Map of the World on a Pumpkin

Since the shape of a pumpkin is round, and the globe is round...why not carve a general map of the world onto your pumpkin? It works--but only some of it does. It isn't quite possible to carve the entire world onto your pumpkin. When I carved mine, I carved North America, South America, and Africa. That was all that would have been visible, anyway. But it's up to you. Carve whatever portion of the world you want to onto your pumpkin--a quick and easy way to carve a pumpkin!

Step 1: Materials

Materials:

1. Carving knife

2. Pumpkin

3. Tea Candle

4. Patroleum Jelly (optional...for preservation)

5. Dry-erase marker (or hole punches will work as well)

6. Pumpkin scooper (spoon)

Step 2: Clean Your Pumpkin

Clean your pumpkin. Pretty straightforward: cut out the top of the pumpkin using a little carving saw (works best), and scrape the insides out until clean.

Step 3: Draw on Your Pumpkin

No need to hole punches--unless you'd perfer to do it that way. I used a dry-erase marker that would easily wash off, and it worked great. Notice in the first picture the latitude and longitude lines. Not necessary. I just ended up eyeballing it as I drew the basic form of the continents.

Step 4: Carve and Gel Your Pumpkin

I used a razor sharp craft knife from Michael's for this part. It worked pretty well, and was fine for some detail. But you can use whatever you've got on hand that is meant for pumpkin carving. Then after carving your pumpkin, wipe patroleum jelly over the inside cut of your carving. This will perserve your pumpkin from browning.

Step 5: Done!

Now your pumpkin is done. Don't forget--put your carved out lid on your pumpkin, and place the tea candle inside your pumpkin. It looks good now--but it looks great at night when the candle is lit!