How to carve your npower energy efficient lantern
Prepare the pumpkin as you would for basic carving, i.e. cut out the top hole and gut the pumpkin out, leaving an empty shell
Print out your favoured Wallace or Gromit stencil from the website
Trim the excess paper from it with scissors. Be sure to leave at least a 1/2 inch border for the tape to go on. Attach the stencil to the face of the pumpkin with tape. Top first, then the bottom and lastly the sides.
Using a pointed tool – such as a pin or a dowel - press the pointed tip into and through the design lines on the paper stencil spaced about a ½ cm apart, push through just enough to go through the paper and the outer skin of the pumpkin, not all the way through the pumpkin.
Once the stencil is removed you'll see the outline marked on the face of the pumpkin via little dots. Once you remove the stencil be sure to save it in case you need to refer to it while carving.
Using the a knife with a serrated edge, push the tip of the blade into a pattern hole and saw through the design lines with short back-and-forth motions.
Once you've removed all of the cut pieces, carefully trim the inside edges of the pumpkin of any excess flesh with a small knife.
Now just add a candle and sit back and enjoy your spooky Gromit (or Wallace)!
