(Lots of) Pics of props from this weekends party

**johnshenry** · 10-30-2007,10:05 AM

Ok, Halloween is over for us, we host 2 big parties (one for adults, one for teens) the weekend before Halloween. I started tearing down, but before I did I took some pics. So here you go, pics are big (click on them if the BBS site is downsizing them). Text below pics goes with pic above.

the china cabinet. My wife bought the talking/flaoting head. I normally don't like that "WalMart" kind of stuff, but this thing ($40) is pretty cool. The lighting and animation is good, does 2 voice loops, sound activated. In the cabinet above, I used a CF blacklight, and put a piece of cheese cloth over him.

This in the the dining room in the front of the house BTW, there was a "walkthrough" constructed here that our guests had to walkthrough to get into the kitchen, we didn't greet anyone at the door. It was basically a 3 lane switchback layout, using cloth screenings.

Another pic of the cabinet. The skull to the left, with hole in the back, is probably my favorite store bought prop so far. new this year...

This is the corner of the family room. I tried to take a no flash pic to show the light, but you know how hard it is to hold the camera still. This year I stacked the props boxes in the corner (instead of carrying them back down to the basement!) and coverd them with cloths. On top is a chandelier with flicker flame bulbs (I have 4 of them), and several LED candles on PVC pillars. To the left above the TV was a 2x 48in blacklight fixture. The black cats eyes glowed, he looked real good there.

Pic of that corner with a dim flash. JBL speak and a subwoofer under those cloths at the bottom.

The front foyer. I removed a cheesy looking crystal ceiling light that I never liked anyway (will be on eBay soon!) and hung a chandelier there. I wanted it to be in the way so people would have to duck under or walk around when they came in. Used spanish moss to fill the hole in the ceiling a bit. And some carefullly placed poly webbing.

Another chandelier on the kitchen table where the punch was. The small table lamp was on the X10 "blackout" channel and part of the ambient light that went away about 10pm with the push on an RF remote button in my pocket..

The back side of the lab table, the screening divides the table in half. Another chandelier there. The severed head I build yeas ago (foam filled freddy Kruger mask) It used to be suspended in a cage, blood dripping out of it, green LED eyes, and a motor inside to make it quiver. But for this table I just dropped it into a rusty pot and wired up the eyes. I had meant to smear some Vaseline on the severed flesh to make it look "wet"....

The front side of the table. A humidifier is under the "brain tank" and has a small 4 watt bulb in the output tube to illuminate the mist. The tank sits on a light box (flickering with a flourescent ballast can in the circuit) with a red gel. the severed hand/arm is foam filled, latex glue stretched, burned with a torch, etc, etc. It looks pretty cool. Old acet torch and propane burner.

Another pic of the backside. You can see one of the skeleton hands on the back wall. Plastic screening was used on the near side to block light from the kitchen.

**johnshenry** · 10-30-2007,10:06 AM

Continued...

Front side. The hand in the jar is one of my oldest props, made it about 14 years ago (same water) and it gets better looking every year. And old wiggly hand, gutted of the motor, filled with foam and PVC, torched, painted, rubber cement on the skin, etc. On a lighted flicker box also.

A better pic of Freddy. Get "Henrys" latex carpet glue, and you can make some cool skin effects...

Here's the LED pillar bases I made by cutting random lengths of 1 1/4" PVC (use solvent to wipe the lettering off first) and gluing them (with PVC glue) in small groups. Then set the LET candles on them. I ordered 144 LED candles on eBay for about $75, and didn't even end up using them all. With all the draped cloth, I was paranoid about fire, so no real candles.

Here is the screening I used to separate the rooms. (Lights on in the back, sorry. And we removed a section mid-party so people did not have to walk all the way back through the lab to get to the bathroom). IN the back (can't see it in the pic) is 6 mil black plastic to block the light. IN front, .25/yd fiber fabric "backing". On the floor a pair of 18" blacklights, with strips of carboard glued to them to block the light from the side place in between the plastic and fabric. It created a cool effect, was cheap, but a HUGE PIA to hang. I first tried removeable 2 way tape, didn't hold it up (and this stuff is VERY light), so I hot glued strips of poster board to the fabric and the tape sitll would not hold, so I used non-removable 2 sided tape. This worked, but of course pulled some paint off in a few spots when I removed it, even though I was heating it with a heat gun a bit ...

Won't do this next year....

We made four skeleton hands with 12 gauge copper wire (one with coathanger, but it is too stiff) and masking tape. Rolled tape inside to make hand bones, hot glued an LED candle behind it, mad a small sconce shelf with foam/hot glue, painted, and glued a piece of coat hanger wire to the bottom to push down into the foam shelf. In the dark, the effect was cool. Half a pumpkin seed coloer with sharpie for a fingernail.

Of course in the light it looks like masking tape. This one needed to be on a post since there wasn't a wall we could stick the sconce on.

Here's the grand staircase (I had started turning off the LED candles before I took this pic. We have LOTS of tattered cloths (15 yrs of this now). Random boxes underneath them, but a Bose 402 is in the corner on the piano. you can see the black plastic screening covering the opening to the front door hallway.

**johnshenry** · 10-30-2007,10:07 AM

last 4...

Bigger pic. I bought that portrait at a Salvation Army store years ago. Small skelly at the piano. A video camera at the top of the railing.... that I totally forgot to turn on!!

Table by the front door, black pot was full of glow sticks for guests entering.

My favorite candlestick holder there on the right.....

Ok, anyone want to help me put all this stuff away???