Shelburne artist carves Bernie-inspired jack-o'-lantern

SHELBURNE – Those who want to drink with Bernie Sanders this Halloween should look no further than the bar at Rustic Roots.

That's right — Vermont's Independent senator's mug has been carved into a 40-pound pumpkin that rests on the wooden counter at the restaurant in Shelburne's Village square.

Ashley Campbell, restaurant co-owner and pumpkin carving professional, calls it the "Bernkin." It even has it's own hashtag (#Bernkin) for customers who want to post the piece of gourd art on social media.

"I do admire him," she said of Sanders. "He is recognizable right now, whether you vote for him or not everyone can get behind the fact that he's truly Vermont."

Campbell and her father have made something of a career out of pumpkin carving. The pair owns Campbell Carvings where they specialize in illuminated portrait designs. Campbell, 29, said she has carved pumpkins with the faces of couples in love for weddings, haunted portraits and other political figures, including Abraham Lincoln.

"But this is probably my best carving," she said of the Bernkin.

The jack-o'-lantern took Campbell about 12 hours to carve using wood chisels, she said.

A string of Christmas lights illuminates Sanders' face — mouth open, brow furrowed, white hair a-flying.

Campbell said the image of Burlington's former mayor came from a graphic designer's website. The image captured the precise "look" of Sanders that Campbell wanted for her carving, so she took to Photoshop software to make a carving pattern. Isham Family Farm in Williston provided her pumpkin canvas.

Campbell calls her carving style "old school." She made a paper template of the image, taped the pattern to the pumpkin and used a nail to poke dots outlining where she would use wood chisels to carve the senator's face.

Now the pumpkin sits on display in her restaurant where patrons can take pictures of or with the gourd and post them on social media. Campbell said she hopes word of the pumpkin will reach Sanders himself.

"My main motivation is to see if he sees this thing and has a response to it," she said.

Contact Haley Dover at 660-1850 or hdover@freepressmedia.com. Follow Haley on Twitter at www.twitter.com/HaleyRDover.