# Haunted House Diorama



## herp17 (Sep 7, 2004)

Hi everybody! New to this forum but a halloween lover in heart since I was a kid. I'm been trying to build a haunted house diorama but would like to hear the collective wisdom of this forum. I have been trying to build a haunted house diorama for my Halloween Burger King Simpson's figures (2001). I already trashed picked two old dollhouses. I painted it and used halloween lights (black lights, pumpkin and ghost lights), spider webbing, and other little halloween stuff to deck it out. But I have been having troubling finding some nice model tombstones to create a nice backyard cemetery. I guess the size is the problem, it's getting to the point where I'm just planning on making some. Would to know if you guys have any good ideas?

Actually, would like to know if anybody else has done anything like this? Would like to see some examples. And hopefully directed to some good suppliers. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciate!!

Thanks
Simon


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## Halloweiner (Oct 2, 2003)

*I found the best thing for a Halloween diorama is Lemax Spookytown. It's available at Michael's as well as here:
http://lemax-spookytown.com*


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## CatMean (Jul 5, 2004)

If you're looking to make your own 3D setting you could try making things like tombstones from Sculpey, which you bake to set, or just clay and let it air dry. There are some great Paper miniatures just for dioramas on this site:
http://home.bresnan.net/~ravensblight/papertoys.html

You could print them on cardstock as is or glue them to cardboard.


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## CatMean (Jul 5, 2004)

If you're looking to make your own 3D setting you could try making things like tombstones from Sculpey, which you bake to set, or just clay and let it air dry. There are some great Paper miniatures just for dioramas on this site:
http://home.bresnan.net/~ravensblight/papertoys.html

You could print them on cardstock as is or glue them to cardboard.


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## putrid (Aug 18, 2002)

I LOVE Sculpy! I use it to sculpt faces for 18 inch Victorian Santas. If your looking to make trees I would use bread clay. It air dries and becomes extremely hard. It would be the only thing I can think of that would keep a 'twiggy' look and be strong enough to hold it's shape. To make a trunk I would cover a small tube with aluminum foil. Then before the clay gets completelly dry pull the tube out. Bread clay shrinks when it dries so if you form it over something it may crack.

There's too many ideas! AHHUUUG! I wish I had more time to make things! I made a manger our of cardboard that looks good. It would be a blast to make a haunted house. Totally cool idea Herp17. If you got pictures I'd love to see them.



“Axes are great. But for that up close and personal experience you just can’t beat a hatchet.”


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## putrid (Aug 18, 2002)

CatMean! What an absolutely COOL link! THANK YOU VERY MUCH!!!




“Axes are great. But for that up close and personal experience you just can’t beat a hatchet.”


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## herp17 (Sep 7, 2004)

Wow CatMean! That's is an awesome site!!!

Another idea I was trying to work on was to get a witch's brew going on in the cemetery/backyard with a mini-ultrasonical fog machine. Also, been trying to put together a pumpkin patch using the pumpkin lights they sell at the local craft stores as the pumpkins, The only problem is that it's hard to get the wires to look natural or to stay still. 

I was also debating about what putrid said about just amking stuff with clay and baking it. Also been trying to figure out a fence/gate for the graveyard too. Got some lame fencing from model train things but still looking. 

Keep the ideas coming!!!


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## herp17 (Sep 7, 2004)

On the same note of the tombstones, I heard that there’s this product that comes in a spray paint can that you can spray onto anything and it will make it look like stone. Does anybody know what that stuff is? I think you can get it in a craft store. Any ideas?


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## CatMean (Jul 5, 2004)

Thanks all, the link came from this forum, I didn't find it. Just goes to show what you can learn reading everyone's posts. 

The stuff in a can is called Fleckstone and is not really that expensive, to me I can do a better job with paint, but it's convenient.


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## herp17 (Sep 7, 2004)

Does a lot of people on this forum like the lemax spooky town? I sort of have mixed feeling about it. That's why I rather make my own. What's the general feedback about Lemax?


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## CatMean (Jul 5, 2004)

This is an old thread about spooky town vs. dept 56 and everyone's mixed feelings:

http://www.halloweenforum.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2198


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