Halloween is just around the corner, so now is a perfect time to (finally) carve your jack-o-lanterns! Decorations and costumes for this candy-filled holiday run the gamut from adorable to freaky, and the carving ideas I came across are the same. The first three, a sweet little sea turtle, a sharp crab, and a peaceful seahorse, are some of the easier patterns I found. They’re made by scraping off and removing only part of the skin, instead of cutting through, resulting in a glowing image. All three patterns can be found and downloaded from HERE.

A little more complicated, but very striking, are octopus-o-lanterns. I found the stencil for this graceful cephalopod  HERE, where is is available for download. But you could consider this pattern a jumping-off point, or an inspiration, and create your own stencil or draw and carve right on the pumpkin; octopuses are fun to draw, and even if it doesn’t come out perfectly, it won’t matter – the curling tentacles will add a cool, spooky vibe to any Halloween scene.

And finally, if your tastes run more creepy than cute, this anglerfish is perfect. The scary fish pictured below, by Jenny Dreyer, Itchika Sivaipram, and Jennifer Elliott, won the Virginia Institute of Marine Science carving contest in 2012. You can decide whether or not you’d like its lure lit up; I could see painting a small pumpkin with white or glow-in-the-dark paint instead of carving it. However you do it, those huge, back lit teeth are the star of the show!

credit: http://www.vims.edu

Whatever creature or creation you decide to bring to life this holiday, the most important things are to have fun and be safe. Happy Halloween, everyone!