{"id":1889,"date":"2015-06-12T12:28:20","date_gmt":"2015-06-12T12:28:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.whataboutwatermelon.com\/?p=1889"},"modified":"2017-06-13T07:38:23","modified_gmt":"2017-06-13T07:38:23","slug":"interview-with-a-watermelon-carver-jeanne-fratello","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.whataboutwatermelon.com\/index.php\/2015\/06\/interview-with-a-watermelon-carver-jeanne-fratello\/","title":{"rendered":"INTERVIEW WITH A WATERMELON CARVER: JEANNE FRATELLO"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Jeanne Fratello is a writer whose work includes a blog called Jolly Tomato. She\u2019s also a part-time watermelon carver. Her work above (Olaf from the movie, Frozen) took home second place in the \u201cFunniest Carving\u201d category in last year\u2019s carving contest.<\/p>\n

I recently chatted with Manhattan Beach, CA blogger-turned-carver about her love of carving and her plans for this year\u2019s contest.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOURSELF. WHEN YOU\u2019RE NOT CARVING WATERMELON, WHAT DO YOU LIKE TO DO?<\/p>\n

I write a blog called Jolly Tomato<\/a> about fun and nutritious foods for kids and families, so watermelon carving fits right in with that. I also write for two local news and features blogs. When I\u2019m not writing or cooking, I like to swim and hang out at the beach with my family. Also Scrabble \u2014 lots of Scrabble.<\/p>\n

WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO START CARVING WATERMELON?<\/p>\n

When I was little my mom would often carve a watermelon fruit basket for parties, so when I had my own kids I started carving watermelon for their parties, and it kind of took off from there. Basically, now, whenever I have a watermelon, I can\u2019t resist carving it into something. I also like to collect pictures of some of my favorite watermelon carvings on my Pinterest board<\/a>.<\/p>\n

WHAT SORT OF CARVINGS DO YOU LIKE TO CREATE?<\/p>\n

I have a great admiration for people who do exquisite, finely crafted flowers or intricate designs, but my watermelon carvings are a little more basic. Usually I try to carve something funny, or easily recognizable, so when people walk in the room, they say, \u201cHey, Minecraft!\u201d or whatever, and it becomes a conversation piece.<\/p>\n

WHAT\u2019S BEEN YOUR MOST MEMORABLE WATERMELON CARVING?<\/p>\n

I carve a lot of sharks because we seem to have a lot of pool and beach parties. I can make one pretty quickly, and it\u2019s always a hit. One time I carved a giant shark watermelon and I put it in the refrigerator with the teeth facing outward. I sort of forgot it was in there, and when I opened the refrigerator later that night, I gave myself a scare when I was suddenly face-to-face with this enormous mouth full of teeth!<\/p>\n

Last summer I carved an Olaf watermelon from Frozen<\/a> and my neighbor came over while I was taking pictures of it. She was laughing about what a coincidence it was because she was just about to take her daughter to camp and that week they had a Frozen theme. So I gave her the watermelon to take to camp and it was a big hit. That\u2019s basically the perfect outcome for any watermelon carving.<\/p>\n

WHEN IT COMES TO EATING WATERMELON, DO YOU PREFER CHUNKS OR WEDGES?<\/p>\n

So funny you should ask. I\u2019m eating watermelon chunks as I sit here! I\u2019d hate to have to choose just one, but I guess I\u2019d say chunks because they\u2019re really easy to eat, one after another.<\/p>\n

WHAT\u2019S NEXT FOR YOU AS A CARVER? WHAT WILL YOU BE CARVING THIS YEAR?<\/p>\n

I always like to start with popular movies and take a recognizable character from there. This summer I\u2019ll be looking at my kids\u2019 favorite books and games as well. I\u2019m also going to use a few new carving tools that will allow me to add some more delicate details, so I hope my watermelon creations keep getting better and better. I\u2019ll hope to share some with you later this summer!<\/p>\n

UP NEXT: How to carve a watermelon panda<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Remember, all comments left on the blog this month are entered to win our June prize \u2013 a set of watermelon dip bowls<\/span><\/u> \u2013 so comment as often as you\u2019d like!\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jeanne Fratello is a writer whose work includes a blog called Jolly Tomato. She\u2019s also a part-time watermelon carver. Her work above (Olaf from the movie, Frozen) took home second place in the \u201cFunniest Carving\u201d category in last year\u2019s carving contest. I recently chatted with Manhattan Beach, CA blogger-turned-carver about her love of carving and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[229],"tags":[523,524,525,418,228],"class_list":{"0":"post-1889","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-watermelon-carving","7":"tag-funniest-carving","8":"tag-jeanne-fratello","9":"tag-jolly-tomato","10":"tag-watermelon-carver","11":"tag-watermelon-carving-2","12":"entry"},"yoast_head":"\nINTERVIEW WITH A WATERMELON CARVER: JEANNE FRATELLO - What About Watermelon?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.whataboutwatermelon.com\/index.php\/2015\/06\/interview-with-a-watermelon-carver-jeanne-fratello\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"INTERVIEW WITH A WATERMELON CARVER: JEANNE FRATELLO - What About Watermelon?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Jeanne Fratello is a writer whose work includes a blog called Jolly Tomato. 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