Good day my faithful Minions! Isn’t the weather wonderful? Well, Bride of Scarydad made me promise to wait until October before setting up the yard haunt. Man, I have so many projects it’s going to take the better part of October to get it all set up! I suppose if I put out a little bit every day I won’t have to hire a mutant. But then again, there is all the fun that comes with having a mutant hanging around for a few days…
I’ll keep my options open.
Meanwhile, behind the facade of this innocent looking suburban home, I have been creating pure mayhem. And gravestones. Mayhem and gravestones, yes indeed. Click the “Read More” button and I’ll show you how I did it!
When I finished the laboratory, I had several pieces of scrap 3/4″ plywood that I almost immediately dedicated to this project. I am certain that in the future I will use foam, but really, why spend money you don’t have to?
This entire project cost me $1.73 at Home Depot because I bought 2 pints of textured gray paint on clearance a few weeks ago. Otherwise it was all scraps and a little bit of time in the garage, uh, lab… Excuse me.
I’ve always loved Tim Burton’s set designs so I went for that look with my stones. The great thing about this look is that it’s asymmetrical and sort of wonky, so you are forgiven little screw-ups. In fact, they make it look better.
I used a jig saw to cut out the basic shape,
then used the router to round off the edges. I then used the router to engrave and decorate my stone as shown in the following pics:
The router slipped when I was carving the first seven so I had to match the other one. Always make sure your bits are sharp before you use a router but especially if you are going to do any kind of detail work. This little mistake was easy enough to fix but just slightly more and it would have ruined the entire stone. Be careful and always use protective eye wear.
Other works in the making…
I then painted the stones with the textured grey paint and let them dry overnight. I used a scrap piece of wood to fashion stakes to drive into the ground to hold them upright. Quick tip: drive the stake into the ground first then attach the stone to it. Doing it the other way split the stakes and I had to make new ones.
The fencing is some flower bed lining wrought iron we used in our last house to keep the dog out of the garden. We didn’t really need it here but it was a bit pricey and we couldn’t stomach leaving it behind. Now it has a purpose!
Phase one of Scarydad Yard Haunt is now complete, and so far I haven’t had to hire a mutant. It’s a good feeling.
Let me know what you think in the comments below! And if you like what you see, please share the site with your friends.
See you later!
