Thread: Beginner here...

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So, we bought a house, and it's a corner lot (YAY!) and our plan is this year to open up the garage for a "pit stop" place for friends to drop in. Decorating that won't be a problem. I have bins upon bins of stuff that I used to decorate in our apt. every year. But now we have a yard and I'm a bit overwhelmed at where to start. We're also talking beginner's budget, too. So, if anyone of you would be willing to look back, per say, to your beginnings and share your wisdom with someone who has is more than willing to put in the sweat equity, but lacking in the funds, at a good place to start for the first year. I would be eternally grateful.

Where did your madness start? What was your first project?

Right now I'm working on putting in gardens, but in them I'm planting stuff that will fade away wonderfully for a natural look later. Sure, it will look great for the summer, but come fall, it will look perfectly neglected. SO, I'm that far anyway...

i started with a $19 fog machine, 3 bails of straw, a couple home made tombstones and one red flood light. the straw was stacked 1 on 2 with the fog machine behind them, the fog blew through a dryer vet between a gap in the bottom 2 bails, the tombstones were used to hide the vent. placed the JOLs on on the staw ( used string of 25 christmas lights to light the pumpkin) ( do not use a candle if on straw )
the red light was used to shine on all of it. this was placed at the bottom of our front steps and when the treaters would start to approach i would set off the fog so that they could not see past, no one wanted to go through the fog ( once on the other side of the fog you could see the steps, no danger of tripping ) here are some pics http://i212.photobucket.com/albums/c...6/P1010303.jpg

http://i212.photobucket.com/albums/c...6/P1010298.jpg

http://i212.photobucket.com/albums/c...6/P1010286.jpg

i started out with some fake spider webs.. a fog machine a stobe light and also some plastic pumpkins and homemade tombstones.... and grew in 4 years to a really nice haunt =] have funn =]

Nice guitarist. I was going to suggest some fog and a green flood light. That is what we use to shine on our tombstones. The hay is a nice touch, but here in florida not too much hay to choose from I would suggest going for the fog machine some flood lights and a few tombstones. If you can also hook up a cd player outside hidden and put on some spooky music. Add spider web and a few Halloween lights in some shrubs and that should be a good start. Everything I mentioned is each 20 dollars or less. Then you can add each year, more tombstones, and FCG one year, some props. Before you know if you will not have enough room to house all of it. Good luck and let us know how you do.

Oh yes and dont ever underestimate the power of a nicely carved pumpkin or two or three

I picked out one good spot in my yard and put a main decoration. Then each year I change it. I also take those black garbage bags and cut it into strips and hang it from the outside lights and trees (along with some raffia and shredded burlap). I also cover my windows with a design with the theme in mind.

Get a decent boom box (playing Midnight Syndicate) and a fog machine and you are good to go

I can't stress enough how those tattered bags and such scattered over your yard (trees, lights) incorporates a big yard into your haunt. Cheap with a big payoff.

Here's the first year's main yard decor (notice the window decor and shredded garbage bags):


Here's the second year:


Here's the third. The first picture is year one's yard decor but improved. The second picture shows the window theme.

OK mine was a 2 fold effect. I started with a 1000 watt smoke machine (never test one in the house and leave the room for more that 5 minutes)[white out is all I can say], and a 32 inch tall rubber Gargoyle. And every year adding more props
Now the second fold.... I few years ago I meet my love and she is the Director for the Sevier County Humane Society, and she had an Idea for a fund raiser.
A HOWL-O-WEEN BASH and I said I would help decorate. I'm crafty and an artist so no problem...Right?
Well I was decorating the local CIVIC CENTER (AAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh!!!)
the Party was a hit in more ways than one... after about $1,200-1,500 I got all kinds of new credit card offers for the next 2 years (LOL). SSshhhh don't tell Jayne LOL

and after the party I take everything down that night and then start the next morning decorating our Log Cabin. the first year we had 8-12 TOTs and well now we are up to 40-50 TOTs on foot and a couple of Hay Ride tours too.
THANKS PANDORA... It was just a little box!! (LOL)
TNBrad/Halloween haunt 07 - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting
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I started with 7 tiki torches, myself, a couple cow skulls I found in the woods, and "the biggest bowl of candy I've ever seen" as the neighbor kid put it. Roughly 120 ToT

4 years later, it was more akin to 35 torches, 7 scarecrows, 120 skulls, 75 poles to impale the skulls, a 10x10 gazebo, a giant scarecrow, 2 totems, 3 fog machines, and over 400 ToT (gave up counting)

This year we'll be pushing 200 skulls, 120ish poles, a bucky on a big pole, the totems, the giant scarecrow, 8 scarecrows, the gazebo, a large fire pit, 25-50 shrunken heads, the 3 fog machines (maybe a 4th) and lord only knows what else will tickle my fancy in the next couple months.


And the plan is to change direction completely next year, and not use any of it, starting over on a different theme.


That is a really cool...er, whatever thingy there Genexer. I may just have to use that idea one of these years.

I first started haunting around...good GOD...18 years ago, so at the time fog machines weren't comercially available for cheap, you had to buy professional ones for $600+, so I didn't have one, lol.

I started with cardboard boxes painted white and written on in Sharpie marker for tombsones (they didn't look as bad as you might think), two green floodlights that we normally used for Christmas. A bag of "spider webbing" that cost me $1, a couple of pumpkins and a tape (that's right...a cassette tape) of Halloween music. That's pretty much it.

The TOTs loved it and it's grown a LOT since then!

Thanks UnOrthodOx. That thingy was really easy to make. A half whiskey barrel I got at Lowe's for the base. Inverted it, cut a hole in the bottom and put a 8' stake through it. Then made a cross beam. Covered it with burlap, impale a few skulls and spray paint a weird design using a stencil. I put firewood around the base, a couple of strings of flicker lights and skulls hanging off strings and bamboo. It was my theme last year (The Terra Queen). A savage, demon sort of thing. I stole the idea from Universal Studios Halloween Horror Night. That was their theme in 2005.

I loved when I discovered that if you make a prop really tall and cover it burlap, skulls, fake chains, spray paint, spanish moss and good lighting; you can make the cheapest prop look terrifying.....

I began with a few store bought tombstones, a few green flood lights on a dimmer, and 2 jack o lanterns on the front porch.