Orange you glad it’s fall? Ring in the harvest season by decorating with pumpkins in East Tennessee’s hue of choice. Woodcarving teacher Wayne Shinlever, a Dollywood Great Pumpkin Carving Contest winner, has years of pumpkin carving skills to his credit and has the best tips and tricks for creating the most spooktacular jack o’ lantern on the block. Stop by the local pumpkin patch, take your pick of gourds and try out these tips—the  Great Pumpkin isn’t going to carve itself.

1.  Find the pick of the patch. For a jack o’ lantern most supreme, make sure the pumpkin you choose is ripe (meaning it’s a uniform color) and know that for carving, a thickly fleshed gourd will yield the best results. Opt for a pumpkin that is a little more unique than those perfect basketball-shaped gourds. Mix it up with a leaner pumpkin or one that is a lighter color to give it a little personality.

2. Try a relief carving. Instead of perfecting your geometry skills with two triangles and a rectangle-tooth smile, try a relief carving. A pumpkin’s skin is about 2.5 inches thick, and by shaving the hard outer layer without piercing the inner shell, you can make a jack o’ lantern that Halloween devotees can admire.  For some All Hallow’s Eve designs to die for, check out marthastewart.com or extremepumpkins.com.

3. Pick the right tool. For a carving that looks like a pro stopped by the pumpkin patch, try devices a woodworker would use—a knife and a shallow gauge tool. Precision is key when working with gourd family products like pumpkins, so use caution when sculpting your autumnal masterpiece. Try Warren Cutlery’s Pro Pumpkin Carving Tool Set  (www.warrencutlery.com).

4. Keep it fresh. Try coating the pumpkin in bleach (mind your clothes) or use a store-bought product like Pumpkin Fresh (www.pumpkinfresh.com) to slow down the decomposition process and  keep your gourd looking spookier for longer.

5. Have a pumpkin party. Make an event of it by inviting friends and family over for a pumpkin carving extravaganza. Stock up on apple cider and roast some pumpkin seeds from the hollowed out gourds while you carve the most outrageous design you can find. A silhouette of the Knoxville skyline? No problem.
—Alexandra Hruz

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Go See:
Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps  (20th Century Fox, in theaters Sept. 24, 2010)     
To sum up:  Michael Douglas is back as “Greed is good” corporate raider Gordon Gekko in this sequel to 1987’s Wall Street.
Why you should see it:  The Oliver Stone pic, co-starring Shia LaBeouf and Josh Brolin, sparked Oscar buzz when it debuted at the Cannes Film Festival.
Money shot:  LaBeouf gazing in disbelief at the multimillion-dollar check in his hands.

Go Read:
Breakthrough: Elizabeth Hughes, the Discovery of Insulin, and the Making of a Medical Miracle by Thea Cooper and Arthur Ainsberg ($24.99, St. Martin’s Press, in stores Sept. 14, 2010)
To sum up:  The discovery of insulin is chronicled through the stories of an 11-year-old dying of diabetes and two Canadian scientists racing to find a cure.
Why you should read it:  The authors bring this historical medical breakthrough to vivid life.
Memorable prose:  “The fact that he had lost the humanity to feel happy for a little girl’s life sent him into a sickening spiral of self-recrimination.”

Go Listen:
Kirsten Price, Brixton to Brooklyn (KPI Corp., in stores Sept. 7, 2010)
To sum up:  British vocalist delivers diverse, emotionally raw sophomore effort.
Why you should listen to it:  Whether mixing with trippy dance beats, driving rock guitar or a spare piano arrangement, Price’s soulful voice is always arresting.
Choice cut:  “With or Without You.” The album opener’s haunting piano, ethereal strings and soaring chorus lift it well above your average dance pop.
—Ryan McNally