It’s that time of year again! Here at Get It Free, we love Halloween. We love it for the candy, the costumes, and the crafts. Today we’re going to focus on the craft portion, specifically carving pumpkins. If you’re like us, your pumpkin never comes out quite the way you hoped it would. Well, this year we hope to change that by giving you some tips on how to carve a great jack-o-lantern!

1. It’s all about the pumpkin. Without this, nothing else matters! Pick a healthy pumpkin with a good stem and a flat bottom. Let somebody else take the bruised up pumpkin. 

2. Cut the lid the right way. And by right way, we mean at an angle. Don’t cut your lid straight down into the pumpkin because you won’t get a good fit. Cut at an angle so it rests perfectly atop your pumpkin. 

3. Use an ice cream scoop to gut your pumpkin. This is an important part, because the left over gunk in your pumpkin is what causes it to quickly rot. If you clean it well and really scrape the walls with an ice cream scoop, your pumpkin will last much longer. 

4. Hold and carve. First of all, be careful. But we want you to hold the pumpkin in your lap while you carve it. This will give you the best angle for cutting and allow you to round those tough corners. 

5. Use petroleum jelly to keep your pumpkin fresh. That’s right. If you use petroleum jelly on the cut edges of your jack-o-lantern, it will stay fresher, longer. 

6. The secret ingredient – cinnamon. If you put a little bit of cinimon on the inside of the lid, your jack-o-lantern will smell like pumpkin pie when the candle is lit. Mmm, so good! 

That’s it! Have some more great tips? Share them with us on our Facebook page!