The Photos.

The gallery of our 2009 efforts are now available on www.stolloween.com, overall a good year but honestly I'm glad it's over and ready for a little down time. Build on!

This Is Halloween......

So every year we keep track of the number of ToT's that visit our house during Halloween and this year the task fell into the capable hands of my oldest son Carter. For several hours Carter stationed himself on the front porch handing out treats (Twix, Twizzlers, Milk Duds and Paydays) all while dutifully keeping count. During the down time he doodled this little Halloween scene which made me smile and restored my enery for 2010.

This is Halloween.

Building Columns . . .

Four new columns and fencing were created for the 2009 display.

The columns were made from scrape lumber including old 2x4's, recycled lumber from an old swing set and thin plywood. The brick pattern was achieved by coating the surface with equal parts of latex paint, joint compound and pulped paper (cellulose fiber insulation). The addition of the paper to the mix created a very rough and thick texture. The brick pattern was "drawn" into the paint/joint compound/paper.

Painting consisted of painting the columns dark gray, then dry brushing with white primer. Diluted black latex paint was sprayed onto the columns creating an aged and weathered appearance.

Cat and the Rat

Good thing our cat named Krueger was willing to help out with prop construction this year.

Some New Pumpkins for 2009

A few shots of some of the new papier mache pumpkins created for this year's annual Hallowen display....some different shapes and new techniqes were used to create these pumpkins v2.0.

Dungeon Rats 2009

The Dungeon Rats were finished just in time to be included in our 2009 Halloween display. Named “Riff” and “Raff” the rats are mangy, malnourished and have a nasty disposition, their overall length is five feet long from tip of the nose to the tip of their tails.

WIP: Dungeon Rats

Finishing up several new props for this year’s Halloween display which will feature several large five foot rats named “Riff” and “Raff”. The mangy and malnourished rats are made from strip and pulp papier mache and will stand guard over the entrance to the cemetery.