# Spooky's new stone



## SpookyMuFu (Sep 14, 2009)

I have started a new tombstone, I'm going for a realistic stone that you might find in a real graveyard

First I measured and marked my blank, it's 24"x24"x3/4" ridged pink foam from Home Depot








Next I cut out two for the front and back








I took the scraps and made sides and top and sanded it all to shape, then I filled all the gaps with drywall compound, I should have filled the bigger gaps with hot glue or foam board glue, or liquid nails, but I didnt and I filled them in with the drywall compound. Unfortunately I didnt get pics of this stage.

heres a pic fitted together and pre drywall compound








Here it is with the drywall compound on, after it drys I will sand it all smooth








Next I will print up and trace out the epitaph and cut that out.......not sure where I'll go with design after that, no real plan here 



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more progress today...

I made templates of where the name and epitaph will go








I then took the template and traced it on a new sheet of foam and cut it out. I took my utility blade and started carving the high and low spots for a three dimensional look and then sanded the whole thing smooth








Did the same with the name plaque








I also made a base out of foam 9" wide by 28" long, I might make the base look like chipped granite like I did the crypt we built (seen in another thread)


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## DaveintheGrave (Feb 12, 2004)

Lookin' great so far!


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## pacman (Oct 18, 2009)

yeah i like the scroll effect you added for detail , its looking great and i will have to keep checking back for updates , excellent job so far.


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## SpookyMuFu (Sep 14, 2009)

heres how it looks right now, gotta carve the epitaph and paint.....


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## pacman (Oct 18, 2009)

yeah that looks great , and very contemporary , i will check back to see how you progress , are you using a dremel tool to cut the words or do you use a different method ?


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## SpookyMuFu (Sep 14, 2009)

Thanks, I plan on using printed "stencil" and using an xacto knife to cut out the letters


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## pacman (Oct 18, 2009)

I have seen this method used a lot and especially with your more modern gravestone i think it works better for them , you get a really clean crisp finish as with new cut stone , i will pop back and have a look see how it comes out , its really coming along now i can,t wait for the finished item , if you get chance can you record your process with photos as i would like to see how it works fully if possible , i always used the spray paint method on my old tombstones for that old worn finish but need to make some more modern tombstones myself , and i should try and get used to both methods .


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## HalloweenDan73 (Sep 5, 2015)

Very nice man !!! Love the scroll work


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## Texas_T (Aug 4, 2012)

Nice looking Job


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## bobzilla (Nov 15, 2008)

Awesome stone!
Crazy good


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## punkineater (Apr 26, 2014)

Niiiiice!!!


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## lizzyborden (Sep 17, 2009)

Very nice! Look forward to seeing the finished product.


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## drevilstein (Mar 25, 2014)

looks great!


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## SpookyMuFu (Sep 14, 2009)

small update, got the epitaph cut out.......next, paint

I printed up my stencil, then I traced over the lettering with a ball point pen pushing hard enought to make outlines in the foam and then used my xacto blade to trace the lettering out then using the tip of the blade chipping out the centers.


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## pacman (Oct 18, 2009)

Very good good indeed , starting to look really really great , thank you for explaining your method like the rest of the post i too cannot wait for the paint job .... will come back soon to see how its progressed , excellent job.


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## The Halloween Lady (Jul 17, 2010)

Wow that is really beautiful work. I can't wait to see it painted.


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## SpookyMuFu (Sep 14, 2009)

well..........I had high hopes for this paint job but either I'm using the wrong materials or I lack the talent for this kind of paint job, but here was my attempt at a dark marble tombstone........

I started off by painting inside the letters and giving the whole stone a base coat of gray








I started on the back of the stone just in case I messed up (turns out this was the best looking side)








And here it is completed and in the yard........I will be re-painting it eventually because I really dont like this paint job....


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## Michael Smith (Nov 5, 2014)

Can you describe how you did the painting? The back side of it looks fantastic, and I haven't really seen a good tutorial on getting the marble look yet.


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## pacman (Oct 18, 2009)

There,s an old proper painters and decorators method for faking marble effect done with paint in the U.K. not sure if its the same method decorators use in the states ? if anyone is interested let me know .


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## SpookyMuFu (Sep 14, 2009)

yes Pacman, of course I am!!


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## SpookyMuFu (Sep 14, 2009)

Michael Smith said:


> Can you describe how you did the painting? The back side of it looks fantastic, and I haven't really seen a good tutorial on getting the marble look yet.


I painted a base coat color, then I used a chip brush and stippled black and white in patterns then I used a fan brush to make the veins, as you can see it didnt turn out too well, I noticed in almost all the how to videos I watched the artists uses either enamel oil paints or glazing paints to achieve the marble look, I was using acrylics and that might be why I couldnt get satisfactory results, well that and I guess I dont know how to replicate the random pattern of real marble....I guess it's a limitation of medium and talent


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## pacman (Oct 18, 2009)

Well the method as i was told was to use a special piece of rag either wrapped over a paint roller or rolled by hand in small areas using smaller rollers, This is called rag rolling , it would probably be more useful for you to try searching on you-tube as then it should give you the names of the stores in the U.S. that actually supply the materials and tools as we have totally different here in the U.K. try searching RAG ROLLING or FAUX MARBLE PAINT EFFECTS , i hope this helps you , i could try to explain by text but it would take pages , let me know how you get on , don't be put off by them painting huge areas you just adapt the same technique but reduce the roller size etc down to your small stone ok .


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## SpookyMuFu (Sep 14, 2009)

got another one done, heres my pet cemetery stone


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## SpookyMuFu (Sep 14, 2009)

Okay, I gave in and went traditional with my "Morgan" stone......here it is repainted and weathered. I decided to go heavy on the weathering with this. The flower urn will get a bronze green patina


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## pacman (Oct 18, 2009)

I definitely prefer that paint job SpookyMuFu , really nice job , well done i love the cat one thats really cool , by the way although i learnt the rag rolling method i never used it on any of my gravestones , i try to ham my stones up and make them as as close to how i imagine a stone in an old horror movie would look even too typical , for my cemetery it works , yours are excellent , i also name mine after famous horror actors or stars or authors etc like the ones in the pic i will pop back see how your progressing , good luck .


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## SpookyMuFu (Sep 14, 2009)

Okay, Im calling this one done, got the urn "patina'd" and all set up in the yard......


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## pacman (Oct 18, 2009)

Nailed it ..... nuff said


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## Diabolical (Sep 16, 2017)

I like the vase when it was grey. You did a really nice on this.


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## pacman (Oct 18, 2009)

I prefer the patina version , great job SpookyMuFu .


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## Shadowcaster (Aug 13, 2016)

Same question here...really like to know how the texturing was done. I'm pretty good at construction and engineering but want to get much better at weathering and finishing. These stones came out great.


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## Giga32129 (Sep 17, 2017)

Nice- I just bought a new CNC router. I am going to try my hand at carving with it. Keeping fingers crossed.


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