Haybales and mazes. Corn stalks and cider. Fall spices and comfy sweaters. Halloween is looming, and there’s nothing like a trip to a pumpkin patch to inspire our inner sculptors. Every year brings a host of new trends in costumes and decor, and there’s no shortage of jack o’lanterns parked on porches and stoops.
Pumpkin art ranges from the traditional spooky-toothed, triangle-eyed goblin face to spellbinding creations that inspire folks to attempt to transform a large, round, orange fruit into a diorama. Doesn’t matter if we’re etching experts or stick figure specialists – it’s the fun that counts.
We can thank the people of rural Ireland for this enduring tradition, popularized in the 1600s with the legend of Stingy Jack. You’ll find him in folklore with different names, including Drunk Jack, Jack the Smith, Flaky Jack, or Jack O’lantern. As legend has it, Jack helped an old man who revealed himself to be an angel. To thank him, the angel granted Jack three wishes.
A drunkard and all-around nasty guy, Jack used their wishes to punish anyone who would sit in his chair, take wood from his tree, or use his cobbler’s knives. (At least the old reprobate knew the value of a good, sharp cutter.) This didn’t go over well with the angel, who barred him from heaven. When the devil came to take him to the underworld, Jack tricked him into postponing the trip. Jack’s luck eventually ran out, and the Devil doomed him to roam between heaven and earth for eternity with only a glowing ember to provide a guiding light.
As Stingy Jack’s legend grew, the Irish and Scottish people would carve lanterns out of turnips, potatoes, and parsnips with scary faces and put them in their windows to keep him and other evil spirits away during the end-of-harvest rituals of Samhain, or as we know it, Halloween. The Celtic immigrants brought the custom to America, and the Jack O’lantern became a hallmark of our spooky celebrations.
It’s a great time of year to discover the beauty, versatility and performance of Lamson knives. We offer a selection that has something for every Halloween kitchen, from utility and paring knives for making prize-winning Jack O’lanterns, to chef’s knives and accessories that make creating late Fall dishes a work of art. Whether you’re starting your collection with a single knife or adding pieces to what you already have, we have an elegant professional tool for every culinary task – even pumpkin carving,
All of our knives come with a lifetime warranty, and our complimentary Sharp for Life service gives you professional sharpening for all Lamson cutting tools, including serrated blades. Our commitment to serving you for the life of your purchase is scary good.
It will be trick or treat time before you know it. Isn’t it time you treated yourself with premium kitchenware from Lamson?
