The Last of Pumpkins...

I just wanted to cover one more aspect of pumpkins before moving on to November. One of the things that is most fun about pumpkins this time of year is the carving. Growing up, pumpkins were all the same. No one thought to carve them any differently than the triangle eyes, nose, and missing teeth.

All that has changed. Through the years, carving pumpkins has become an art form. No longer do you need to cut all the way through the skin and insides -- you just cut through deep enough so that the light glows through. It's amazing what they come up with now.

Along with that, not only have the carvings taken on a whole new vista, but there is a lot of painting on the pumpkins as well. It is basically a whole new canvas for the art enthusiast to explore. There is carving as well that is more of a sculpture, and some of that work is amazing -- the pumpkin almost looks like butter, the color of it. This particular artist, Scott Cummins, has a site where you can view his work from each year. Go check it out -- he's amazing.

For this blog though, I wanted to focus only on the carving aspects. If you are interested in doing more than the simple carving of a pumpkin, there are several ways to do this. You can buy kits in the stores, or you can go online and find lots of patterns and suggestions. One site that looked pretty good for learning was Spook Master. They have a pumpkin carving 101 class that goes through the basics and explains things I never understood. Like I said...I have always been more of the triangle cut pumpkin person. (I can hear it now, but isn't she supposed to be artistic? Doesn't she paint? -- that only pertains to that aspect of my life. In many other ways I'm really not very artistic at all. It drives me crazy! ;) )


One of the best places to see examples of carved pumpkins is the Syracuse Pumpkin Walk. This is rapidly becoming an annual tradition in this part of Utah. My mother-in-law lives right next to the park where they hold it, and this year she and her husband took their great-grandchildren for a tour. It was an evening they all loved. She mentioned that it's become quite the popular event, making the wait and line over an hour long...so perhaps it's only for the die hard enthusiasts. This year they had over 1000 pumpkins -- all donated by Black Island Farms, the same one that had a corn maze I highlighted a couple of weeks ago.

I wanted to showcase some of the pumpkins that were displayed. Hopefully next year you'll have a chance to go see them in person. I always forget until afterward -- but perhaps you can make a mental note for mid-October. You won't regret it.


While some of the pumpkins have cartoon or familiar figures as their theme, some of them are quite startling.


Some also were cut more traditionally, as in this welcoming spot -- but they were still humorous and (as far as I'm concerned) take talent to do.

But this one is purely simple lines and flowing with the light. It's my favorite. Which one do you like best? You might have a contest of your own next year and see which one comes out on top.

And on a side note: The new Yourldsneighborhood radio is up! It's great fun, go check it out for clean an uplifting music 24/7!

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