It's the most wonderful tiiiime of the yeeeeaaaarrrr!
Seeing as today is National Pumpkin Day, I thought I'd made a little post about a super fun activity I went to last night. Madame Tussaud's held its first ever pumpkin carving workshop, so obviously I had to go.
Halloween isn't as much of a 'thing' here as it is back in the States and I'd be lying if I said I don't feel deprived. So thirsty for the spook. So thirsty.
That being said, I definitely feel like the Halloween spirit (hur hur hur) has been getting stronger in the U.K. over the past few years. Fake cobwebs and tinsel skeletons are popping up in more shop windows, and people seem to have realised that costume options go beyond Sexy Devil and Sexy Witch. This fun event at Madam Tussaud's is another example of how Halloween is catching on. Love it.
When hubs and I arrived, we were ushered into a concealed side entrance of the building with the rest of the workshop group, taken up quite a few flights of winding stairs, and given a tour of the waxwork studio by model-maker and artist, Olivia Steen, who also led the jack-o-lantern workshop. Due to the sensitive nature of the model-making process photos were understandably prohibited, but it was fascinating to learn a little about the process and see where the magic happens. I also loved the creep factor of seeing the hyper realistic dismembered limbs of celebrities. Olivia aptly said that she works in the Uncanny Valley. A highlight of the tour was getting to chuckle at Bob Marley and Freddie Mercury's respective disembodied heads sitting side by side waiting to get their hair maintained.
After the nightmare fuel it was time to get carving. Little round tables had been arranged in a canteen area, each one supporting four fat pumpkins, bright carving tools, and booklets of jack-o-lantern stencils. Hubs and I didn't end up using the stencils, but having them there was a great idea.
My husband, as usual, was the only man present. Even though he's English and wasn't raised with much Halloween stuff, I've taught him well over the years and he managed to carve two pumpkins like buttah.
I love the smell of pumpkin guts.
At the beginning of the evening Olivia asked for a show of hands to see how many people had carved jack-o-lanterns before. Only a few hands went up. My heart did a little squeeze out of joy to see so many adults - the vast majority were conservatively dressed corporate looking types, suprisingly -who were interested in this Halloween tradition. And their pumpkins turned out beautifully! It was fantastic.
Olivia arranging finished pumpkins for a group photo.
One of the two pumpkins I carved. He has a face on the other side as well.
It was such a fun way to spend an evening. I hope to see more Halloween themed community bonding activities like this in the future. Well done, Madame Tussaud's!
Click here to check out Olivia Steen's artwork!
Seeing as today is National Pumpkin Day, I thought I'd made a little post about a super fun activity I went to last night. Madame Tussaud's held its first ever pumpkin carving workshop, so obviously I had to go.
Halloween isn't as much of a 'thing' here as it is back in the States and I'd be lying if I said I don't feel deprived. So thirsty for the spook. So thirsty.
That being said, I definitely feel like the Halloween spirit (hur hur hur) has been getting stronger in the U.K. over the past few years. Fake cobwebs and tinsel skeletons are popping up in more shop windows, and people seem to have realised that costume options go beyond Sexy Devil and Sexy Witch. This fun event at Madam Tussaud's is another example of how Halloween is catching on. Love it.
When hubs and I arrived, we were ushered into a concealed side entrance of the building with the rest of the workshop group, taken up quite a few flights of winding stairs, and given a tour of the waxwork studio by model-maker and artist, Olivia Steen, who also led the jack-o-lantern workshop. Due to the sensitive nature of the model-making process photos were understandably prohibited, but it was fascinating to learn a little about the process and see where the magic happens. I also loved the creep factor of seeing the hyper realistic dismembered limbs of celebrities. Olivia aptly said that she works in the Uncanny Valley. A highlight of the tour was getting to chuckle at Bob Marley and Freddie Mercury's respective disembodied heads sitting side by side waiting to get their hair maintained.
After the nightmare fuel it was time to get carving. Little round tables had been arranged in a canteen area, each one supporting four fat pumpkins, bright carving tools, and booklets of jack-o-lantern stencils. Hubs and I didn't end up using the stencils, but having them there was a great idea.
At the beginning of the evening Olivia asked for a show of hands to see how many people had carved jack-o-lanterns before. Only a few hands went up. My heart did a little squeeze out of joy to see so many adults - the vast majority were conservatively dressed corporate looking types, suprisingly -who were interested in this Halloween tradition. And their pumpkins turned out beautifully! It was fantastic.
It was such a fun way to spend an evening. I hope to see more Halloween themed community bonding activities like this in the future. Well done, Madame Tussaud's!
Click here to check out Olivia Steen's artwork!
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