 8" pie pumpkin. For me it's worth it to make them just to have big (4-5") handles as opposed to the tiny ones on the commercial sets. My hands cramp up.

That custom Zombie Pumpkins set is what is known as a keyhole saw That's a really nice set they have. I may wind up getting one. I also plan on trying to change some Pumpkin Masters saw tips so that they're angled and sharp and easier to push into the pumpkin. I know the commercial kits are usually intentionally duller than regular jigsaw blades so kids can't seriously hurt themselves. Some of these jigsaw blades look scary (Skil 'Ugly Saw').
 
#25 ·
I was checking out the Zombie Pumpkin forums & found out that using something called Saral transfer paper is THE way to put your pattern on your pumpkin. I've got 10 foam pumpkins of varying sizes to carve & think I've found the solution!!

I've got a ton of carbon paper here at work, how well does that work?

I've often wondered why someone doesn't make patterns that can be rubbed off onto the pumpkin, like a transfer. Or make it like those temporary tattoos, put some water on the back & it transfers right over.
 
#26 ·
I use a regular transfer paper that you can buy at an office supply store and that works really well .. You will wont a transfer paper that is smudge proof, waxless and greaseless.. plus it's a lot cheaper... I can tell you from experience carbon copying paper is the way not to go.... :eek: It'll smear all over the place.... Also transfer paper is the way to go for the foam pumpkins... but make sure to keep the pattern after the transfer because sometimes you will need to retrace free hand with a pin to get a solid image... hope this helps..
 
#28 ·
weelllllll i dont know anything about that..... All i know is that the transfer paper i bought is 8.5 x 13 and is in a package with 10 sheets one side sealed the other transfer ink... I got my at office max.... Even tho it's smudge proof if you press hard enough it will still smear your surface... My paper has this under the title of "Transfer Paper"---waxless, greaseless, smudge proof, erasable on sealed surfaces, wont bleed thru paint.. I bought this paper because i could'nt find the Saral Paper in my area and i have been really happy with it....
 
#30 ·
I ask because we have this relic of a fax machine at work & it has something like carbon paper in it, it's not smeary, kinda waxy, etc., I'll mess with it later today & see what comes of it.

If it works I may "borrow" a roll of it.;)

If not I'll hit up Michaels tomorrow, because I really can't take another year of poking holes. If all else fails, I'm gluing the patterns to the pumpkins & using the Versatool on them directly.
 
#31 ·
Another thing I've done is instead of pinning the patterns to the pumpkin, I wet the paper and let it shape itself to the face like papier mâché. Then once it dries I tape it down around the edges. The end results of this depend on the strength of the paper (will it stay together and not rip when wet?) and the ink (many printers have water resistant pigment ink for the black ink but some do not, in which case you would need to go make photocopies).

Have not had time to work on the saws project lately, will try to post updates whenever I can.
 
#32 ·
Here are mine from years past and present. Haven't started carving the real ones yet, of course:









For patterns, I take the images, photoshop them to the right size, etc., and print them out onto full size label paper. They stick to the pumpkins quite well, and I cut a few "curve slices" to fold it onto the pumpkin correctly.

I prefer that to the saral paper, as it cuts the time to transfer the image and I can see the whole image clearly
 
#34 ·
Carving Question

Need some advice. When using the foam pumpkins from Michaels do you paint them before you carve or after. And I am wanting to put a chess piece on the front. Will it look okay with just a big image carved out in the front or should I do a more intricate trace?
 
#35 ·
Need some advice. When using the foam pumpkins from Michaels do you paint them before you carve or after. And I am wanting to put a chess piece on the front. Will it look okay with just a big image carved out in the front or should I do a more intricate trace?
I f you are going to paint the funkin it'll be better to do it after you carve it.. Just tape some paper on the inside of the carving(pumpkin) to keep the paint of the interior... Amusing you use an air brush or spray can if your going to brush it than dont worry about it you'll will be ok... As far as patterns/pictures go any pattern you like will look good on on your pumpkin as long as you like... ;) The only thing i would worry about would be the scale, you don't wont a large pumpkin with a small chess piece... LOL
 
#37 ·
I worked at our fire depts. first Fall Festival & when I picked up one of the pumpkins they were selling (they were donated from a local farm) & I noticed that I had orange paint on my hands. I was all "Where did I get orange paint.....oh no....they PAINTED THE PUMPKIN ORANGE!!!" Sure enough, I turned it around & there was the orange paint flaking off, it had been spray painted orange!! Then I noticed some paint on the stem too.

This wasn't a fake one, this was a real one spray painted orange. They weren't all painted, just certain ones. You could tell because the spray painted ones had a glossy finish where the non-painted ones had a flat finish.

Not sure why they did it & I know the fire dept. didn't do it because, well, honestly I don't think it would occur to them to do it. There were more that weren't painted that had all sorts of imperfections. Just these few here & there that were painted.

Almost forgot to mention, even though I did already in another thread, used the Versatool for the first time this weekend & it. was. awesome. My only regret is that I didn't get one sooner.
 
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