Box Lanterns and Pumpkin Carving
Light Up the Halloween Sky with These Illuminating Halloween Crafts
Oct 27, 2007
MAKING BOX LANTERNS
With these box lanterns, you'll rekindle memories of the Halloween-lantern parades of your childhood. Because the lanterns are made of cardboard, they're light enough for the little hobgoblins themselves as they travel from door to door or gather for a Halloween party. If you're using candles to illuminate them, the boxes make great fuel for a roaring bonfire at the parade's finish.
TECHNIQUE
MAKING BOX LANTERNS
1. Have your kids draw whatever scary Halloween characters they please onto a sheet of paper.
2. Trace the drawings onto the sides of a cardboard box that's small enough for your child to carry, and then, using a utility knife, cut out the design yourself. Keep small children away from knives.
3. Paint the entire box, inside and out, with black acrylic (water-soluble) paint.
4. Paste colored tissue paper on the inside of the box. This will create a stained-glass effect.
5. Line base of box with aluminum foil folded to size.
6. For little kids, affix small flashlights to the base of the box with floral clay. Older children will be able to handle the responsibility of an open flame. Secure votive candles to the base of the box with floral clay.
7. Poke two holes in each half of the top of the box. Tie a separate loop of string on either side, then tie a carrying handle of a double thickness of string that stretches across the top of the box, linking the two loops.
PUMPKIN CARVING
Artist and professional pumpkin-carver Hugh McMahon is a master of pumpkin carving techniques. One distinctive aspect of Hugh's pumpkins is that he creates "pop-ups," or pieces that are cut out but only partially popped out of the pumpkin, resulting in a three-dimensional effect.
TECHNIQUE
CARVING PUMPKINS
Materials:
- Paper
- Pumpkin, such as a Howden
- Water-soluble marking pen
- Paring knife
- Utility knife
- Bulb socket
- 3-to-4-inch disposable aluminum tart tin
- Light bulb, 60 watts or less
Directions:
- Cut out a hole in the bottom of the pumpkin large enough to fit the bulb socket. Remove the seeds, scraping out the interior completely.
- Sketch out a design on paper, then redraw the design on the pumpkin with a water-soluble marker. Cut out "pop-ups" from the pumpkin with a utility knife or a paring knife. Carve out details of designs with a utility knife.
- To illuminate, punch a hole in the center of the tart tin. Insert a bub socket through the hole and screw in a low-wattage light bulb. Place under the pumpkin and plug in. Spray the finished pumpkin with lemon juice. If possible, refrigerate the pumpkin when it is not on display. The pumpkin will last about 4 to 6 days.
SPECIAL THANKS
