Trading tips for dark displays and prop production.
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By staticfurball
#51635
Insulation sheets like that are about 18-24$ a piece depending on the brand here in montreal but local recycle shops and eco centers some times have them from left over renovation jobs and such. even the small pieces are good for something.
By GUS
#51636
staticfurball wrote:Insulation sheets like that are about 18-24$ a piece depending on the brand here in montreal but local recycle shops and eco centers some times have them from left over renovation jobs and such. even the small pieces are good for something.
Yep, I take bits & pieces out of skips & pull in if ever somes blown off a truck, invaluable stuff!
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By blueikaos
#51645
Looks so time consuming. On average, how much time do you spend on each piece?
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By snow2alike
#51664
Ahhhh .... you had me at "Haunted House" ---- little did I know !!!

Absolutely SPLENDID !!!!
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By mesmark
#51690
blueikaos wrote:Looks so time consuming. On average, how much time do you spend on each piece?
It doesn't take too long in my opinion but others have been surprised.

I usually do them in stages. For the trees,

Day 1: I draw and cut the boards
- maybe about 45min. each

Day 2: I drew, cut, and glued the face parts
- 20min. each

Day 3: I sand everything down
- 45-60min. for each piece

Day 4: painting. This generally takes the most time
- 1-1.5 hours each

the painting takes more time because preparation to paint takes time. Also, I'm trying to be careful not to make a mess. But in general that's the process for everything. cut - glue - sand - paint

So, in all one tree probably took about 3.5-4 hours. Each of the fence posts probably about an hour. The more you do together (mass produce) the less time each one takes over all.
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By mesmark
#51696
GUS wrote:... How do you store your gear mark? in the roofspace or similar? ..try & find dual purpose for what you make & where you store it ...
Actually, right now, all of my stuff is just in a closet type space in my garage. Even now, it's still got a bit of room for more. I haven't really worked on an efficient system for stacking and storing. But, pretty soon, I'm going to have to put in some hooks and some small shelves to organize a bit better. It's really the awkward pieces like the sarcophagus that pose a storage problem. It's big and not flat. I'll be using it again this year inside the haunted house. The trees with the faces pose the same problem.

You given me some good ideas to think about. Maybe I can find a way to better recycle here on my own.
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By mesmark
#52986
Got a little more work done.

I started drawing the walls for the haunted house exterior. I've made 6 of 8 sheets so far and I put them together quickly to see how the seam between sheets would look. I originally thought I'd put some pillars in between the sheets, but since it seems OK without, I might just try to line the sheets up as is.

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On the day, I'll have them all flat across the front. There won't be any angled pieces like you see in the pictures. Also, I'll have the trees to hide one of the seams. I will be making a doorway which will hide the center. So, I think I'll let the pillar idea go for now.

I also started work on the actual fence part of the fence :D I bought some PVC pipes and black wire. I cut the pipes into 7 pieces (2x90cm, 3x80cm, 2x100cm.) Then using the black wire I tied the pipes together. Here's a shot of what it will potentially look like:

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my pipes
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How to make a PVC pipe rot iron fence: this has the full write up on what you need and what I did.

I made 4 sections. The arrangement is inherently unstable. I have to set this on the floor so, there's no staking it into the ground. To add some stability, I hot-glued all of the pieces as well. It's still rickety, but should hold up for a few pictures at least.

I'm still working on ideas for fence toppers. I have some small skulls that I'm going to try once I pull out all of my Halloween stuff. Another idea is some foam spear tips.
Last edited by mesmark on Wed Oct 05, 2011 6:36 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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By mesmark
#53007
and a little more done today:

some tops for the fence

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If I can get all of these done (I need 26 at least) I'm going to paint everything. The toppers aren't very detailed but I'm just hoping they'll complete the visual effect and maybe not draw much attention to themselves. I have too many to do to make something nice. Although, I might try ... These take about 5 minutes each.
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By nosferatu
#53013
You're talents are amazing. Year on year. Halloween on Halloween.

I think we should set up a mesmark fund just to see what you could create with a bigger budget.

I wish I was in Japan as I would try and blag myself an invitation
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By purple1worm
#53018
looking good!
By OrangeOrb
#53022
Your fence is looking great. I love old iron fences; they are such great mood-setters.
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By zombombie
#53027
That's just fantastic!! I agree with Nos, imagine a bigger budget, more time, and a team of minions helping out. Oh the possibilities! :D

I think your fence is excellent the way it is, the simple design of the spiked tops work perfectly.
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By mesmark
#53041
Thanks guys. I have fun doing this and I like trying to make something that looks good, but it doesn't necessarily have to be good. In general I probably do spend too much money over all, but I do try to find cheaper ways to make something rather than buy something already made. (It doesn't have to be cheaper. It just feels better if it is :) )

The biggest problem is time. I could start earlier, but it already takes two months to get my stuff together. Any more and it would be hard to justify.

Bigger budget and more people would get me ... Disney Land! There's one here in Tokyo and every time I go there, I'M looking at their sets and decorations. And every time I think to myself, "Now, that's how it's done!" No short cuts on details there.

I'm glad to hear that you like the fence and the toppers. I made almost all of them tonight. I'm saving a few for tomorrow and I'm actually going to make a couple extra just in case a few get snapped/stepped on/eaten by dogs or something like that. Turns out, I can make about 10 of them in 30 min. I also have plenty of foam scraps, so no shortage of materials :D
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By monstermash
#53060
The scary eyes peeking through the gaps are great. I also made foam spear tops for my cemetery sign. Luckily I only needed two. Its all coming together nicely Mes. Like you say, as long as it holds for a few pictures everything is fine!! I'm exactly the same. :lol:
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By CombichristGirl
#53182
amazing! im so jelly! fantastic work and paint job is awesome!!! i wish i had me some foam this year lol. just left overs haha