Okay, Jana, you asked for it! I hope you guys can share what you've done too. The top two are my homage to Aztec and Mayan designs. Frankly, these are not the best ones I've done. I'll attach one of my favorites too.

Anyone can do this. It's really simple. Choose one or two shapes you really like. Start drawing (aka doodling) them on a piece of paper (with a pencil) in a way that looks good to you. Really, it's that easy.

Sometimes, if you flip what you've drawn 180 degrees, you'd be amazed at what your mind drew upside down!

I have one more to do tomorrow. Who knows if my back, hands, arms or breathing can deal with that. I'm pretty sure this is my last year of carving. The pumpkins keep getting smaller and I keep getting weaker. Thanks a lot, MG.



Annie

Attached Images

	Pumpkin4Group.jpg (138.8 KB, 91 views)
	Worms.jpg (65.0 KB, 83 views)

They are wonderful! Looks like fun.

I found my avatar on a pumpkin page...for cats.

This one looks like our little Maya, our new black kitten. She scampers around playing with Weezie with a similar pose. LOL

I confess I didn't carve it...

My GOODNESS!

IŽd give up my day job if I could do that

I would like to fly over and personally escort that worm back home to live with me!!!!

Oh goodness Annie! Those are beautiful, thank you for sharing!

Those are awesome!!! You can't give up pumpkin carving. Nope. It just won't do. You are just going to have to get better by next year.

I'm just STUNNED! These are soooooo AWESOME!!

I'd be wanting to figure out some way to preserve em -- so I could put em on permanent display in my house. Just KILLS me that in a week or two these will be mush.

Annie, you have got SOME steady hand -- and of course, artistic talent out the WHAZOO!!!

I was watching the Today Show this morning -- they put Mr. Potato Head's parts on a pumpkin and I thought.........yeah, I could probably manage that!!

I avoided tasks like this most my whole life without even thinking about it consciously.

Can all women with normal health do this without trouble breathing and feeling weakness in their hands afterwards? Does it depend on the how good the knife is?

The thought ... it looks too hard really (for the above reasons, takes longer to get to my back). But nobody ever told me I should be able to do this...

I'll see if I can get a pumpkin, probably a fairly small or tiny one, tonight to figure out if I can carve it comfortably. Maybe I'll report back and maybe I'll find that I think the skin is easy to get through but I sort of doubt it.

Of course, if I do it, it'll be my first year of carving ...

Hello Annie, your pumpkins are fantastic! After knowing what I can do with a pumpkin, mine is cooked..... Thank you for sharing that talent of yours. I hope you get into some kind of contest!!!! ginnie

Sorry the MG gets in the way of your creativity. That happened to me too. I sculpted for 35 years, and had to give it up. I asked about "showing" or "contests" as that was a hoot for me. I did shows coast to coast and always had a piece in the "exihibition room" It did alot for my self exteme, and spurred me on to new directions I never thought I could do. No regrets for the years I put in.
I carved pumpkins, on a much much smaller level. 1" and under. Using a small styrofoam ball, coating with polymer clay, baking, then carving. I used a single christmas tree light for the lighting of it. Used very fine exacto knives used for wood caring. I was pretty good, but not near the intricate things you have accomplished. I appreciate anothers talents very much. Keep carving as long as you can! ginnie

Oh, neat, a photo album -- that makes much more sense!! Annie your photos are so PROFESSIONAL!

I didn't carve any pumpkins. I DID help pass out candy to about 300 trick-or-treaters.......down from about 600 last year. Guess the cold weather and the fact Halloween was on a church night were factors.