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Halloween is one of Miki Sakamoto’s favorite holidays so, of course, she entered the 2023 BHS Pumpkin Decorating Contest.
Sakamoto, who took first place with her Ghostface pumpkin, is a fan of all things horror. That’s why she chose to paint the well-known stalker from the “Scream” movies on her jack-o-lantern.
“I really enjoy the horror aspect of Halloween and that’s why I wanted to incorporate something that captured that,” Sakamoto said of the pumpkin she named Michael. “After giving it some thought, I chose to paint Ghostface since he’s one of the most iconic and recognizable characters within the horror genre.”
Second place went to Freddi Mahalick-Jaskot for “The Fairy House,” an elaborate creation with lights. Richenda Perez and Khadija Kashaf shared third-place honors with “Nemo” and “Venom,” respectively.
Sakamoto, who took four hours to paint her pumpkin, was extremely surprised when she found out she won because she wasn’t very satisfied with the final result and because the competition was so tough. She used acrylic paint, noting that it “tends to stick better on a textured surface.”
She recommends priming the pumpkin because paint does not stick very well on smooth surfaces.
The talented sophomore isn’t currently taking an art class but hopes to in the future. Sakamoto is interested in paintings done during the Renaissance, specifically Leonardo da Vinci’s work.
The pumpkins were displayed for several days in the hallway in front of the cafeteria. Students and staff voted for their favorites among the 25 entries. First and second place received Amazon gift cards while third place got DD gift cards.
“Da Vinci’s understanding of human anatomy, lighting, perspectives, and colors were so advanced for their time and are truly phenomenal,” Sakamoto said.
Mahalick-Jaskot’s inspiration for the fairy house was horror movies.
“I always had a fascination with horror and supernatural creatures such as fairies,” said Mahalick-Jaskot, a freshman.
Materials used were plastic skeletons, wire and tape to make wings and sticks from her backyard to frame the windows and doors. It took her portions of three days to decorate her pumpkin.
“I am still in shock that I got second place,” she said. “There were so many people that were so talented and it is awesome to be one of the winners of the contest. I love doing art and hope to become a tattoo artist.”
Fond of doodling, Mihalick-Jaskot has a “cartoonish style.”
“I am so glad that I was able to have the opportunity to have such an awesome time making this pumpkin,” she said.
Perez chose “Nemo” because she likes the movie and the color of the pumpkin reminded her of the friendly clownfish.
In order to get her pumpkin done, Perez, a sophomore, woke up at 4 a.m. on the day it was due to meet the deadline.
Perez wasn’t the only one in her family immersed in pumpkin decorating last week. Her mother, Suzette, made a gender reveal cake, consisting of several layers and baby popping out of a pumpkin.
All of the other entries were exceptional and some had stories behind them. For example, Mrs. Tambakis loves sparkles and created a pumpkin for breast cancer awareness.
Sophomore Riley Wendt’s pumpkin was centered around a cat on a bench with a candle that represented the sun setting.
***PHOTOS OF ALL OF THE ENTRIES BELOW***
