Best way to carve a pumpkin as carver shows parents how to make things easy this Halloween

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

In a world where social media rules, we see the very best of pumpkin designs with characters and creations of all kinds. Making one yourself isn't always that easy though, which is why we've been getting some tips from a professional as we head towards Halloween.

We spoke to Christian Russell, of All Carved Out, during his two-day stint at Wigan's Roby Mill Pumpkin Patch this week, where he was busy turning squashes of all shapes and sizes into the perfect jack o' lanterns. Supermarket is selling 75p pumpkins to help families do Halloween on the cheap Where to go pumpkin picking in and around Greater Manchester for Halloween 2023 Picking a simple design obviously makes things easier - triangle eyes and mouth shape - but the correct knife is key to getting the details, says Christian, who recommends a curved paring knife found in most supermarkets. His other tips include: - When you cut the lid off, make sure you go in at an angle rather than cutting straight down.

This will avoid it falling inside the pumpkin - Scoop out the inside using a sturdy metal ice cream scoop. Make sure you get it all out for a neater finish and to prevent it going mouldy - Cutting out small wedges can create a dramatic effect - cutting out a shape from the top of the pumpkin rind without cutting all the way through.

The light will shine through these shapes - If you're carving a few days before Halloween then try to incorporate 'support pillars' into the mouth shape to stop it from collapsing too soon.