Want to stand out in your neighborhood this Halloween with a pumpkin carving of President Barack Obama on your door step? Use this easy to follow step-by-step guide to learn how to make a Barack Obama Halloween pumpkin. On this page, you will discover how to find suitable images of President Obama, the 44th President of the United States of America, and use them to create your own stencil. Your new creation can also be reused for window decorations and various other craft ideas. Instructions on how to carve a pumpkin are also provided below.

• Visit the How to Put Your Face on a Virtual Pumpkin page for more tips on creating stencils.

• Cut out biggest pieces first then go back for the fragile areas.

• Take care what pumpkin you pick. It should be in good condition and have a shape that will have enough area for the stencil.

• Recycle it! You can clean up the pumpkin seeds, season them with nutmeg and cinammon and roast them for a yummy snack.

• If you are having problems keeping your stencil against the surface of the pumpkin, try wetting the edges before taping it down. Another solution is to make a 1 to 2 inch diagonal cut at the paper corners. This will allow more bend and curve in the paper so that you can make it flatter.

• Use a fireplace lighter or long matchstick to light the candle while it is inside the pumpkin.

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Depending on your skill level, this project can take anywhere from an 1 to 2 hours to complete. To begin, you need to find an image of President Obama that will work well for a stencil. Try finding a 3/4 profile view photograph if possible. This means that he is not directly facing the camera, but he is not in a complete profile angle either. Photoshop is the image editor used for this tutorial. However, you can use any 2D image editing program for this project.

• Pumpkin
• Pumpkin carving kit
• Candle
• Newspaper
• Tape
• Marker
• Printer paper
• Picture of President Barack Obama
• Photo editing software

• Use the Creative Commons site to make a search for images that you may be allowed to use.
• Always check for copyright restrictions.
• Be sure to use a picture that is large enough for the final design. If the size is under 500 x 500 pixels, it may be too small to be effective.

Now, that you have found a proper photograph of President Obama, you can turn it into a flat graphic to use as a stencil for your carving.

1. Open your image of the president.
2. Go to Image -> Adjustments -> Threshold.
3. Move the indicator to the left to add more white or to the right to add more black.
4. Use File -> Print With Preview to make sure your picture fits on the printable page.

1. If it isn't the right size, you can use the adjustment arrows to make it fit or change the dimensions in Image -> Image Size.
2. Print.

Using Threshold

After Threshold is Used

1. Lay down sheets of newspaper over your work surface.
2. Draw a circle on the top of the pumpkin with a radius 1 to 2 inches from the stem.
3. Using the large pumpkin cutting knife, cut along the line at an angle. This will help hold the cap in place once you sit it back in later.
4. Clean the pulp and seeds off the cap and inside of the pumpkin with the kit scraper or a spoon.
5. Wipe down the surface of your pumpkin with warm water to remove any stickiness.
6. Tape down your stencil on all four corners to the flatest side of the pumpkin.

1. Begin to use the puncture tool from the kit to poke holes around the black areas of the design.
2. Once done, use a black marker and place X's in the areas that need to be removed to mirror the black areas on the image.
3. Use the larger carving knife to cut out large blacks along the dots.
4. Take your fingers and push out finished blocks from the inside.
5. Switch to the smaller knife for sharp corners and small details.
6. Check again to make sure all the pulp is cleaned out, and the cut edges are smooth.
7. Place the candle inside the then light it.
8. Close the pumpkin with the cap you cut out earlier.