What I'm talking about is a new product this year from Pumpkin WoW. They are pumpkin carving stencils that adhere to your pumpkin like a temporary tattoo decal. Put them on, cut out the pieces. I was intrigued when I saw these, and lucky me, I won a Family Party Pack of tats. Here is my honest review.
The Family Party Pack has very family friendly patterns to choose from. There are some very simple patterns with just a few pieces to cut out and some that I consider moderate, which I chose to do. I actually wanted to do one of the easiest patterns, but felt that was cheating almost, so I picked one of the harder ones.
The tattoos come individually packed together, not together in a pattern book. This is what it looked like right out of the package.
ARRR Wench, a pumpkin I be needin'!
The instructions are printed on the back of each pattern and are pretty straightforward and simple. Place a towel or paper towels on a cookie sheet and cover with water.
Now place your chosen pattern on top of the towel, pattern side up after removing the protective clear plastic on the pattern. Let soak for about 30 seconds.
She be sendin me to a watery grave!
Now place yer pirate, err, place your pattern on your 'kin, pattern side down.
Here is where it can get tricky. The pattern easily came off and onto the pumpkin, but it also moved very easily. Smaller children might have a problem with this part. I ended up messing up his mouth and there is no way to move the pattern around once it's on. Also, some of the smaller, skinnier edges folded over when I was peeling off the paper and either stayed folded over or torn off when I tried to smooth them out. Gently press the pattern into the lines or grooves of the pumpkin with a wet finger. Outside of his mouth being messed up it came out pretty good.
ARRR! Matey! I'm a pirate, tis scurvy that messed up me mouth!
Let this dry or as per instructions use a hair dryer to dry the transferred pattern. I lightly blotted with a paper towel and it took no time at all to dry. Now you simply cut out the black pieces.
There was no resistance at all cutting through the tattoo, it was like it wasn't even there. I tend to rest my hand on the pumpkin while carving to give me better control. On the places my hand sat against the pattern it felt a little sticky, but it stayed on through the carving. I didn't notice any problem with the edges peeling up or peeling from the pumpkin being wet where I was cutting. After carving there were a few places where you could see the black still on the pumpkin where I didn't quite cut far enough. They were easily removed with a wet paper towel and some light rubbing.
Like this.
ARRR! Ye wench did a good job swabbin' the deck!
Again, besides his mouth mess up these tattoos work really great. It certainly saves time transferring patterns to the 'kin. However it is easier to mess up if you slide the pattern while applying to the pumpkin. Also, I like to have a copy of my pattern. These are a one use type of thing unless I want to trace the pattern or copy it. I also like having a copy of the pattern so that I can refer to the pattern while carving. This comes in handy with some patterns when I'm not quite sure how to carve a certain area. While I could still see the tattoo lightly on the paper after transferring it, it was also wet and I ended up throwing it away right away. Someone also pointed out to me that these patterns can not be re-sized to fit your pumpkin if needed.
Over all the tattoos are great, but a little pricey. I wouldn't have bought them if I didn't win a pack. For less than the price of one pack I can print out 100's of designs from my favorite pattern site and print as many times as I want. There is a little more work involved with regular stencils, but it's worth the price difference. Pumpkin WoW does have some really great patterns with something for all ages and skill level. I'm pretty sure I will be checking them out more in the future.
ARRR! Keep ye hands off me treasure, wench!
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