Joined
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71 Posts
Greetings all...my first step by step...no prop here but a great house decoration that last for years!
Years ago I visited many of the Halloween sites and found a ton of info and was able to create many items from scare crows to fences...My only problem was that the house still looked like a well maintained property w/ props in the front yard.
Next I created a street light cover made of cardboard w/ whimsical cut outs so that the light would show through....This idea helped a lot....But my house still looked like the ordinary home w/ props in the dark.
The following year I found a solution that would give my home a distressed look. I came up with this idea while building a scarecrow. I use landscape fabric for the clothing of my pumpkin rot inspired scarecrows.
Most landscape fabrics come in rolls of 3 feet by 100 feet (plus) in black (search Lowes or HD). There are 2 different types ....one is more of a cloth base and one is plastic base. Although they both look great the cloth based fabric last the longest. I have been using this prop for 6 plus years and it is still holding up.
I am not too savvy when it comes to forums so I will give a step by step and then figure out how to post a pic.
Step 1: (I use my garage doors as a prep area..)
First unroll approximately 6 ft. of the LF(landscape fabric) and fold it w/ 1 ft. overlapping the 2 remaining ft...Staple the top corner to the trim on the edge of the door about 5 ft up(I have dbl garage drs) next continue to the center while unrolling the LF and repeating the first step and finally to the end of the other garage door and folding the LF again(do not cut the fabric).
You should have at this point the LF stretched out 20' and folded w/ 1' overlapping 2' . (when stapling the LF to the trim make sure you do it so that the staple is @ the top of the crease/fold)
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Step 2: This step requires spray adhesive...I use a 3m super 77.
by slightly lifting the 1' overhanging LF I spray the crease/fold on the inside of the fold and do so for 4 or 5 ft w/ only 3-4 inches of adhesive on both sides of the fold. Then I press the crease w/ my hands so that the glue makes contact and adheres causing a flat 3-4 inch area. I repeat this process till I reach the end of my folded fabric.
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Step 3: w/ the LF still stapled to the prep area I get a razor blade and start cutting strips in the fabric.
I start slicing the fabric in a downward direction, below the crease cutting through the overlapping LF and all of the way through the remaining fabric. I continue slicing these 2-3 inch strips till I reach the end of my glued up LF.
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Step 4: Upon reaching the end of my fabric I pull the fabric away from the staples and repeat from step 1…If you continue these steps you will end up w/ 100+ ft of this decoration.
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I then staple it to the fascia board of my home… I hang it from the gutters using icicle light clips and I even use the LF to completely block out my windows then add the fringed decoration that we just made to give it that tattered look.
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I hope it's not to late for some of you to use this idea...
If you have any questions ...just ask!
Peace
Years ago I visited many of the Halloween sites and found a ton of info and was able to create many items from scare crows to fences...My only problem was that the house still looked like a well maintained property w/ props in the front yard.
Next I created a street light cover made of cardboard w/ whimsical cut outs so that the light would show through....This idea helped a lot....But my house still looked like the ordinary home w/ props in the dark.
The following year I found a solution that would give my home a distressed look. I came up with this idea while building a scarecrow. I use landscape fabric for the clothing of my pumpkin rot inspired scarecrows.
Most landscape fabrics come in rolls of 3 feet by 100 feet (plus) in black (search Lowes or HD). There are 2 different types ....one is more of a cloth base and one is plastic base. Although they both look great the cloth based fabric last the longest. I have been using this prop for 6 plus years and it is still holding up.
I am not too savvy when it comes to forums so I will give a step by step and then figure out how to post a pic.
Step 1: (I use my garage doors as a prep area..)
First unroll approximately 6 ft. of the LF(landscape fabric) and fold it w/ 1 ft. overlapping the 2 remaining ft...Staple the top corner to the trim on the edge of the door about 5 ft up(I have dbl garage drs) next continue to the center while unrolling the LF and repeating the first step and finally to the end of the other garage door and folding the LF again(do not cut the fabric).
You should have at this point the LF stretched out 20' and folded w/ 1' overlapping 2' . (when stapling the LF to the trim make sure you do it so that the staple is @ the top of the crease/fold)
Step 2: This step requires spray adhesive...I use a 3m super 77.
by slightly lifting the 1' overhanging LF I spray the crease/fold on the inside of the fold and do so for 4 or 5 ft w/ only 3-4 inches of adhesive on both sides of the fold. Then I press the crease w/ my hands so that the glue makes contact and adheres causing a flat 3-4 inch area. I repeat this process till I reach the end of my folded fabric.
Step 3: w/ the LF still stapled to the prep area I get a razor blade and start cutting strips in the fabric.
I start slicing the fabric in a downward direction, below the crease cutting through the overlapping LF and all of the way through the remaining fabric. I continue slicing these 2-3 inch strips till I reach the end of my glued up LF.
Step 4: Upon reaching the end of my fabric I pull the fabric away from the staples and repeat from step 1…If you continue these steps you will end up w/ 100+ ft of this decoration.
I then staple it to the fascia board of my home… I hang it from the gutters using icicle light clips and I even use the LF to completely block out my windows then add the fringed decoration that we just made to give it that tattered look.
I hope it's not to late for some of you to use this idea...
If you have any questions ...just ask!
Peace
