Herminio Ramirez, one of the craftiest people I know, stopped by this morning to give me a lesson on Jack-o-Lantern-making. Would you like to see how he turned a pumpkin into a cat? 
Rather than cutting out the traditional "lid" from the pumpkin's top, Herminio carves an oval in back, just large enough for his hand to fit through. The opening, he says, gives better access to the pumpkin's center, and permits him to push out thinly-cut shapes such as eyebrows and lips. The only carving tool he uses is a 6-inch curved, serrated knife.
For a "cat" pumpkin, Herminio uses the cut-out piece of one eye as a template for the next.
Wooden cocktail skewers serve as the cat's whiskers.
A mysterious black cat stopped by to check out the "new kid on the block."
Stay tuned for more pumpkin photos as Halloween Night draws near!
UPDATE: These are the scenes that greeted trick-or-treaters at Herminio's house on Halloween night, 2009: 
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Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Pumpkin-Carving with Herminio
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what a fascinating take on carving a pumpkin. I will give it a try even though I am not sure I am as talented as Herminio. Does he do it as a consultant? I am in Duchess County New York
Wow - they look great! Especially the whiskered cat one!
Nice work! Are Herminio's designs free-hand or from patterns?
Gregory - No patterns involved. Just sheer creativity. I'm so jealous!
Yeah, my own carving skills are limited to triangles:
2 triangles for eyes
1 triangle for nose
A number of small, upside-down triangles for teeth
Wow! Herminio is the pumpkin prince! Did you make pumpkin pie or anything else pumpkiny with the pulp and seeds?
Judy - I'm going to roast pumpkin seeds this week...I'll blog about it then!
Jackie
Oh Herminio! I love the pumpkin kitty. Kevin, will you be featuring Herminio's snow sculptures this winter?
Jackie - welcome! I assume you're predicting snow. I am, too, and I'd love to showcase Herminio's snow sculptures!
Hope to "see" you again!