Britney Spears Pumpkin Stencil

Except for one memorable wig, we've never seen Brit with green hair. (Although it's rather striking, don't you think?) Pumpkins come in a rainbow of different shades and patterns, and all of them are fair game for pumpkin carving. Try searching farms and organic markets for pumpkins in interesting shades; they'll make your already-striking carving work unforgettable.

To carve:

1. Cut out the bottom of your pumpkin, and scoop out the slimy pumpkin innards. Scrape the inside wall on the side you're carving to no more than 1" thickness.

2. Print out the Britney Spears stencil pattern, resizing it to better fit your pumpkin, if necessary. Tape it to the side of your pumpkin, and use a long needle tool to pierce tightly spaced holes along all the stencil lines. (Tip: Be thorough! Keeping holes within 1/8" of each other provides a more detailed cutting outline later.) Remove the stencil after transferring all lines to the pumpkin's skin.

3. Locate areas on the stencil that require etching (they're located within dotted lines), and peel away the pumpkin's skin from those areas with a gouge or etching power tool.

4. Locate areas on the stencil that require carving (they're located within solid lines), and cut along the pin hole outlines with a specialty pumpkin-carving knife or a thin, serrated wood-cutting knife. (Hint: Start by carving sections near the center of your design and work your way outward.) Saw slowly and gently from point to point.

5. After carving the entire design, push gently on the carved pieces from inside the pumpkin, popping them outward. (If pieces do not move easily, trace around them with your knife to ensure they aren't still attached to the pumpkin.) Light up your design by placing a battery-operated candle inside the pumpkin.