Yard Haunters Articles
Ever wonder how they made the costumes for Darth Vader and the Storm Troopers in Star Wars? Basically they did it the same way car bodies are made… in a mold with fiberglass, or a similar resin. In fact, so many things are made with plastics and resins today that it’s not likely you have any device that doesn’t have a molded part on it. I have seen some really complicated, and convincing, costumes made entirely from molded fiberglass, including ...
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Each year I think I’ll add new items to my yard display, but every year the same thing happens: I‘m broke and have no time! Let’s face it, the two most important things we all need if we want to add something really great to our Halloween display is time and money. Both always seems to slip though my fingers like grains of sand in an evil inspired hour-glass.
But no matter how short on time and money you are, you’ll ...
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Let’s get one thing straight: I’m not here to tell you how to make a 105 minute Halloween horror blockbuster. I’m talking about a little 1 or 2 minute “tickler”, to chill the bones of people at your party or those pesky trick ‘n’ treaters who may come to your door with the intent of scaring you. Ha! And you aren’t going to need a 2 million dollar budget, either. You ARE going to have to have some kind ...
Posted in 'How to' Halloween, Yard Haunters | 1 Comment »
What is a two-way mirror?
Also known as a one-way mirror or a transparent mirror, it is a piece of glass that has been coated with a super thin layer of metal. It is placed between a darkened room a lighted room, which allows a person in the darkened room to see through the glass, but a person in the lighted room to only see his own reflection. Mirrors like this are usually used for security purposes. Police use them in ...
Posted in 'How to' Halloween, Yard Haunters | 1 Comment »
I am a firm believer in real scares, not cute stuff that might scare a two year old. So here’s a twist on window decorations that will send a chill up the spines of all those cute little trick or treaters as they approach your house: Live (or at least on video) shadow dramas taking place on a window, sound and all. Even better, how about a talking head, or if you like "cute", a singing head?
Back in the old ...
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What was that!? Did you hear something? I KNOW I heard somethin’! Get up and check it out!!!!
You know, I still get scared when I wake up in the middle of the night and hear a noise. And I’ve been around a while. Yeah, yeah, I know: It ain’t nothin’ and when I get up to check out the noise, it always turns out to be something harmless. But it’s still scary. And, living out in the country, I still ...
Posted in 'How to' Halloween, Yard Haunters | 1 Comment »
It's scary. It's terrifying. It's blood-curdling. It's...a week before your big Halloween bash and you don't have a single decoration yet!
Never fear: help is here, and in a hurry. Here's how to haunt your own front yard or indoor party area with these chillingly good graveyard scene ideas.
Terrifying Tombstones
Naturally, the first thing you'll want to grab a hold of is a set of eerie cemetery tombstones. Don't worry if these don't all match; different sizes and textures add to the ...
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There’s no way around it: Fog machines are cool. I usually don’t like expensive fancy schmancy stuff to make my Halloweens creepy. But when fog machines came on the scene, and did so inexpensively, I had to get one! I waited until they were about $35, which would have been about ten to twelve years ago. Now you can get one for about $25.
The nice thing about fog machines ...
Posted in 'How to' Halloween, Yard Haunters | 2 Comments »
You can never have enough bodies when haunting a porch, yard, or house! Every time I haunt the house for a kid’s party or even for our adult parties, I like to have ghostly bodies placed around my rooms in chairs or at the piano. But, sadly, real bodies stink after a bit, and fake bodies cost a lot to make. And then there’s the storage issue after Halloween.
What else could I do but come up with a new ...
Posted in 'How to' Halloween, Yard Haunters | 1 Comment »
...… or “May I make my own Fog Juice, Mommy?”
Like a lot of things (like me) fog machines have been around for a while. Originally they were designed to control insect populations by “fogging” an area with oil. It was a simple machine: pump oil into a heated metal chamber where the oil was vaporized, then the pressurized vapor exited out of a small opening. As it hit the cooler air outside, it condensed into tiny droplets; hence fog. Oil ...
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Today’s Halloween Haunters have no idea how hard we had it way back when, before special lights made just for Halloween, strobe lights, and fog machines were part of the scene. I remember when I had to travel to Sleepy Hollow uphill both ways on a sway back horse in 3 feet of snow!
No, really, Halloween was always fun in the "good old days" because to create a really scary "set", like a stage, you had to be able to ...
Posted in 'How to' Halloween, Yard Haunters | 2 Comments »
It’s Halloween! Would you like to spice things up? Make things a little scary? Make your neighbors wonder “What is that creepy thing”? With just a quick touch of glowing red LED eyes, your hum-drum Halloween decorations instantly turn into the scary, creepy, evil things that go bump in the night.
The glowing eyes trick is easy to install, and so affordable; it won’t be your pocket book screaming in terror on Halloween!
This trick is very simple, but first you need ...
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How to Build this Spooky Effect For Your Yard Haunt!
It’s Halloween, and your big bright orange pumpkin sack is full of luscious candy. You decide to hit that one last house on the left in hopes of finding something really good. As you walk up to the porch, you feel something is not right; it’s just too quiet here. Then fear takes hold as you start hearing the rustling of leaves nearby. You turn around - Nobody is there!
How can ...
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When building your Halloween "set", keep the traditional, but bring in the new: New if you lived in the 1700's that is! A movie that I suspect most of you have seen is the The Blair Witch Project. It is based on a legend that supposedly occurred in the 18th century.
One thing in that movie that generates fear and trembling is the "stick figures" that hang from trees around ...
Posted in 'How to' Halloween, Yard Haunters | 1 Comment »
Why do most haunters haunt? Because we have tons of fun doing it! From building spooky props to putting together creepy Halloween costumes. From scaring the pants off trick-or-treaters to rewarding them with handfuls of bravely won candy. Most Halloween haunters find all aspects of home haunting fun!! Why else would we do it?!
With that in mind, and in an effort to provide our Halloween guests with more fun, the lurking lunatics at Screaming Scarecrow Studios put together ...
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13 tips to take some of the bite out of the cost of home haunting from the lurking lunatics at ScreamingScarecrowStudios
You know you are in danger of being labeled a Halloween fiend when you find yourself daydreaming about spending any lottery winnings on a Hollywood-grade, year round haunted attraction! But if you’re just poor working stiffs like us, who haven’t yet won the lottery, you know there is never enough cash in the coffin to fund the annual dark ...
Posted in 'How to' Halloween, Yard Haunters | 4 Comments »
Another Halloween How To Article from the lurking lunatics at Screaming Scarecrow Studios
One thing all home haunters can use, as the Halloween Season draws near, is a few extra pair of hands. No matter what the scale of your Halloween haunt, there never seems to be enough helping hands around to complete every project you’ve dreamt up - something always ends up on the “Oh well, we’ll do it next year” pile. Sadly we can’t offer any help with that ...
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A Detailed, Visual Guide to Creating a 7 foot Monster Prop as Part of Your Halloween Haunt
Written by Halloween Alliance and Screaming Scarecrow Studios
Anyone in love with Halloween knows that a must-have member in the home haunter’s repertoire is at least one good and scary monster to greet the Trick Or Treators (TOTs). Short and squat or tall and overbearing, these creatures of the night are often the spotlight decor of your Halloween haunt or party. With a well put ...
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A Halloween How To Article from the lurking lunatics at Screaming Scarecrow Studios
Welcome one and all to the Screaming Scarecrow Studios internet debut. At SSS part of our mission is to share some of the insights that we have gained from our experiences in the world of home haunting. The other part of our mission is to continue to create cool and useful content related to Halloween – The most awesome time of the year!
As with any content on ...
Posted in 'How to' Halloween, Yard Haunters | 22 Comments »
How to Create a Haunted Duck Pond Game
Supplies needed:
Floating ducks or other Halloween items that can float
Black sharpie marker
Snow saucer or other wide, shallow container that holds water
Black plastic or black garbage bags
Hot glue gun
Outdoor table
Water
Two prize containers (#1 toys and #2 candy)
If you have a lot of pre-schoolers, you have to do a Haunted Duck Pond! It is so easy and takes very little time to pull one together. Take a snow disc or shallow container and put it ...
Posted in 'How to' Halloween, Yard Haunters | 2 Comments »
