11/08/2007

    After the holiday was over, I decided that if I'm going to decorate again next year, things have to be a little different.  First off, the tombstone needs to work, and look good.  I decided to do something about it, and set to work.  I ground off most of the old plaster, removed the old screen that held the plaster in place, and cut a square hole in the back of the tombstone.  I put a few blocks of wood inside the tombstone to screw the square cutout back into, then stapled new screen onto the areas that needed to be covered with new plaster.  I then began plastering up the tombstone.
    The plan is that next year I will remove the square cutout from the back of the tombstone, and place a dish of hot water with a piece of dry ice inside, then screw the cover back on.  The dry ice and water should make a great fog that will fall down the face of the tombstone when it comes out, and that should make a great effect.  I also purchased some "Fleckstone" spray paint that should give the tombstone a nice authentic granite appearance.
    I've been working on it for about a week now on and off, and expect to finish the plastering / sanding process in anothre few days.
    Another project I've decided to tackle before next Halloween is building a fog chiller.  The fog machine is nice, but the fog is lighter than air, and drifts up and away pretty quickly.  A nice heavy ground cover will look nicer.  By using an old cooler, and some plumbing supplies, I can make a chiller than will cool the fog down, so that it will lay lower, and drift along the ground more, which will be a much nicer effect in the yard area where I build my display.  I will likely start that project right after Thanksgiving.
    My final task will be doing something to get a few more kids to visit Forge Gate to trick or treat.  I'm not exactly certain how I will go about that just yet, but I will come up with something.

 


Return to blog index