Paras’ Pumpkinizing Dublin resident shows off massive pumpkins with celebrity paintings

Paras’ Pumpkinizing Paras’ Pumpkinizing

Paras’ Pumpkinizing Paras’ Pumpkinizing

Dublin resident shows off massive pumpkins with celebrity paintings

By Lauren Serge

Photos courtesy of Paras Pumpkins

For many, Halloween is a holiday of costumes, candy and scares. For Jeanette Paras, though, Halloween is the time to display her hundred plus-pound pumpkins on her Dublin front porch.

Owner of Paras Pumpkins, Paras has been “pumpkinizing,” a term she affectionately uses to describe her pumpkin painting process, celebrities since 1988 when she carved Mike Dukakis and George H.W. Bush, the presidential candidates of the time, into pumpkins.

“Basically, after that, and every year afterwards, (I’ve had) the pumpkin displays,” she says. “I pumpkinize whoever is the hot topic of conversation.”

Paras has pumpkinized a variety of notable figures, from politicians to rappers, each of whom was particularly popular in the year that she depicts them. She has created more than 80 large celebrity pumpkins since ’88, with recent projects including Ted Lasso, Baby Yoda, Rudy Giuliani and Kanye West, among many others.

Her 2015 pumpkinized Donald Trump made headlines around the world, with media outlets showcasing her 374-pound “Trumpkin,” as she dubbed it.

A mother of three, comedian and now famous pumpkin artist, Paras has adapted her initial carving style into acrylic painting for signature details such as large ears and hair pieces. It’s all in the name of preservation, she says.

“I started out cutting all the way through the pumpkin and the major features,” she says, “and once you compromise the skin and the cavity of the pumpkin, it really speeds up the decaying process very quickly.”

She says that working with acrylics extends the pumpkins’ longevity.

Because of the greater longevity, Paras can unveil a second round of costuming for the pumpkins in the winter, when she adds Christmas-themed decorations and accessories to the original pumpkin artwork.

Each pumpkin can take 50 to 70 hours to complete between researching, sketching and painting the pumpkins, which

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After deciding on whom to carve, Paras then sketches an outline.

over the years have ranged from 150 to 750 pounds.

The diligent process begins toward the end September as Paras begins to research who will be the most relevant figure to carve.

In anticipation of her reveal each Halloween, Paras posts teasers online and places a sign on her driveway that reads, “Who Will It Be?” to drum up excitement for its unveiling and encourage neighbors and fans to take their guesses.

Barb Birdsall has been Paras’ neighbor for 17 years, and each year she looks forward to seeing Paras’ latest creation.

“(Paras) goes into lockdown mode over there when the pumpkin arrives, and it goes into her garage,” Birdsall says. “Probably a week prior she preps her garage, and we know it’s coming.”

The surrounding neighbors look forward to Paras’ big reveal as well.

“It’s been so fun watching families just pull up and kids jump out to get pictures on her porch,” Birdsall says. “It’s crazy. We love it.”

One of Birdsall’s favorite creations of was Paras’ Ted Lasso-kin last year, a 705-pound pumpkin formed into Jason Sudeikis’ titular character from the 2020 Apple TV show Ted Lasso. The pumpkin even caught the attention of Sudeikis and his mother, who each liked Paras’ tweet of the pumpkin in October and its winter attire in December.

While her pumpkins have generated a great deal of attention, Paras says it’s the intimate moments she’s shared with people who admire her work that make it all worthwhile.

“In 2020, when I did Baby Yoda-kin, there were a couple of people that came to my house crying that they were so happy I did a pumpkin,” Paras says. “We were all in this tricky time; it was so difficult and scary, so I’m glad (my pumpkin) brought a smile on people’s faces.”

For Paras personally, the month of October holds a lot of significance: it’s the month of her pumpkin unveiling, her birthday, her anniversary and Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Paras is a twotime breast cancer survivor, or as she likes to call herself, thriver.

In 2015, she had her second bout with cancer. Just a few short weeks after a ninehour surgery, she was already working on the Trump-kin. The pumpkins aren’t just for artistic expression and the enjoyment of others; over the years, Paras has raised $6,500 in donations, which she puts toward breast cancer funds.

“If I can help bring any attention to the fight and bring awareness, then I will feel fulfilled,” she says.

Though she has been pumpkinizing for 34 years, every year still brings Paras the same joy seeing all of her neighbors’ reactions.

“There are people that were kids that would come by my house that are now bringing their kids. How crazy is that?” Paras says. “I get thanked by people that I don’t even know that have come to the house and they look forward to it each year. It’s really rewarding to do something that a lot of people really enjoy.”

Keep an eye on www.paraspumpkins. com and @paras_pumpkins on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter around the few days before Halloween to find out who receives the honor of being pumpkinized this year.

Lauren Serge is an editorial assistant at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.