Pumpkin Carving & Painting: 9 Creative Decor Ideas for Fall & Halloween

1. Fall is Here!: Maybe you're someone that has always wanted to create your own pumpkin decorations, but you never really knew where to start. In this class, I'll provide comprehensive step by step guidance, encouraging you to explore all the possibilities first, and then I'll help you choose the decoration method that aligns best with who you are. To begin, you'll learn the basics of fallowing out your pumpkins. I'll teach you efficient ways to do it and a few essential disinfecting tips to make them last longer. Focusing mainly on painting and carving techniques, you'll have the opportunity to choose one or combine both methods. This will enable you to use one single pumpkin in many creative ways, allowing you to save time and money. In case we haven't crossed paths yet, my name is Floama. I'm an illustrator and surface pattern designer that also loves exploring all crafts imaginable. We'll explore many styles. Understanding that decoration during the fall doesn't have to be only spooky, but it can be, in fact, elegant, cozy, and cute. Although if you are into spooky, and a horror fan like me, you will not want to miss the Halloween special I made for you. I'll teach you how to combine all methods covered in this class, bring them together to craft many variations of the classic Jacko Lantern, and then added bonus of diorama scenes to wow your family and friends. In case you don't feel comfortable starting from scratch, you'll have access to my templates in the resources section for both carving and painting, and I'll also be teaching you how to transfer them onto your pumpkin surface. So if you're ready to carve out some creative time with me, I'll see you in class. 2. Your Pumpkin Project: For your class project, you'll be sharing a picture of at least one pumpkin decorated by you. And don't worry, no advanced skills are required for this. You only need to have the desire to create. So if you're someone with a creative spirit, this class will be perfect for you. Together, we'll design a plan so that you can choose the creative direction that will make you the most excited and the most comfortable. We'll start by covering the basics on how to carve a pumpkin and how to get it all wrapped up so that we can work on it later on. However, if carving isn't really your cup of tea, you'll be delighted to know that painting is going to be our second method. Whether you prefer to give your pumpkin a different color than its traditional orange, or you want to create a captivating pattern using markers directly on it, we'll cover all possibilities and explore countless ideas together. Finally, as I mentioned before, we'll save the best for last with a glowing Halloween special. So if you're a fan, get ready for an unforgettable and magical experience. In each lesson, I'll specifically talk about the tools that you'll need and all the alternatives that you can use, emphasizing the importance of safety when handling sharp tools. Additionally, I've included my own tools that are featured in this class in the resources section in case you want to get them yourself for your own project. There, you'll also find the templates that you can use if you need a bit of help with the initial designs. So if you're ready, I'll see you in the next video where we'll dive in and get ready to harvest. 3. Pumpkin Hunt Plan: I have to admit, I tend to get overly excited around this time of year because when I was a kid I didn't have the chance to experience all the frenzy around Fol decor and Halloween. Having moved to the USA recently, I find myself in a state of childlike wonder, discovering all the enchanting aspects of this season for the very first time. You may already have an idea of what you want to create, or maybe you're open to all possibilities. In either case, let's write down a few notes before we go pumpkin hunting, so that we can be a bit more intentional about our search. So let me walk you through my thought process as we plan our pumpkin journey together. I'll teach you how to decide which pumpkins you may want to get. The first thing we're going to decide is which method we're more interested in. Is it carving, is it painting, or perhaps both? Additionally, let's consider whether we're aiming for cute decor exclusively, or are we also into the idea of creating something spooky for Halloween? The next decision involves size and quantity. Do we envision our pumpkin to be displayed outdoors and to be visible from a distance? In that case, it should be on the medium to larger side. Keep in mind, this also means that it'll most likely be heavy. For this same reason, whether it's indoors or outdoors, try to think if you have any designated spot where you won't need to move it frequently. But if that's not what you're going for, maybe are you leaning more towards a cute pumpkin that you can just place on a shelf, the kitchen counter, or your desk, and maybe you just want to relocate it as you please. If that's the case, then a smaller one would work better. Another question that you can ask yourself is, do you want to work with only one pumpkin, or are you considering a group of them maybe to add more variety? Now, here's a bit of a reassurance step. Remember, these choices are not set in stone. There may be a lot of back and forth and that's perfectly normal, especially if this is your first time attempting to the core Pumpkin taking note is something we're doing to help us stay organized, but it's good for our ideas to evolve as we move forward, especially when we actually go see the pumpkins in real life. And allowing ourselves this flexibility is a very important step of the process. For now, we'll just relax, write down whatever comes to mind and we'll go from there. Now let's talk a little bit about color. As I was telling you before, moving to the Northeast of the US. Introduced me to a deep appreciation for the vibrant colors of the fall. That's why my advice is to try to get inspired by the beauty that each of these natural elements offers. Take advantage of it. Consider selecting pumpkins with uniquely colorful patterns for carving. Draw inspiration from the majestic foliage in transition when thinking of a color palette for our painting lesson. Now let's think of where we're going to get our pumpkins. Of course, the first thing that comes to mind is grocery stores, right? I mean, oftentimes that's the most convenient option. These pumpkins will be typically suitable for our needs and come at a standard price. But I have to say, all pale in comparison to the ones you'll find when exploring local farms or pumpkin patches. And this leads me to the next step, which is leave room for surprise. Every single year, I force myself to leave enough room for surprise because I know that there will always be better options than what I imagined or expected. Having said that, experience demands that I teach you a few things to watch out for. First of all, shape, the shape of your pumpkin is going to be different depending on where you get it from. If you're getting them from local farms, you'll likely found the rounder and better looking ones, which I personally prefer. On the other hand, grocery store pumpkins tend to have a longer shape. I believe this is due to the way they're transported. Maybe they get all bunched up in a truck and this potentially gets them somewhat squashed, if you will. However, a flatter and longer shape can be used to your advantage if you prefer to add lettering or a continuous pattern to your design. Another thing to watch out for is cuts. Check your pumpkins for knee piercing holes, openings or scratches on their surface. Any damage can service an entry point for bacteria and make them start rotting. The next thing to keep in mind is that pumpkins may come with a bit of texture on their skin. Be mindful particularly of the presence of calluses. You may be able to work around them if you're carving them, but if you're planning to paint them, try to opt for pumpkins with the smoothest surface you can find. Now let's expand a bit on rotting risk because this is pretty important. As I brought to your attention earlier, cuts and holds are the primary culprits for fast decay. But here are a few more things to consider As a rule of thumb, it's important to examine the stem for signs of mold. If it's already moldy, it's best to avoid that pumpkin as we would be starting off on the wrong foot. Right grocery store pumpkins may be more susceptible to cuts and anything that's displayed outdoors can be exposed to rain, which may in turn result in rotting soon after you bring your pumpkins home. If all of the other things on this list, check out. The only thing remaining to ensure and determine whether your pumpkin will last is checking for firmness. Now we have more than enough information to go pumpkin hunting right Before you go, take a moment to gather any final thoughts or ideas. But remember, leave enough room for surprise. I'll see you at the pumpkin patch. 4. Harvest: In this lesson, we'll go pumpkin hunting and we're going to learn how to select the proper ones for each goal. Well, I do have a few big ones that are very traditional looking. Let me show you some of the smaller ones to ignite your creativity and give you some inspiration before you go on your own search. I'm no pumpkin expert, but it's important to remember that the world of pumpkins extends far beyond the classic orange types. Take a look at this one. This is a pumpkin that's very compact and round. As you can see, it features a very unique yellow and orange pattern. This in itself pushes me to choose it for our carving lesson. I obviously would not want to waste it by covering it with paint right besides its surface wouldn't really work for that purpose. See, it has a few calluses here and there. My plan is to just carve this out when you're going for your own pumpkins. Don't forget about squashes and gourds. I stumbled upon this one at a pumpkin patch in a local farm. As you may be aware by now, I'll always encourage my students to choose the most unique options to start with beautiful looking pattern. But not the typical round shape, which means it won't naturally stay still. As you can see, when I place it down, it rocks a bit. We'll need to carve it in a way that complements its unusual shape. This is a very typical looking pumpkin, ideal for both carving and painting, thanks to its smooth surface. I think I'll save this one for a mini jacko lantern. I may try to remove this little texture that it came with. I see that it's perfectly round on one side and someone flatter on the other. I could even contemplate the idea of carving side A and painting side B to cover that texture. All right, here's a personal favorite. Take a look at all these odd looking warts. This is unquestionably Halloween. Must be, don't you think? I mean, just look at it. It even has some callouses which I could try to remove, but quite frankly, in my opinion, that only adds to its spooky nature. Of course, I'm going to save this one for carving, besides imagine trying to paint over all these words. It would take forever, so we're keeping it as is, preserving its natural colors. Here I have more pumpkins with naturally captivating patterns, something you don't see every day. I may even use them as the core and keep them just the way that they are if they turn out to be too small for carving. Another feature to be on the lookout for is those curly stems reminiscent of Cinderellas, pumpkins. But the closest thing I could find to that was this gracefully arched stem. Unfortunately, for the most part, the rest of the stems looked pre, featureless and short. Finally, take a look at this. I found this one at another local farm. This is by far the most peculiar one I've ever seen. I mean, what even is it is it a pumpkin or a giant mushroom? I could even imagine transforming it into a miniature house, despite the stem getting a bit messed up during the right home. And despite the farmer thinking that it was the ugliest looking one, I couldn't help but bring it home About that car ride. You can learn from my mistakes. Make sure you place your pumpkins in a bag, a box, or secure them in a spot where they won't tip over or roll around. If you toss them in your trunk, the odds of them tumbling around and potentially damaging their stems are going to be pretty high. And this can unfortunately lead them to rot fast, which is the last thing that we want. Now that we have sorted all of our pumpkins, we're going to move on to the next step, Getting them all prepped up, that means disinfecting and cleaning them. Join me in the next video where we'll tackle these tasks together. 5. Prep & Disinfect: It's time to freshen up our pumpkins and get them prepped for the next stage. While this step might not be the most exciting one, it shouldn't take too long, and it will ensure our pumpkins last longer. For this segment, you have a few choices. You can always use a damp rag or paper towel to clean your pumpkin, but I'm going to be using a hot and go outside to do this, since I've got a decent amount of them. A small brush or an old toothbrush could come in really handy for those nooks and crannies where dirt can hide, disinfect. We'll prepare a water and bleach solution. If you happen to prefer alternatives to bleach, you can explore solutions using vinegar or peppermint. While I have not personally tested them myself, there are plenty of online resources that may be worth trying. It may go without saying. But please remember this. It is essential to be cautious with your clothing and any surfaces your pumpkin touches when you're working with this solution. Right after I came back from my harvesting quest, my pumpkins looked like this. Pumpkins that come from farms will typically carry more dirt compared to their grocery store counterparts. But regardless of their origin, both types will have a lot of contaminants on their surface that we cannot even see. Plus the grocery store ones may even have labels you have to get rid of. Since we'll be either carving or painting them, our hands will always be in close contact with them. Let's make sure we end up with a thoroughly clean surface. Once I'm done washing off all the dirt, I'll let my pumpkins air dry for a while or gently pat them dry with a lint free rag or towel. Next, we'll proceed to disinfect the skin. As I mentioned earlier, I've prepared the solution in this spray bottle with one liter of water and a four teaspoon of bleach. Of course, you can adjust the proportions to half the amount or less if you're only disinfecting one single pumpkin because of the bleach, I suggest wearing gloves for this step. We'll spray the entire surface and let it sit for about two to 3 minutes, depending on where you intend to put your pumpkin. Next, you may choose to rinse the bleach off, as I did, and allow it to air dry or gently pad it dry. As a general piece of advice, until it's time to display them. You should store your pumpkins in a cool, dark place indoors to keep them clean and safe from pests or animals. It's essential to prevent bacterial growth, that's our main enemy. Be sure to save the solution in this bottle for later because we'll be using it again in the carving lesson. Okay, now that the most boring part is sober, we're going to move on to the next video where I'll teach you how to make a few simple sketches that will help you achieve greater clarity in your project you see while cleaning our pumpkins. We also have the opportunity to observe them more in detail, perhaps familiarizing ourselves with our canvases in new ideas. So let's start bringing them to life in the next lesson as we wrap up the planning stages of our class. 6. Sketching: In this lesson, our ideas will become shapes. Our first approach involved taking notes, and now it's important to keep them close as we attempt to visualize them and bring them to the next level. As you're probably aware, you can find so many templates online on how to carve a pumpkin. In the resources section, I included my own templates that you can use exclusively for this class. But if you're here and you know me, you know that I'm not going to push you, but I'm definitely going to encourage you to create your own unique design. Given that this doesn't have to be hard or super detailed at all. I think that by giving you a few tips on how to get started. We can find enough inspiration to carve out a unique looking pumpkin that you'll have created fully from scratch. And then you can proudly show it around, knowing that it's your very own creation. In order to do that, we're going to sketch out a few ideas before we get our hands. As I said before, nothing is final yet. So let your mind wander. We'll hold off on any final decisions for a little while longer. I envisioned painting one of my pumpkins with some florals, branches, and wholesome fall elements. And I would also love for another one of my big pumpkins to showcase an elegant pattern. For a simpler rendition, we can gather leaves and use them as our very own template. If the leaves appear too delicate to work with directly, you can consider scanning them or taking a picture and printing them out. I'll teach you how to transfer them and create an adorable pattern on the spot. In fact, in an effort to be resourceful, I'm going to make my elegant looking pumpkin have a side B that looks like this. Now, if you dare to try free styling, but you also want to keep it simple, we can choose a smaller pumpkin and paint big flowers on it. For carving, we can try a small to medium sized pumpkin, creating holes of different sizes, and maybe even try incorporating free hand shapes that look like petals. When we get to the carving lesson, I'll show you the specific tools I plan on using for this particular design. However, you may be able to simply use your drill for it. Now, for the Halloween special, in my notes, I wrote that I will set aside two large pumpkins and a few smaller ones. After the inevitable back and forth that I was talking about before, I now know I definitely want to also paint one of them. I plan to start with a bold Halloween lettering in the middle and create a spooky yet enduring pattern all around it. I'm thinking ghosts, mushrooms, leaves, baths, and any other details that I can come up with. However, my advice is to always keep your pattern simple. Select a few motifs, tops, four or five, and then repeat them over and over again to avoid overwhelming the design with noise. We'll have a template for the lettering that I'll teach you how to transfer. But for the pattern, I'll be crafting it free style. And I want to encourage you to try to do the same. I want to see what comes from your own creativity. Then again, to make the most of both sides of one pumpkin, we're going to be creating a diorama on the opposite side of the pattern. For this, I'll make an opening with slightly irregular edges on one side. As long as it's big, you can try whichever shape you want. You just need to make it large enough for your arms and hands to be able to work comfortably in the core of your pumpkin. In case you've never heard the term before, a diorama is a model representing a scene with three D figures, so you can let your imagination run wild, but don't worry. We'll be going more into detail about it in the Halloween special. For my diorama, I want to add a ghost, a couple of smaller painted pumpkins with some lettering and a traditional Jacko lantern. And for an extra eerie touch, I might even incorporate a spider web in one corner. And last but not least, I must save one big pumpkin to craft the spookiest Jaco lantern imaginable. I am picturing big, menacing eyes and a white, toothy grin. Let's not forget to add a few notes about the color palette we're imagining. For the painted Halloween pumpkin, I'll be using neon colored acrylic markers, bringing my beloved UV light into the picture to help me enhance the florescent effect. I don't know if you're aware, but I'm obsessed with glow in the dark art. This one with the florals can have a light sage background. The flowers can be pink, and the leaves can be white. Given that I aim for an elegant look with this one, I imagine it having an off white background with intricate golden leaves and winding branches. The leaves on the beautiful, classic orange pumpkin can also be white, creating a strikingly bright contrast. Al right, this is the fantastic way to start. Now we have a clear picture of how many pumpkins will be decorating. I'll gather the pumpkins I designated for carving and set them aside for our next lesson, where we'll finally get our hands dirty. Get ready to learn the first step on how to carve your pumpkins. I'll see you there. 7. Hollowing Out: In this lesson, I'll walk you through different techniques to approach the very first step in the carving process, hollowing out our pumpkins. Before we begin, this is an obligatory disclaimer as we'll be working with sharp tools. Now let's quickly go over the tools you might need for this lesson. There are kits available for purchase designed specifically for carving pumpkins. I got this one for our class which includes many different carving tools and they're sturdy. The most important tools are the double sided saw and the scooper. When shopping for tools online, be sure to avoid flimsy ones or those that aren't stainless steel since they won't be very durable and might even break as you're using them. However, there's absolutely no need to buy anything new. The first time that I hollowed out a pumpkin, I simply used a kitchen knife, a large spoon, and an ice cream scoop. Because you're keeping a bowl or trash bag nearby, depending on whether you intend to save or discard the pumpkin guts and seeds. Finally, it may be helpful to use a pencil or acrylic marker to draw a guiding path before committing to any cuts. Just as a quick reminder, there's a PDF in the resources section where all these tools are listed. Okay, the first step is cutting out the lid. Let's take this first approach as an opportunity to familiarize ourselves with the tools and how they feel. Before we carve the actual design. The lid for my cute lantern design will be circular. You'll want to make your lid big enough to have space for your hands to move when hollowing out the cuts. But at the same time, not huge because you want the pumpkin to preserve its shape and structure. Plus, we don't want to take up too much space on the front where our actual design will be. To make this task easier, we can mark the path first so that we have a guide to follow as we cut. This will also help you to get a sense of how your pumpkin slid will look before making any final decisions. If we don't like it, we can simply raise and start over. It's best to avoid permanent markers, but if you use one later, I'll show you a way to wipe it off. For now, I recommend using either a pencil, a regular pen, or ideally if you have one, and acrylic paint marker. Like me, I always like using hobby knives to start creating my cutting paths gently and work on detailed areas. I poke it, as you can see, little by little, avoiding any possible sliding later on. Its blade won't be long enough to cut through the pumpkins wall. That is when we'll move on to the next tool. Be extra cautious when using a hobby knife, as they are among the sharpest tools you'll ever find. The safest way to attempt this task is to use either a back and forth or up and down motion like a saw. Regardless of the tool that you're using, this technique will give you better control over your cuts and minimizes the risk of sliding, which can be more hazardous. Above all, always take your time. This is the kind of craft where rushing won't yield the best results. Patience definitely will keep a rag or towel nearby in order to clean up any liquid that comes out of the pumpkin as you're cutting for deeper cuts in my pumpkin, if I don't have a saw, I gently position my knife in the path I previously cut with my hobby knife. Once I'm sure the tip is correctly aligned, I slowly push down. This will ensure that the knife goes in the desired direction. The small sauce included in carving kits can be one of the safest tools to use. They offer more control due to their steady up and down motion during cutting, reducing the risk of slipping to practically zero. You should still always keep your hand on the opposite side of your cutting path. It's a rule I cannot stress enough. We should now attempt to remove the lid, grab the stem, and start pulling. If it won't come off or seems stuck, make sure you have cut all the way around the lid and through the pumpkin wall. Depending on how you make the cuts, especially if your path is more complex or involves sharp turns like mine, you might not have gone all the way through or reached the tips. Carefully retrace your cuts and attempt to gently pull again until it comes free For the diorama where I don't have a step to pull from, I'm going to use a knife or even the back of a spoon as a lever or pry bar to help myself open it up and be able to separate this piece from the pumpkin. You can refine your cuts after removing the lid. For example, the doorway of my diorama pumpkin has a few rough areas that can be smoothed out using my hobby knife. At this stage, since their front will be exposed, it's a good idea to spend some time refining the edges. Now, I'm going to set the lit aside for a moment and guide you through the process of hollowing out your pumpkin. I'm not even exaggerating when I say that. The first time I attempted to hollow out a pumpkin, it was the lengthiest and most tedious part of the entire process because I did it 100% by hand. Can you believe that? Not to mention, my arms weren't too thrilled about it. With time, I learned a valuable tip that makes this task 1 million times easier. You can use a hand blender to loosen up the pumpkin guts before you remove them. To do this, we'll switch things up a bit, and in my case, I'll be heading outdoors as it can get a little messy. Keeping your hands safe, start blending the pumpkin center and the areas all around the walls as thoroughly as possible. I decided to work outdoors for this, to prevent any pumpkin bits from flying all over the place. Additionally, I recommend wearing comfortable clothing that you don't mind getting stained for this same reason. Once that's done, it's time to get a scooper or a big spoon, in order to properly hollow your pumpkin out. For larger ones, take your time and scoop out all the contents gradually. If it's a smaller pumpkin, you can simply turn it over and allow most of the loose interior to fall into a bowl, making more room to keep hollowing. Essentially, you'll want to remove any bits that look a bit like a darker shade of orange, that are mushy and soft. We basically have to keep scraping the inner walls until they appear pale and dry. Don't forget to also scrape off the lids bottom. After you're all done with the hollowing process, it's time to disinfect your pumpkin again. As we did earlier, every time you make a new cut, I advise you to scrape off anything that became loose or remains hanging and disinfect once more. This method has proven to be the most effective for me when trying to keep my pumpkins fresh. Making them last as long as possible. Now it's time to finally unlock the joy of carving your pumpkin design. Join me in the next video as we continue exploring this wonderful craft. 8. Carving Craze: All right, now for the actual carving. Finally, in this lesson, I'll teach you one of the methods for turning a pumpkin into a true work of art. These are the tools that I'll be using. We have this set of hole cutters, oftentimes used for pottery or clay. And the tool to remove the pumpkin beds that make it stuck inside the cutters. For this, I'll use a tool that came in a nail art set. But whatever you can find to use for the same purpose is fine, but avoid short objects to prevent accidental cuts. Alternatively, you can achieve similar results, carving your pumpkin using an electric drill. I know that not everyone's cup of tea is a scary jacko lantern. The first design we're going to attempt to carve together is an adorable looking one. You might be wondering, how on Earth do I create this? Well, the great thing about dots or holes is that when alone, they are among the simplest shapes you can think of. But when they come together, they can create a stunning effect, especially when the pumpkin is lit. Now let's think of it this way. Our canvas is a pumpkin, right? Even though it presents a challenge, because its surface isn't flat, there's a very clear advantage. It comes with a natural grid. You see these ridges and grooves. We should definitely leverage them. We're going to start working along this groove. You can choose to go ahead and start carving with me, or if you prefer, use a marker first to create a carving guide. Whichever option makes you feel the most comfortable, pay close attention to my technique as I gently insert the tool using a slow circular motion, almost as if I'm screwing in the tool rather than pushing it in directly. We'll alternate between small and medium sized dots. Ideally, keeping the spacing between them consistent. It doesn't have to be exact, but it's better to have them a bit farther apart than a bit too close. For this reason. When doing this for the first time, it may be preferable to make all your markings first and have a path to follow. This gives you the flexibility to change whatever doesn't look right. If you feel like your pumpkin isn't stable enough or it keeps shifting while you work, you can place rocks or some weight inside of it to keep it steady. You can use a supportive base. Okay. Next we'll imagine a line along this ridge, the left of our carved path. I'm going to make it a cute column of uniformly tiny holes. I think this will give our pumpkin an elegant touch. Now I want to mix it up and add a flower to our time. We'll begin by creating a central circle, then use the medium hole maker to mark circular shapes all around it. Take note of how I'm holding the cutter as perpendicularly as possible against the pumpkin to ensure the circles are precise and carved inward and not diagonally or to the side. This will make it easier for us to achieve a more polished outcome later. Place a candle inside our carved pumpkin. We'll enjoy fully illuminated circles preventing any unintended view of the interior walls or any obstruction in the holes. Now with the tiny cutter, I'll add delicate accents resembling polka dots, sprinkling them all around. As you can tell, my method for carving this design is a result of making conscious decisions and following a structured approach that I'm developing as I go, rather than randomly adding dots wherever I please. As you can see, these rules are very simple. But the most important thing is that they're intentional. You don't know what to add next. Sometimes jumping ahead to a predictable step gives you the time to find inspiration to solve your problem. As I'm framing our flower with a new column, I'm allowing the design to guide me. Revealing empty areas that need my attention and determining the best shapes to fill them. Allow me to share two crucial tips to keep in mind when you're working on your pumpkin. Be careful with the spacing between cuts and holes. Giving your shapes some breathing room is key. If you carve them too close, you might accidentally merge them or create larger holes than you intended. While there are certainly ways to rethink and fix your design, it's still good practice to space your shapes apart. For a cleaner and more polished look, be mindful of what needs to stay and what needs to go. Depending on how intricate your design is, some things may become tricky to distinguish. My advice is to somehow try to mark what's positive. In other words, what should stay so that you only carve out what's negative or what should go. All right, now it's time to decide what to add. Next I find the shape of this cutter very interesting having this angled edge. It inspires me to take things up a notch and create a few petals in this area, but I can't really mark them well this way. The way that I can recreate the shape is by cutting the pointed end of the petals with my hobby knife. And then complete the shape by carving a hole the usual way with the cutter. Some safety tips. When using sharp tools, always above all things, prioritize the possibility of messing up your pumpkin as it is fixable over jeopardizing the integrity of your hands. You see whenever you're cutting or carving something, the resistance suffered by the material, whether it's wood or in this case a pumpkin, can be highly unpredictable. Even when we think we can control where the cutting tool stops. Most often than not, it won't stop exactly where we aim to be 100% safe, we must always place our hand on the opposite side of the cutting path. These more intricate shapes will demand a bit more time when you're trying to remove the carved remnants. Fortunately, my pumpkin is fairly small, which allows me to keep readjusting its position when I need to, and even push the excess bits out from the inside when they get stuck. I know these petals are a bit more challenging to make. Feel free to skip them if you prefer. I just felt like adding a bit of a twist to the design by going free hand for a minute. Remember, whatever shapes you decide to add, you can always draw the outline first with a marker. To make things easier for yourself, we'll keep alternating between columns with either simple shapes or more involved motifs. Before you know it, our pumpkin will be fully carved. As you can see, establishing a method and setting some basic guidelines, like in this case, focusing on the groups and ridges to tackle one column at a time made our task way more manageable. We simply broke it down into steps. And that design that may have seemed out of reach in the very beginning of the lesson now became something that you can definitely tackle. Now it's time to disinfect our carved pumpkin. First, remember to scoop out whatever fell from the walls into the pumpkin and refine whatever is hanging inside the cuts or clogging the holes, Scrape everything out. When the pumpkin looks pale and dry, we'll spray our water and bleach solution inside and on the surface. Paying special attention to the holes we just carved. Let the solution sit for 5 minutes and allow it to air dry, or you can also pat it dry. This time we won't rinse off the solution as we want the bleach to work its magic. By the way, if you're planning on leaving your pumpkin outdoors, there are many things to consider. One, it's advised to not leave in full sunshine or freezing temperatures. Two, keep it from getting wet. Three, keep it out of reach of curious animals. As you might be in for an unexpected surprise, look at what happened to my Jack O' Lantern a few years back. Plus, if you definitely want your pumpkin to be in good shape for Halloween, you should not do this to far in advance. In fact, you may want to consider revisiting this lesson the day before Halloween to ensure that your pumpkin is as fresh as possible. Depending on how well you follow the preservation steps. Once it's carved, it'll last for up to a week. But more realistically, in my experience, they tend to last for about three to five days tops. Now that we've mastered the art of carving, let's move on to the next video, where we'll immerse ourselves in the world of pumpkin painting. I'll see you there. 9. Simply Painting: Now, if you hate the idea of carving, scooping, hollowing out, and the whole mess that comes with it, this option is for you. This way we can get a bit more involved with the designs, since these pumpkins should last a lot longer than the carved ones. On the flip side, if you loved our carving lesson and can't wait to dive in further, you can take your pumpkin to the next level by incorporating some of the painting techniques I'll be teaching you. Here are the tools we'll need for our painting lessons. Acrylic paint, all types of brushes, a pencil, transfer paper sealer, which is optional, and gathered leaves. We're going to explore three design options in the upcoming lessons that cater to all skill levels. It just so happens that my pumpkin got damaged on the right home. First I'm going to teach you how to fix the damaged stem in case this happens to you too. I found the broken pieces and simply used Gorilla glue to put them back in place, making sure to cover the cuts. In most cases, they'll just dry out. But just to be safe, I sprayed my stem with our water and bleach solution and let it air dry. A couple minutes, I've decided to start with this extra large pumpkin. I found it happens to weigh 21 pounds. Can you believe that considering its size, I thought that painting it might be a more convenient approach compared to the heavy lifting that carving it would involve to make the most out of it, I'll be giving it two sides. Side A will feature a more simple, yet adorable design inspired by autumn leaves that I gathered during my morning walks. And I'll save side B for a more elegant and sophisticated look. Some people advised to use a eiler before and after painting your pumpkin. This becomes particularly important if you plan on displaying it outdoors. I, unfortunately, could only find eilers that had toxic chemicals. I prefer to forego using them. Let's start by applying a single coat of the background color on side B. This way we can let it dry while working on side A and save some time. We'll need to apply a couple of coats at least, but let's still make sure that the first one covers as much as possible. We're skipping painting the stem for now, because as we tinker with a pumpkin and shift around, we'll need a dry spot to hold onto while everything else dries. For now, we're going to avoid working on the very bottom of our pumpkin to prevent any smudging we do. The paint may come off while we're working with all the shifting around and whatnot. This first design has been thoughtfully tailored for beginners. I specifically included a template for your convenience in the resources section. But as I always say, I want to encourage you to instill your very own ideas into your creation. Let me show you how in this class I'll be demonstrated my preferred method, which involves using transfer paper. For this specific design, we'll use gathered leaves. But since they can be quite delicate, I'll scan them first instead of using them directly as stencils. You don't need any design software to do this. Simply arrange the leaves directly in your scanner or in a plain white sheet of paper for good contrast. Scan them or take a picture, then you can print out the image a few times, alternating between regular and smaller sizes. This will create a whimsical and eye catching pattern for your pumpkin. Now we'll bring it to life on the spot. Allow me to guide you through this step by step. First, we'll cut out one of our printed leaves and a piece of transfer paper that's slightly larger to check which side is supposed to face down. Run your finger across the paper. The side that leaves some residue is the one meant to be placed against your pumpkin. We're going to use some tape to secure this in place. Next, we'll tape one of our printed leaves on top of it. I'm going to use my mechanical pencil for this transfer, but a pen may work even better. Depending on the surface of your pumpkin. Some lines may fail to transfer completely. But this looks like a clear enough outline for us to be able to paint. I chose this spot deliberately with the purpose of covering up this texture on my pumpkin. Take a minute to observe yours and determine where you can apply a similar approach. Now let's see which leaves we can use next. We're going to be selecting some of the smaller ones. And start arranging them in a way such that the leaves float together in harmony, creating a pleasant composition to look at. You can follow my lead this time. As I show you how to put this together, exploring the rules of composition and the delicate balance of negative space will be a common theme throughout this class and we'll explore it from many different angles. Dots always help be filling the gaps that may emerge as I'm adding more leaves. But notice how I'm still very mindful of the spacing among them. We can start painting now. Typically, I recommend starting with a marker or a fine tipped brush to take care of your outlines first and then proceed to filling your shapes. Oftentimes, it's tempting to just fill them in As you go, feel free to follow the approach that's more appealing to you. The smaller leaves may pose a bit of a challenge and demand extra patience. But with the right mindset, the shapes I chose for this design are overall quite manageable to paint. Once you've applied the initial code to all these shapes, let them dry for approximately ten to 15 minutes or until they feel right to the touch. After that, we'll carefully give them a second coat. If you notice that the bottom layer is being removed as you resume painting, it's best to let it dry for a bit longer. Now, we're going to allow our second coat to dry. I only needed to apply two coats to mine, but feel free to add as many as you believe are necessary to achieve a uniform color. We're going to continue to add a few more leaves using our transfer paper. As you can probably tell, I'm repeating them. But the way that I'm adding some variety is by changing their orientation. Here I'm going to free hand an additional element, a little branch with fruits. I've noticed at the end of this leaf ended up too close to my branch, I'm going to wipe off part of it. Oftentimes, this is why I choose to alternate between transferring and painting. It helps me better visualize the areas that require balance in my pattern. Outlines alone cannot possibly reveal the final contrast. I can only identify those issues once my shapes are completely filled in. As you transferred their leaves, you may have inadvertently lost some of the features that make them unique. You can take a moment to look at the outline of your leaves more closely and identify these features. By doing so, you'll be able to recreate some of your lost details in your pattern. It's steps like these that are essential for infusing your creation with a touch of personality. This, in turn, will set them apart from the rest using brushes with either longer or finer tips for the outlines, allowing me to proceed with a slower, more meticulous approach. When it comes to filling in the shapes, I opt for brushes with wider flat tips, which enable me to pick up my pace. This leaf type is one of my favorites during my walks. I always find delight in seeing them scattered on the ground, forming a carpet underneath my feet that seems to have come from a magical world of illustration. So we'll continue painting our motives until we completely cover this half of our pumpkin. Once our pumpkin is fully dry all around, we can apply one final coat, gradually covering the bottom of side B until the orange is barely visible, but no need to obsess too much trying to completely hide it, as this part of the pumpkin is typically not in view while allowing that to. We're going to work on pumpkin number two in the next video. 10. Freestyle Painting: In this lesson, we'll explore the art of freestyling our pumpkin embracing creativity and using only a few basic motifs and shapes. For mine, I'll be using acrylic paint for the background and acrylic markers for the shapes. Let's kick things off by working on the background. I chose this gorgeous light stage, one of my all time favorite shades. In my color palettes, it's hard for me to not use it. Your choice of paint will be entirely up to you, but I always go with matt. It imparts a warm and cozy aesthetic to anything you create. Glossy finishes, oftentimes remind me of mass produced items, but remember it's all about your personal preference. I'll allow this first code to dry for about 30 to 60 minutes before applying the second one. You can repeat this process as many times as you need to achieve a fully opaque background. Be sure to let it dry between codes. That's why I love working on multiple projects at the same time. I never have to wait before I know it, the background will be dry for me to move on to the next step. We'll start with a simple gold dot. I very much enjoy how much control markers give me when drawing my shapes. But you can, of course, feel free to use brushes if you prefer. The notes I added to my sketches say that apart from the light sage, I'll be using gold, pink, and white for this pumpkin. Remember, limited palettes will always be more impactful. Next, I'm going to start drawing the first flower using my pink marker right below this dot. We're going to embrace our freestyle approach, but that doesn't mean that we shouldn't follow any rules or guides. We still count with the pumpkins natural grid as a very helpful reference. From here, I'm going to add some leaves on both sides of the flower using a white marker. As I go, I'll add dots where I think there are empty space that requires my attention. Why not create a small branch down here? Then we can also include some gold accents where we see fit. Still following the vertical line provided by the Pumpkins Ridge, I'll add another gold dot here and scatter a few white ones strategically. My goal is to not make this design super busy. Let's add the next flower way to the side and closer to the top to make the structure of our pattern more dynamic. As you can see, I always start with the central flowers and then I add leaves and branches around it. These are some basic rules that I set for myself on the spot. You can call them excuses. They make it easier to create a pattern that's pleasing to the eye. You see our eyes naturally seek order within complexity. This is what distinguishes a well designed composition from a simple and structured sketch. Well, we're free styling our creation and not adhering to any predefined template. We're still making a deliberate set of choices. By intentionally using specific shapes and placing them in specific spots. This will ensure your work of art remains cohesive. But you can, of course, give yourself permission to diversify one or two of your rules like I did here, adding a pink dot alongside the golden white ones. Once you've got the hang of your own process, you can take it a step further by introducing layers, making your workflow even more efficient. First, we can draw all of the pink flowers all around the pumpkin. Positioning them higher or lower. Create an engaging composition. But remember to leave enough space for the leaves. White comes next as our second layer, and that means leaves, branches, and the central elements of our flowers. Our third layer will be gold. We're going to draw all of our dots. At this point, we can step back and see the bigger picture. Understanding where we can find empty spaces, that needs some attention. This, for instance, is a great example of that. This area is so empty, I've decided to add another flower to keep the pattern flowing consistently. These are part of our negative space and it's crucial to give them some consideration. Don't get me wrong, this is very much not mean covering every single blank spot, but rather focusing on the areas that are noticeably emptier when viewing the entire composition. What catches your eye then? I'll just intuitively add polka dots all around where my eye thinks there's an anomaly, but I won't overdo it after that. When we feel there's a good balance between positive and negative space will be all done. Now is the right time to add some color to your stem. I decided to stay true to my initial notes and painted mine gold. Crafting a well balanced composition is a skill that takes some time to master. If you need any help, please don't hesitate to reach out in the discussion section. I'm here to help. If you're ready, I'll see you in the next video where we'll work on site B of our larger pumpkin, giving it a very intricate and elegant look. 11. Intricate Painting: All right, this design is going to be significantly more intricate compared to the previous ones. Don't worry if it seems a bit out of reach. This lesson is primarily designed for advanced students, but you're always welcome to join. You can follow along and adapt the steps to your skill level or simply have fun. We'll continue with our freestyle approach, but the good thing is that we'll start by sketching our paths with a pencil. This way the process will become way more manageable. It serves as a helpful guide before we introduce any paint. After allowing the background color codes to dry, we're going to attempt to sketch out a pattern filled with winding branches, leaves and fruits inspired by the wind of the fall. To begin, I'm going to draw an organic and winding line, letting my hand take the lead. At the end of this line, I'm going to add a delicate leaf just below it. I'll introduce a few small branches with fruits. From this point, I can extend the new path upwards and end it with another leaf and keep branching out left and right. Alternated between leaves, branches, and fruits wherever I see fit here. My mechanical pencil messed up, it scratched the acrylic paint a bit. I'm going to grab a small brush to touch it up. If at any point something doesn't look right to you, you can apply this same method, given that using an eraser can be a bit challenging with acrylics. As I mentioned before, I'm following a set of very simple rules to maintain cohesion in my pattern. As I go, I keep negative spacing, check striving to maintain the spacing between new shapes consistent. I think I'm happy with what I have so far and I'm eager to introduce a bit more contrast to my design. I'll move on to painting it. I'll be using a very fine brush to carefully trace my lines with gold acrylic paint. As I had pointed out in my, a thinner brush is an excellent choice for outlining intricate shapes. And afterwards filling them in with color becomes a breeze. It's a good idea to paint from left to right to avoid any unintentional smudging. Or from right to left if you're left handed, as the case may be. I would like to try one little thing over here and I'm going to use my light stage color, potentially giving my pumpkin a dual shade. Don't be afraid to grant yourself some flexibility because worst case scenario, you can always paint over it. As I started working on this design, I was using brushes while waiting for my gold acrylic marker to arrive. But upon its arrival, I decided to switch to markers for a linear design such as mine. Markers offer a way more comfortable and convenient approach. It's all about considering the nature of your design and what is more fitting for you. For instance, if your design features larger shapes brushes may be the better choice. I'm retracing over the gold areas I previously painted because the shade of my marker is slightly different. Occasionally I've decided to place my pumpkin on its side to make myself more comfortable, as this can be a bit of a time consuming task. Because the back of this pumpkin is painted. I place the cloth to work as a cushion between the table and the pumpkin. While the paint is, of course, dry by now, I still want it to protect it because it's not sealed. In my case, it can potentially be scratched off very easily. Take your time as you cover all of your shapes, I hope you'll find this process as therapeutic as I do now is the right time to add some color to your stem. In the end, I made the deliberate choice to give up on the light stage. I maintained an all gold design to achieve a consistently elegant aesthetic. It's so nice to try things out and grant your creativity the freedom for that back and forth exploration. I keep mentioning testing different approaches and seeing what works and what doesn't for yourself, will ultimately lead to better results. At the end of the day, that's the best way to learn. At this point, I'll start painting freehand, as I have already established the logic that works well for my pattern. Now I simply have to extend it and expand it sideways. There you have it. Our pumpkin is all done. We turned it from a simple pumpkin into a remarkable work of art. You now have the flexibility to put it on display, alternating between sides depending on your mood. Maybe side for whimsical days and sight for fancier ones. Whether you choose side for the daylight and side B for the evening, the choice is entirely yours. Before diving into our next adventure, let me share a little secret with you. If you know me from social media and you've seen my style, you might be surprised when I tell you that I'm a fan of horror movies. For many, it remains a mystery how I'm able to both love the charming world of cute illustrations while harboring such a deep fascination for the dark realm of horror. If you're a true Halloween fan like me, I'll see you in the next video for a truly spine chilling lesson. 12. Halloween Special: In the shadows and whispers of the spellbound chamber. We're about to embark on a chilling journey together. Whether you're a true or fan like me or just dipping your toes into the dark waters of the unsettling, I bid you a dreadfully warm welcome as we carve our own finished slice of Halloween magic. As we delve into this haunting Halloween special, we shall immerse ourselves in the realm of horrors, untold carving, pumpkins that will invoke shivers in the bravest of souls. Gather your courage for our journey into the abyss begins. Now flipping through the book of Halloween secrets, I found the perfect recipe to commence our request. As we ease into the shadows of this wicked ride, our first stop will involve carving a traditional jacko lantern. All right, let me adjust my voice for this. We'll be using a small pumpkin and a carving tool set. You know the drill here. First we'll outline the path for our lid. I like making my jacko lantern lids spiky. Next we'll select a saw. You'll notice that the one that I'm using is a double saw. The tip makes it easy to position your tool precisely where you want to begin cutting. Then you can simply hold down the pumpkin by the top and cut slowly, employing a gentle up and down motion while keeping the safety of your hands in check. Then with the scooper, we'll scrape the walls hollow in the pumpkin out. As we did earlier, we won't count with a lot of room to work this time due to the smaller size of our pumpkin. This, on the flip side, means the process won't be as time consuming after completing each step in a hollowing out process, including cleaning and disinfecting it, we'll attempt a standard jack o' lantern design using an acrylic marker. I'll start drawing the ice in a triangular shape. This way I'm using this marker because it allows me to refine my design until I'm satisfied. I can even retrace and overlap some lines, knowing that I can easily wipe them all off later. Now we'll shape the nose and craft a big smile. Let me add a few teeth now. To be honest with you, I'm not entirely satisfied with the way that it looks. Let's give it a second try. The beauty of drawing first is that it allows us to reconsider our design before making any permanent cuts. I'll take a damp rag, slightly moistened with water, and I'll start all over. Okay, now let's do the smile first, perhaps this is a better approach. Remember, it doesn't have to look perfect. This is a preliminary sketch. Again, use as many lines as you need and wipe off the ones that you don't like. As I finalize my lines, I'll identify the ones that will serve as my cutting guides and make them thicker. Next, I'll experiment with the tools that came in the carving set originally. I thought that these tools would give me smoother cuts, but at the end of the day, it turns out that the saw offers both better control and precision. I'm going to cut carefully along the marked lines, then I can push out the eye from the inside here, I'm just marking the boundaries of the eye shape. Then with the saw, I'll follow the white outlines from dot to dot. This eye came out no problem. All right, Next, the nose, I had to shift my a bit of path in order to place it between the eyes. As for the mouth, same deal. I'll just be a bit more patient because there are a lot of directional changes involved. However, as you can see, I'm always cutting away from my other hand. You can of course, position the pumpkin however you want to help achieve the most comfortable and safest position for you. Bear in mind, you may need to go over the paths a few times. If it becomes easier for you, you can even cut it in pieces. Finally, we'll push it out. Don't worry if it doesn't come out in a single piece, we will no longer need it. So we can just discard it. There are only a couple of things left to do now, wipe off the marker residue using a rag. And use the carving tool to get rid of some parts of the inner walls that may be still visible from the outside. We want these holes to be cleared up in order to have a spookier and brighter lantern later on. As usual, don't forget to scrape off every bit of remaining inner walls and pulp that may have come free during the carving process. Additionally, spray the inside with your water and bleach solution. Now that we have accomplished endeavor, our next stop in this strain of terror will be taking your carving skills up and notch to a whole new level. It's finally time for the most terrifying chapter in my book of Halloween secrets. Crafting the most spine chilling Jack o' Lantern imaginable. Let us channel that childlike wonder, the peculiar fondness for the eerie sounds that haunt our nights. You already know how to get started. Allow me to share a few chilling tales as I begin to craft the spooky pumpkin. One of the first images that springs to mind is Cobot Crane and the Headless Horseman. As a child, I watched the cartoon version over and over, and could even recite the dialogues. If you had told my younger self that as an adult, I would live not too far away from the actual Sleepy Hollow, I would not have believed you. Why not draw inspiration from that wicked pumpkin that the headless horseman clutched as he rode his spectral horse? I also intend to make this chaco lantern as sinisterly toothy as possible as a tribute to the ghostly echo of a late night terror, the likes of which will send shivers down your spine. I woke up heart pounding, drenched in cold sweat. To this day, I vividly recall every single detail in that ominous dream, I entered the room where my family and I kept our books. The air thickened with dread as I hesitated, paralyzed with fear, I did not want to take another step into the room. Then without warning, I saw the very penny wise jump at me from the shadows, then darkness pitch black. As I slowly turned my head to the right, shaking with horror, my eyes fell upon what I was dreading to see in the corner of the room, on the floor, skeletal figure with hair. With panic, I realized this was my very own outcome in the physical world. This could only mean that the person who was observing the petrifying scene from the other side of the room was in fact me, but in spectral form. Now, the mere memory of it all left me sleepless for many haunting nights to come. Did I just make my pumpkin cry with my scary tail after prying the eyes off? It looks like our Jacko lantern has a personality already. I'm using my hobby knife, as I did before, to start marking shallower cuts. And then I'll move on to the kitchen knife. I've discovered that by puncturing the start and finish points of each path first, it's easier to control the length of your cut. Take a look at how I sharpen the teeth, crafting them slowly and always safely. Notice how my other hand is holding down the pumpkin and nowhere near the cutting tool. This will take some time because the pumpkin size is substantial and the walls are thicker than usual. That's why I transition to using my serrated knife directly. Now remember to place your knife as perpendicularly as possible against your pumpkin. Afterward, I gently apply an up and down sawing motion, working on one tooth at a time. If it helps, you can put your pumpkin on its back. As you do this, allow yourself to make the cuts straighter than your initial drawing later. You can polish them into shape using your hobby knife if you wish. All right. It's time to wipe the ink of those teeth and carefully go over your cuts, ensuring you've reached all the corners. Now for the big moment, let's reveal that big, glowing, toothy smile. Congratulations. Now you have the skills to make a spine chilling Jago lantern all by yourself. You can make it glow by placing tea lights or battery operated candles inside. These options are much better than real candles for many reasons. They are safer. They last longer and they can be brighter without sacrificing the flickering ambience that candles provide. You can get the ones that offer that effect. Using these alternatives will help you preserve your pumpkin better as real flames can potentially cause it to deteriorate from the inside. Now let's get back on our spooky ride down these erie tracks. Our next stop involves a hauntingly painted pumpkin that glows in the dark. 13. Glow & Paint: Welcome to our Painting in the Dark Quest. In this lesson, we'll be exploring how to make our pumpkin glow even brighter in the dark. For this demonstration, I'll be working on side of the pumpkin I previously carved for our upcoming Am scenes which you'll find in the next video. First, let's go a bit over the use of transfer paper. I'll be transferring the word Halloween onto the center of my pumpkin using a custom lettering piece I've designed exclusively for this class. You can find it in the resources section to follow along. These steps will be pretty similar to our first painting lesson. Let's review them in case you skipped that one. To help visualizing the placement of your design, you can quickly estimate the templates position like so. Visually, we'll start by cutting a piece of transfer paper that's roughly the same size as our ward. A bit larger would be best. Just make sure the side of the transfer paper that will be against the pumpkin contains the transferring dust. We'll secure it to the pumpkin using painters tape, placing it somewhere in the center. We'll take our template on top of the transfer paper. Feel free to reposition it until you're satisfied with its placement. Next we'll use a ballpoint pen to trace over each letter. We'll want a round or tip to avoid accidentally piercing through the paper. Trace one letter at a time. Making sure to cover the entire surface of each letter, especially the outlines. It's important to find the right balance between gentle and firm pressure during this process. If we're too gentle, it won't transfer. Before you begin, I recommend trying this out with a small random shape in a different area of the pumpkin in order to gauge the pressure required for a successful transfer. Few things are more disappointing than discovering that many areas didn't transfer well, once you remove the template, it's also not advisable to peek behind it while you work, as even the slightest shift can ruin your progress. Okay, now let's see how this turned out. It's looking pretty good. Don't be too concerned about the residue powder around the letters. This is perfectly normal. We can carefully wipe off around it as much as possible using a lint free rag. After using tracing paper to transfer our template, we don't want our design to be easily wiped off. Our next step will be to actually paint these letters. We're going to use a white acrylic paint marker this time to trace silver Halloween. If you happen to stray off course, no worries. You can make corrections using a tip toothpick or as I'm doing here, a mechanical pencil with the lead retracted. Do you remember when my pencil messed up the background of my elegant pumpkin? Well, now it's helping me refine my letters. Go figure. Now our central design is complete. Next we're going to free hand a spooky yet endearing pattern, embellish our artwork as per my initial notes, I'm going to go with a few basic shapes and place them in repetition, strategically around my lettering. I'm starting with a ghost here, taking the opportunity to fill this gap between H and L. Keeping negative space in check. Notice I'm leaving some breathing room between shapes though. Okay, let's give this neon orange a try now. Why not make a pumpkin for our next motif? This will nicely address the gap To the right of the letter L, I'll come back to give it a face once the paint fully dries. Next, I'm adding a cloud shape above the pumpkin that will work as the background for a spooky expression. Later on, I want to add a maple leaf right here. Okay? I think we can start repeating some shapes now. I'm going to add another ghost. When everything dries, I'll tackle the second layer for all the shapes that we have so far. I needed to make my pumpkin motif slightly larger to accommodate it smile properly. This is one of the reasons why it's so important to leave some room between shapes, not only for aesthetics, but also for these practical adjustments. For my initial attempt, I used a Sharpie, but it lacked the contrast that I was seeking. I switched to a black acrylic marker in case of any drips. You can also use a Q tip to wipe off the excess. This black acrylic marker, unfortunately, dripped too much paint at once. Ultimately, I found that my heart tip brush pen was the right tool for the job. This inspired me to add a new motif, a bat. Frankly, I'm not loving the placement of my motif. This is an excellent opportunity for me to show you how to remove permanent ink from your pumpkin. As I promised earlier, in the world of free styling, it's perfectly normal to encounter moments of hesitation, requiring some flexibility in our creative process. It may be necessary to take a few steps back and make adjustments along the way. However, permanent ink isn't as forgiving as we'd like it to be. I attempted to erase it using rubbing alcohol, but on this particular surface, it didn't work. The only thing that did the trick was nail polish remover. As you can see, there's no longer a trace of my bat. Now, let's give it a second shot. All right, this looks better, but I still believe it stands out too much in contrast with the rest of the shapes, I'm going to move on to something else. I'll create a leaf using a different color. I insist when you get stuck with something, and it won't work right off the bat, if you will, it's best to jump ahead and revisit later. After doing that, I feel more comfortable adding a different version of my motif right over here. Next, I want to add a mushroom all the way over here. And then I'll continue to add shapes around my lettering, including our good old friends polka dots to start balancing out negative space. All right. Lights off, It's time to reveal how it turned out. As you can see, I stuck with just a handful of motives. Occasionally varying their colors and giving different expressions to my Jack O' Lanterns and ghosts. Now we need to make our Halloween lettering the protagonist here, I'll either retrace it with glow in the dark acrylic paint or simply use one of my neon markers. You'll always hear in my classes that employing a limited color palette and a select set of motifs will make your design more cohesive and impactful for my ghosts. I'm going to be opting for the paint. I like that it provides a slight texture, creating a more subdued yet interesting glow. You might notice some residual pigment in my close up shots. The downside of UV light, that it will make every single particle stand out more. However, when you display your pumpkin at home, these details will be barely noticeable. We have our glowing pumpkin, it's time to turn it around and shift our focus to the hollow back. Join me again as we transition to the next and final stop in our goose bumps ride there. I'll be showing you how to delve into the fascinating art of dioramas. 14. Die-orama Town: Welcome to Diorama Town, Your final destination. We'll be creating two different scenes to give your guests the creeps for this adventure. We have already prepared our pumpkin by painting side A and carving the window for side B. During our hollowing out lesson, I decided to create the big entrance to my diorama capitalizing on a few surface imperfections I wanted to remove. Another thing that helped me decide where to cut was the fact that this side of the pumpkin was surprisingly flat, which conveniently works great for this purpose. As a result, our pumpkin may end up looking rounder. In the end, the important thing was to cut out a big shape. It can be simple without any particular path. It could be as simple as a circle or a rectangle. But for a more captivating outcome, I'd suggest an irregular ghul like form. Think of it as the entrance to a cave of wonders. You could even get more creative and craft the outline of a house castle, or perhaps a leaf, maybe something that's melting. The possibilities are boundless. It only needs to be large so that we can be comfortable crafting a scene inside the pumpkin. Don't forget, it's important for you to follow all the steps described in the hollowing out lesson before we create our diorama. This includes meticulously scraping off the inner walls and ensuring your pumpkin is properly disinfected. While this step is entirely optional, if you happen to have the full piece of your doorway, consider adding some spooky words to it. I'm going to go with the classic and use my neon acrylic paint markers again, for a spontaneous and haunting touch. This is supposed to be only a fast scribble because I'm not planning on displaying it for too long. Anyway, the point will be to use it to keep our diorama from being seen before the big reveal. Now for the actual scene, here's our first option. I didn't sketch this one out, but it spontaneously came to me as a thought as our class progressed. To start, we'll cover the floor with soil and pebbles. I had some old potting mix available because I recently repotted some of my house plants. Next I'll place some gathered branches and leaves to make the background a little more interesting experiment as much as you want with your elements until you're satisfied with our placement. At this point, adding a tea light may be a helpful thing to do before it gets too crowded in there. Notice how I tucked my lights behind some leaves, concealing them for a more visually appealing touch. Finally, a couple of Halloween props I got from a big box store, Creepy Skeleton hand, and a small round flask. You might be wondering why it glows though. Well, when my obsession with glow in the dark art began, I learned which materials react to UV light. My husband was the one that taught me something really fascinating. Tonic water is fluorescent. In other words, this means that under the right conditions, it has a unique ability to glow. Apparently, this is due to the presence of a chemical called quinine. Therefore, you can create a very cool effect for your decorations only using tonic water and UV lights if you are into this. Another thing that you can try is invisible ink. Okay, let's move on to our second shiver inducing scene. This one will be inspired by my initial sketch. I'm going to keep the ground as it is, but I'll mix things up by applying black acrylic paint to the walls using a sponge for better coverage. At this point, I'll introduce a white rag into the picture and place a couple of T lights underneath it. It could also be a cheesecloth. Frankly, any piece of fabric you have lying around the house will do. Let's add a simple face to it now, using acrylic paint to turn it into a ghost to accompany the Erie atmosphere. I'm including a tiny pumpkin that I've decorated with a playful blue, using neon markers for an extra spooky touch. I'm bringing in a little skeleton prop for a bit of variation. I want to give the scene a chillier vibe. I'm going to add some blue fairy lights inside to provide an appealing contrast with our warmer tea lights. Now you have a full set of unique Halloween decorations to display. I'm sure your guests will be impressed even though the scenes are quite simple. To make notice, I used very few elements. We have to consider. Everything we do will be very temporary because we're using a real pumpkin. For a more involved project, consider using an artificial one. I'm pleased to inform you we have reached the end of our blood chilling ride. Until next time, May your dreams be filled with a haunting essence of our sinister art. 15. Gourd Bye!: I'm so proud of you for completing this pumpkin journey with me, and I'm truly grateful for your decision to be part of my class. After learning how to plan, choose, carve paint, and tackle a wide range of options on how to make your pumpkins adorable, elegant, and even spooky. I'm confident that you'll have an amazing project to share with us. I would love to see how your creativity unfolds and what you come up with. You can use my project as a model to follow when you're ready to share yours in the project gallery. If you happen to share it on social media, don't forget to tag me at Fly Fama so that I can like it and share it in my stories. And now it's time for that final reflection that I always share with you my students. Before we go our ways. I have to admit as a kid, I did not like fall at all. To me, it was pretty dull and just a great season. But when I moved to the Northeast of the US, I was impressed to find out how many things the season actually had to offer. There's even something poetic about the leaves falling, the way they sway, how they gently transition from lush green into a fiery gradient of colors that's warm and comforting slowly. And then all of a sudden, every year, I find myself feeling as though I've stepped into an enchanting fairy tale. As I look around, leaves dance gracefully through the air, creating a vibrant colorful path on the ground as they fall. This is the season of the soul. The changing leaves communicate the idea of adapting to transformation. They serve as a reminder that the end of a chapter doesn't have to be a sad thing. I want to thank you for taking the time to join my class. I hope I'll see you in the next one. And if you found it valuable, it would mean the world to me. If you could share your thoughts in a review and let me know what you've gained from it. Feel free to reach out in the discussion section if you have any doubts or would like any feedback. I'm here to support you. If you would like to stay in touch, you can follow me on social media at Floria here on skill share and also join my newsletter community to hear about my upcoming classes. If you happen to be interested in drawing, I'd love for you to join my other skillshare class on how to create a unique house illustration in procreate there, among many other things, I talk about composition, negative space, and other helpful tips on how to make an illustration as uniquely yours as possible. I wish you all the best in your creative journey and I hope to see you soon.