Thread: tombstone tips

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this past year was the first time i actually made some tombstone, while i was a bit nervous about buy the materials and then wasting them i was super happy at the way they turned out. if your a first timer and worred about doin i say go ahead, also you can ask me for tips for first time ease. but that is not my reason for postin this my questions id like to see answered by some of my hauntin peers is

1. best way to connect pcs of foam to each other to make 3D graves such as box or taller multi layered ones? i use silicone out of a tube to glue wood stakes to keep them in the grown and im pretty sure god couldn't seperate that bond

2. i use the white foam, while it was easier to cut it made a damn mess that was impossible to clean all the specks up after sawing/drimmeling. so i wonder if the pink/blue foam creates as much of a mess?

3. i used spray paint (black/grey) to paint my stones, i found the areosol ate at the white foam giving it a great look not to mention the cans were .99 at lowes, but ive seen some flat grey stones that look great just wondering what another popular use its

thanks for the advice in advance.

i plan on redoing mine this year w monster mud and if you get good w that you use boxes and foam to make 3d bigger tombs. its all trial and error but its fun

I use pink foam and yes, it does make a mess too. I use a shop vac to clean it up.

As for painting I put a coat of DryLock on it first to give it texture. Then you can spray paint it. In the paint it is the Acetone that is eating it. Certain paints use lower or no amount of it. Tough to find though.

It's fun to make tombstones and write funny messages on them. check this out:
http://www.wondercostumes.com/light-...--ptlugth.html

Originally Posted by ThakingDbb

this past year was the first time i actually made some tombstone, while i was a bit nervous about buy the materials and then wasting them i was super happy at the way they turned out. if your a first timer and worred about doin i say go ahead, also you can ask me for tips for first time ease. but that is not my reason for postin this my questions id like to see answered by some of my hauntin peers is

1. best way to connect pcs of foam to each other to make 3D graves such as box or taller multi layered ones? i use silicone out of a tube to glue wood stakes to keep them in the grown and im pretty sure god couldn't seperate that bond

2. i use the white foam, while it was easier to cut it made a damn mess that was impossible to clean all the specks up after sawing/drimmeling. so i wonder if the pink/blue foam creates as much of a mess?

3. i used spray paint (black/grey) to paint my stones, i found the areosol ate at the white foam giving it a great look not to mention the cans were .99 at lowes, but ive seen some flat grey stones that look great just wondering what another popular use its

thanks for the advice in advance.

I use the blue or pink foam and have used spray paint and aceton to age the tombstones. I am going to redo a bunch of mine this year, the best tutorial I found is by HF's own Terra. Excellent advice, driection and tips you can't go wrong if you follow her steps.

Building Halloween Tombstones

I have wanted to make some for 2009 but ran out of time. This was on the top of my list for 2010 and made nine of them. I have to thank Terra for her helpful how to on this project. I used the pink and blue foam and carved by hand with an exacto knife. It was messy but nothing a vacuum could not handle. It was fun and I did not realize how time consuming it is but well worth the time spent. I guess doing 9 at one time was a bit much but then again when you have all the supplies out why not right! I used the drylock in the grey color to save on a painting step. I just love the way it gave them texture like real stone. I looked around Home Depot and walmart for some latex house paint in black and white or off white to use for the aging process cause as an artist I have only acrylics and wanted something that would withstand the outdoor elements. I found paint at both stores on clearance in small sizes. I mixed the colors for a dark wash and a lighter wash and watered them down. I got two big spray bottles at the dollar store and put the paint in them. It was much faster to spray the stones then to paint them by brush and I really liked the way they turned out. I would spray the dark on first then right after spray it in various spots with the lighter wash and liked the way they dripped down the stone. I didn't glue two pieces together to save on money but did use a base for each one and inserted a pvc pipe into the stone it self on either side. Some I glued right next to the stone and to hide the pipe I made a pvc candle to put over it. Everyone has thier own way to make them and what works best for them in what they are trying to achieve. I said I was not making anything this year cause I made so much this past Halloween but I already know that is not going to be true lol!

stones look great, i also will not be glueing or doubling i use 2 1/2 foam thick enough for me, also i have actors in my yard so the tombstones are added erie effect, i just had trouble panting. quick question though, how long does it take for the dry lock to dry?

Originally Posted by blackfog

I have wanted to make some for 2009 but ran out of time. This was on the top of my list for 2010 and made nine of them. I have to thank Terra for her helpful how to on this project. I used the pink and blue foam and carved by hand with an exacto knife. It was messy but nothing a vacuum could not handle. It was fun and I did not realize how time consuming it is but well worth the time spent. I guess doing 9 at one time was a bit much but then again when you have all the supplies out why not right! I used the drylock in the grey color to save on a painting step. I just love the way it gave them texture like real stone. I looked around Home Depot and walmart for some latex house paint in black and white or off white to use for the aging process cause as an artist I have only acrylics and wanted something that would withstand the outdoor elements. I found paint at both stores on clearance in small sizes. I mixed the colors for a dark wash and a lighter wash and watered them down. I got two big spray bottles at the dollar store and put the paint in them. It was much faster to spray the stones then to paint them by brush and I really liked the way they turned out. I would spray the dark on first then right after spray it in various spots with the lighter wash and liked the way they dripped down the stone. I didn't glue two pieces together to save on money but did use a base for each one and inserted a pvc pipe into the stone it self on either side. Some I glued right next to the stone and to hide the pipe I made a pvc candle to put over it. Everyone has thier own way to make them and what works best for them in what they are trying to achieve. I said I was not making anything this year cause I made so much this past Halloween but I already know that is not going to be true lol!

I redid alot of my ts that was glued for the 3inch pink insulation.But some of my monuments are made out of white syrofoam packaging .I did salvage some of my old ts as plaques to go on my new ones.I always got aggravated with the ones I glued they would come apart.After I started cutting them I relized I didn't pull the clear film from one side.That is why they wouldn't stay together.
This one is made out of packaging

Originally Posted by blackfog

I have wanted to make some for 2009 but ran out of time. This was on the top of my list for 2010 and made nine of them. I have to thank Terra for her helpful how to on this project. I used the pink and blue foam and carved by hand with an exacto knife. It was messy but nothing a vacuum could not handle. It was fun and I did not realize how time consuming it is but well worth the time spent. I guess doing 9 at one time was a bit much but then again when you have all the supplies out why not right! I used the drylock in the grey color to save on a painting step. I just love the way it gave them texture like real stone. I looked around Home Depot and walmart for some latex house paint in black and white or off white to use for the aging process cause as an artist I have only acrylics and wanted something that would withstand the outdoor elements. I found paint at both stores on clearance in small sizes. I mixed the colors for a dark wash and a lighter wash and watered them down. I got two big spray bottles at the dollar store and put the paint in them. It was much faster to spray the stones then to paint them by brush and I really liked the way they turned out. I would spray the dark on first then right after spray it in various spots with the lighter wash and liked the way they dripped down the stone. I didn't glue two pieces together to save on money but did use a base for each one and inserted a pvc pipe into the stone it self on either side. Some I glued right next to the stone and to hide the pipe I made a pvc candle to put over it. Everyone has thier own way to make them and what works best for them in what they are trying to achieve. I said I was not making anything this year cause I made so much this past Halloween but I already know that is not going to be true lol!

Great ts!!!!

if its styrofoam I know about it for the most part....
bonding pieces of styrofoam together use a product designed to do so Called PL 300, you can also use this produst to adhear things onto the tombstones the one above is many layers a two stage base a multi layer tombstone the name plate is a seperate piece of white styrofoam about 1/2 inch thic carved and shaped into the scroll then the name ingraved with a dremel..a must have tool for tombstones, the cherib is a plastic christmas ornament glued into place.
As for foam the pink or blue is more durable and less messy, however a little harder to work with but great for holding small details better, having said that the white can be used the same way if you layer it i have seen people put a 1/4 inch plywood backing on thier stones for added support for the white stuff
as far as painting and coatings whats your budget I personally have not used the Drylock product but do use a wattered down cement mixture onto mine, to paint I use a automotive paint sprayer(not an expensive one) to paint me stones and outdoor latex scrap paint that
is on sale at most hardware or paint stores called mis tinted paint cheep way to go for sure most of these mis tinted paints are about no more that $5 a gallon , using the sprayer you have to water down the latex paint however can coat many at a time , and you can do severeal layers of latex paint onto the styrofoam that also helps in the protection.
I have used lawn stakes that are used for election signs for putting them into the ground most of my tombstones have a base on them to help with stability in the wind , and give the stone some dimention.