Owl Pumkin Carving Ideas

Carving A Pumpkin For Halloween This Year? Why Not Carve An Owl, Here Are Some Ideas

Many ancient legends, especially those of the Western world, attributed the owl with wisdom and associate it with lunar deities. Furthermore, the owl is the animal representation of Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom, which is most likely the origin of the Western legends. The owl was also worshiped in Egypt and India.

Another reason for the old-world beliefs that the owl is wise could have stemmed from its highly unusual appearance and from its behavior which is quite different from any other bird rather than from its superior intelligence. The owl’s staring eyes seem to be reflective, introspective and deeply engaged in hard thinking.

Even nursery rhymes have been written about the owl which evoked so much awe and fascination among numerous cultures of yesteryear. One such nursery rhyme that I found both sweet and intuitive goes like this:

  A wise old owl lived in an oak,
  The more he saw the less he spoke,
  The les he spoke the more he heard.
  Why can’t we all be like that wise old bird?

So, how about displaying some wisdom of your own this coming Halloween season and creating an owl pumpkin for all to view and admire? And the following are a few ideas and easy to follow instructions:

1. This one does not even require carving.

- Simply purchase two pumpkins, one long for the body and the other one squat for the head.
- Secure the squat pumpkin on top of the long pumpkin with skewers.
- To create the eyes, insert toothpicks through the tips of two pumpkin seeds. Insert into the squat pumpkin that you designated for the head of the owl and fan them out slightly.
- To create the beak, dig a small hole and wedge in an almond with the pointy end facing down.
- A couple of serrated pieces of an orange peel can serve as the feet for your wide pumpkin owl.

2. Here is another pumpkin owl idea that does not require carving.

- Purchase one large pumpkin that will represent the body of your owl, two miniature pumpkins from which you will design your owl’s eyes and one more miniature pumpkin which you will cut up to shape your owl’s nose, ears and feet.
- Saw off the large pumpkin’s top and scoop out the meat and seeds. Keep the top for plugging the hole later.
- Cut out a one to two inch hole in the back for ventilation.
- Mark the location of the eyes with a pencil and drill or carve out the two hole of approximately five-eighth of an inch in diameter.
- Cut holes in the tops of the two miniature pumpkins that are slightly larger than the holes for the eyes and clean out their insides.
- Drill small holes in the bottom of each miniature pumpkin.
- Push in light bulbs from the inside of the large pumpkin and through each of the eye holes.
- Attach the miniature pumpkins over the light bulbs and secure with toothpicks.
- Place an additional large light bulb inside the large pumpkin.
- To create you owl’s feathers use a wood gouge or a linoleum cutter to make half circles in the large pumpkin’s skin that will actually look like fish scales.
- Take the left over miniature pumpkin and using a serrated knife to shape the ears, nose and feet and attach with toothpicks.
- Shave off the stem of the top of the large pumpkin that you had removed at the beginning of your project and cover the hole.
- Light up the light bulbs.

You are indeed a wise owl, congratulations for the beautiful display!

Posted in Pumpkin Stencils