The Yard of the Living Dead 2012

Here are a few shots of the yard on the big night.  There were a lot of unfinished projects this year; but we saw a marked increase in the number of TOT's this year, so it seemed like a good year all in all.

This year saw my first foray into animatronic propmaking.  The prop was a simple shiatsu spider victim.  It is funny how home haunters who know about all of the amazing props out there can get a little embarassed about a simple prop; but the reaction by the TOT's is always positive.  Here is a short video of the prop in action.



I Finally Finished My First Groundbreaker!

Well, after an interminable amount of time stuck with "analysis paralysis", I finally got something new finished for The Yard of the Living Dead this year.  I used tips, tricks, and inspiration from various sources on the web and the forums.  This groundbreaker is one hundred percent homemade from the paper mache skull to the cardboard ribcage.  Here are a few pictures of him in the garage.

 

I will get a few more pictures of him after he is placed in The Yard of the Living Dead later today.  One thing I learned during the construction of this groundbreaker is that I suck at making hands, the thumbs especially.



Long Weekend of Prop Building

I am taking advantage of a long weekend to do some prop building in the garage. I mixed up a batch of paper mache for a couple of projects.

Here is the beginning of my first ground breaker.

Here are a couple of pumpkins that will be carved and corpsed.

I am also cutting down the rest of my bottles to make more Halloween lanterns.

I made another huge haul of foam sheets for tombstones while dumpster diving. The sheets on the left measure 24" wide and 40" tall. The sheets on the right measure 16" wide and 45" tall. All of the sheets are 2 1/2" thick. The two different sizes should yeild a good variety of tombstone shapes.

I salvaged 34 sheets of each size of foam. I could have brought even more home; but my wife would have killed me. This should be enough...for this year.