Did you know that the term "jack-o'-lantern" once was given to night watchmen who used lanterns for illumination? Jack, a common, short form for the name John, was often used as a synonym for "man." Thus, a gentleman bearing a lantern would be affectionately called a "jack-o'-lantern."
Traditionally, the turnip was carved with a face and illuminated, creating a lantern used to ward off the restless spirits who roamed the earth on All Hallow's Eve. Over time, the word "jack-o'-lantern" came to be associated with the glowing pumpkins we use to celebrate Halloween. When lighted with a candle or other light source, they gleam on porches, in yards and along walkways of homes and in towns across the United States. And during Halloween, pictures of haunted houses turn up everywhere.
This pumpkin-carving project brings together the jack-o'-lantern and the haunted house with one eerie finished product--an illuminated haunted house pumpkin home to ghosts and bats--that is as decorative as it is spooky. Carve several haunted homes and put together your own "town-o'-horrors."
Materials
- Pumpkin
- Carving saw
- Large spoon or dry-goods scoop
- Black marker
- Utility knife, craft knife, or small saw
- Cloth
- Wood coffee stirrer
- Black craft paper (optional)
- Floral wire (optional)
- Double-sided tape (optional)
- Wax paper
- Votive candle
Instructions
- Cut off the top of the pumpkin with the knife. Reserve the top for the roof of the haunted house.
- Scrape out the pulp and seeds from inside the pumpkin.
- Sketch windows and door on the pumpkin with a marker.
- Carve out the windows and door using a utility knife or small carving saw. Keep cuts straight. The neater you make your cuts, the better your design will look. Remove any pieces of pulp hanging in back of the windows and the door.
- Using a damp cloth, wipe off any stray markings remaining on the outside of the pumpkin from the marker.
- To create the chimney, cut out a rectangle from the reserved top lid of the pumpkin, and pop out the chimney piece. Break a coffee stirrer in half, and place each piece of coffee stirrer into the sides of the cut-out hole left by the rectangle. Reposition the chimney piece you cut in its hole and rest it on the coffee stirrer pieces; you want it to stand up higher than the roof so it resembles a chimney.
- Decorate the outside of the pumpkin with some craft-paper bats, cats and witches: Cut out desired shapes in duplicate. Insert a piece of floral wire between two identical shapes using double-sided tape, then insert the wire into the roof. This will give the illusion that cats are lurking, bats are flapping their wings, or witches are flying around the exterior of the haunted house. You can also insert the shapes in the windows of the house to create eye-catching silhouettes.
- Insert a long-burning votive candle into a votive holder and place it into the pumpkin. Light from the candle will shine through the windows and door of the haunted house.
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