# Halloween 2020: Wicked Garden



## Defenestrator (Jul 27, 2009)

Sooo, how about that 2020, eh?

Weird though it may have been, and despite all of the chaos, including questions about the holiday in general and the remnants of a last-minute hurricane and the accompanying loss of power for us in particular, there was ultimately still a Halloween 2020 at Revenant Manor.

Said Halloween is now all packed up and put away….in lieu of my normal ‘haunt in review’ this year, I think I’ll just go right to the photographs:

**Note: I expect that the video should be up shortly, and I'll update this thread once it's posted

*Theme Art:*










*Night Photos:*


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## Michael__Myers (Sep 8, 2019)

That is a beautifully haunting haunt!  love the color scheme


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## Defenestrator (Jul 27, 2009)

*Night Photos (continued):*


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## Defenestrator (Jul 27, 2009)

*Day Photos:*


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## Grizzelda (Oct 28, 2019)

Splendidly enchanting.


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## Defenestrator (Jul 27, 2009)

*Day Photos (Continued)*


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## Ghost of Spookie (Sep 28, 2008)

Just WOW!!! Not enough superlatives to express what I see. What strikes me is how naturally blended into your yard everything appears. Love your photography and lighting, magazine worthy. I’m not commenting on your props because I don’t know where to start, all so beautiful and perfectly staged. Can you come move into my neighborhood??


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## Ghost of Spookie (Sep 28, 2008)

Looking at your courtyard and your haunt “logo”, by chance did you use one of AtmosFX’s Eerie Eyes projections one year in a tree hollow?


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## jdubbya (Oct 4, 2003)

Once again, I'm beyond impressed! As GOS stated, it's hard to know where to start. Your haunt is a master class in lighting. The creativity is over the top! The mushrooms, vines, creepy plants and eyeballs. Every year when I see your display, I'm envious of the beauty of your property and how it lends itself to a haunt display. Simply a perfect Halloween offering, once againl. Strong work my friend! Looking forward to the video!


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## DandyBrit (Sep 6, 2013)

Love this - I would have the mushrooms out all year round if they were mine. Can't wait for the video.


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## Meadow (Apr 14, 2019)

Absolutely gorgeous! Haunted and corrupted gardens are so amazing and yours is so detailed! Excellent work! Can you come do my yard next year?


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## zombiesrule (Dec 6, 2010)

Beautiful and creepy!!


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## Shyra (Feb 18, 2020)

Amazing work and very inspirational!


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## Defenestrator (Jul 27, 2009)

Ghost of Spookie said:


> Just WOW!!! Not enough superlatives to express what I see. What strikes me is how naturally blended into your yard everything appears. Love your photography and lighting, magazine worthy. I’m not commenting on your props because I don’t know where to start, all so beautiful and perfectly staged. Can you come move into my neighborhood??


Ha! Thanks, very much. That's greatly appreciated as ensuring that the display plays nicely with the house and property is a key focus for me....I don't want anyone to be pulled out of the experience simply because things don't mesh well.

For example, the 'cemetery' is actually our driveway, but we devised a system for gathering, loading in, and retaining, oodles of fallen leaves, vines, and branches from the yard that lets us completely disguise it. It takes a month of storing that detritus away in preparation, but transforming that area from a dull patch of bare concrete into my very own little graveyard is a hoot, and I'm tickled silly when folks enjoy that element. 

As for moving in, I think maybe we should all just pick a nice place somewhere, and build a little haunted community....like, the Addams Family on the grandest possible scale.


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## Defenestrator (Jul 27, 2009)

Ghost of Spookie said:


> Looking at your courtyard and your haunt “logo”, by chance did you use one of AtmosFX’s Eerie Eyes projections one year in a tree hollow?


Well, I don't recall using their Eerie Eyes in one of my trees, but I did use them in the mausoleum from 2018:





I had intended to use them in the 'Wicked Garden' area this year, but ended up bagging it and several other projection effects when it was clear the tropical storm was coming our way.


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## Defenestrator (Jul 27, 2009)

jdubbya said:


> Once again, I'm beyond impressed! As GOS stated, it's hard to know where to start. Your haunt is a master class in lighting. The creativity is over the top! The mushrooms, vines, creepy plants and eyeballs. Every year when I see your display, I'm envious of the beauty of your property and how it lends itself to a haunt display. Simply a perfect Halloween offering, once againl. Strong work my friend! Looking forward to the video!


Thank you, sir....that's very kind of you to say!

It was fun to build some props that were a significant departure from things I'd done before. The mushrooms actually started when I had my niece and nephew in town over the summer, and we knew they wouldn't be able to be back for the Big Day, so I had them sketch out some mushrooms that they thought would look creepy, and then I patterned the various desgins after those drawings. 

It was a fun way to let folks be a part of the haunt without actually being there. 🎃


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## ScareyCarrie (Aug 22, 2018)

Absolutely Amazing!!!


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## Ghost of Spookie (Sep 28, 2008)

Defenestrator said:


> Well, I don't recall using their Eerie Eyes in one of my trees, but I did use them in the mausoleum from 2018:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Ah yes! That’s what I remembered, was pretty sure it was your haunt but for some reason had thought it was a tree trunk hollow but that video brought it all back. I found your 2018 prop thread ( Other: - Halloween 2018: Revenant Manor Build ) but that’s the year I fell in love with your usage of Eerie Eyes and your very cool well and well projection, something I thought I could incorporate into a future haunt of mine possibly. In fact you inspired me to buy off ebay, as I could no longer find it sold in stores at that time when I looked, the projector used in the well; and when AtmosFX put their individual halloween titles on 25% off sale recently, I added the Eerie Eyes—all influenced by your haunt that year. Had seen both products before but until your haunt they had not really caught my eye. Hope to brainstorm something with them down the road. So like Pumpkinrot, Stolloween and Dave Lowe who have been your inspirations, your one of mine! Only wish we had enough leaves falling prior to Halloween to use covering our ground like you do in yours. Ours are only now starting to change colors. Mostly evergreens here.


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## Kdestra (Jul 23, 2018)

Your attention to detail is absolutely astounding. 
So many different levels of intrigue & the lighting is perfect.


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## Scare-O-Coaster (Sep 2, 2020)

Soo cool! I love the fog effect coming from above as well. Don't think I've ever seen that before. Very well done!


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## Saki.Girl (Aug 22, 2012)

amazing i love everything about this and would want to keep it up all the time


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## Zombie4* (Aug 29, 2015)

Simply beautiful lighting and props!!!! That color scheme is gorgeous 😍


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## Tasty Brains (Jan 16, 2019)

I'm not even reading the previous comments, because a dozen people probably said it better than I will, but DAMN I love your haunt!!! Absolutely fantastic. 🦇


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## Defenestrator (Jul 27, 2009)

Saki.Girl said:


> amazing i love everything about this and would want to keep it up all the time


Thanks! 

I have a similar sentiment about keeping it out, but according to my wife, "We live in a a society", so I guess it will all just have to bide its time in the cold, dark basement until next October....


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## Defenestrator (Jul 27, 2009)

Thanks for all of the wonderful and supportive comments, everyone...I'm sure like most haunters, what I ended up with doesn't really live up to what was in my head, so all of the lovely feedback is greatly appreciated.

I finally managed to cobble together some of the footage, and uploaded it to ye olde YouTubes...fair warning, I'm not much of a videographer, but I did find some cool music to help it along:


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## matrixmom (Oct 29, 2010)

Hi Defen! How are ya? Love your display as always, and are those pool noodles with eyes in them? GENIUS


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## UnOrthodOx (Apr 24, 2007)

Alright, this is going right into an inspiration notebook somewhere. 

While I'm about 90% sure I know how it was done, do you have some process pics on the vine arch? 

And would LOVE to see how these were made.


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## Defenestrator (Jul 27, 2009)

UnOrthodOx said:


> Alright, this is going right into an inspiration notebook somewhere.
> 
> While I'm about 90% sure I know how it was done, do you have some process pics on the vine arch?
> 
> And would LOVE to see how these were made.


I sure do have some photos of the process of both the arch and the various mushrooms / toadstools, and would be happy to share any / all of it, or answer any questions. Some of the process may look pretty familiar to folks that have seen Oak Lane Cemetery's approach to one he first did for his display some years back. 

Below are a few images from the arch....it began as a very inexpensive metal arch from our friends at Amazon (it can be pulled apart at the top, and stored in halves, if desired)

Over the basic arch framework, I covered all of the visible metal with insulation or noodles, and then just layered in more insulation and foam backer rod, and hit each layer with a heat gun as I went:






































The key was getting the first layer down, and then simply heating subsequent layers to the point where the foam would just stick to itself. No additional binding or connecting agents were required.

Intermingled with all of that, I also routed heavy-duty green outdoor extension cords to allow for a light at the top, as well as to deliver electricity to the opposite side (removing any trip hazards for visitors), which allowed me to connect power to the toadstools, etc. The cords were hidden and protected by the foam.

Once the arch was basically built, I used the arc / curve as a template to heat and bend some PVC to follow the same curve, and created a fog inlet port at the bottom (where I would later connect a compact fog machine and hose), fog outlets to the side jack-o-lanterns, and also drilled holes along the top of the arc at regular intervals to create the quasi fog curtain 

It is separate from the original frame, and can just be zip tied in place when it's time to fire up the fogger.

Then, it all got a couple coats of dry brushed cheapo 'oops' paint in various colors to allow some of the detail to show up:











From there, it's basically just a matter of attaching off-the-shelf additions such as a smart bulb LED (so I could change colors), JOLs (I retro-fit them to work with remote controlled LED candles), and skeletons that were posed with a heat gun.

The final step was staking it all with rebar, and weaving actual branches and vines from the property to help everything blend in with the surroundings (which we let go completely wild for almost a month):










I'll dig up some photos and progress stuff on the mushrooms, too.


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## Defenestrator (Jul 27, 2009)

matrixmom said:


> Hi Defen! How are ya? Love your display as always, and are those pool noodles with eyes in them? GENIUS


Hey, thanks MM! 

I can't complain...I got to have a Halloween, after all! 🎃

You're pretty darned close. I chose pipe insulation over pool noodles due to cost considerations, seasonal availability, size variety, and how I find that it reacts to heat.

Also, I used a WHOLE LOT of it in the arch (along with a few thicker pool noodles there), so it made sense to just do it with the vine / eyes, too.

Unfortunately, the one-two punch of the wind and rain from the tropical storm ripped off some of the detail, but given that 95% of it survived, I was still pretty pleased.

Here's a few 'backstage' images of those 'vines' and 'eyeballs':




























The 'eyeballs' are just ping pong balls, with an LED soldered to long leads that are then connected to a homerun back to an adapter for all of the vines. 

The ping-pong balls are just hot-glued to an empty contact lens container that acts as a support for the whole rig, and helps hold the LED against the ball, which then diffuses the light. 

A bit tedious and time consuming, but pretty simple in its overall construction.


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## Defenestrator (Jul 27, 2009)

So, all of the versions of the mushrooms and toadstools are all built from the same basic components:

PVC Stem (heated and bent)
EagleEye LEDs
Low voltage wire and 9V adapters
Dollar Store Potato Masher (attached to the mushroom cap / supported the LEDs)
Goodwill fabric bolt (hot glued underneath to diffuse LEDs)
Pipe Insulation (heated for texture)
Expanding Spray Foam
For the 'dome' shaped caps, the foam was sprayed on top of a large inexpensive plastic ball (think WalMart and about $1.99) that had been sprayed with water to help it cure quickly. (the super smooth plastic ball allowed the foam to release without a release agent, but that won't last forever as foam residue will begin to build up)

Then, the 'dome' was covered with a cheap sheet from Goodwill that had been saturated (to help it cure, but also to allow me to form / smooth the foam by hand).










For the 'flatter' caps, the process was somewhat inverted, and a shallow bowl was used as a mold, and filled with plastic sheeting to allow the foam to release...after expansion and curing, the excess foam was scooped out (not in this picture, though) to make it a bit concave:



















The $1 potato masher was 'glued' in place with additional expanding foam:










Telco wire was run up the PVC step, and connected to the LEDs, which were inverted to shine downward, and zip tied to the struts on the potato masher....a small hole was cut in the fabric to allow the handle through, and then folded to create something resembling gills:










The fabric now hides all of the inner workings and various junk, plus will diffuse the light.....the masher is slipped into the PVC 'stem'. The pipe insulation covers the 'stem' as well, heated for texture, and dry brushed:



















The same basic processes were repeated for the shorter / squatter mushrooms, but the stems were made by repeating layers of insulation to build up the look and feel:





























I'm sure I glossed over a lot of stuff, but hopefully it's at least somewhat helpful


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## FirePrincess (Jul 24, 2020)

Defenestrator said:


> Sooo, how about that 2020, eh?
> 
> Weird though it may have been, and despite all of the chaos, including questions about the holiday in general and the remnants of a last-minute hurricane and the accompanying loss of power for us in particular, there was ultimately still a Halloween 2020 at Revenant Manor.
> 
> ...


You must be the hit of the neighborhood...no, the State. Just beyond words. This is such a spectacular sight to see. Your talent is so far above anything I have ever seen. Thanks for showing us.


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## JustaBunchOfHocusPocus (Sep 17, 2007)

Omg you haunt is awesome! I wish I could have been there to see you in person. Love the colors and the things you chose for your haunt. Thanks for sharing!


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## JustaBunchOfHocusPocus (Sep 17, 2007)

Omg you haunt is awesome! I wish I could have been there to see you in person. Love the colors and the things you chose for your haunt. Thanks for sharing!


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## Speedwell (Jan 5, 2020)

This is fantastic. Thanks for posting some of your build photos.


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## Bluesdaddy (Sep 18, 2014)

Defenestrator said:


> Sooo, how about that 2020, eh?
> 
> Weird though it may have been, and despite all of the chaos, including questions about the holiday in general and the remnants of a last-minute hurricane and the accompanying loss of power for us in particular, there was ultimately still a Halloween 2020 at Revenant Manor.
> 
> ...


First off, I am green with envy. Your display is really good, then throw in a great natural environment and fantastic lighting, and the overall effect is off the charts. I love the night pics. I have never been able to get a good picture of our display at night, what's your secret?


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## Judge (Aug 10, 2012)

Great pics. We actually had the best Halloween weve ever had. More people this year than ever before in the 15yrs weve been in our house.


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## UnOrthodOx (Apr 24, 2007)

> The $1 potato masher was 'glued' in place with additional expanding foam:


It's moments like this I'm reminded why I love this forum.


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## Defenestrator (Jul 27, 2009)

Bluesdaddy said:


> First off, I am green with envy. Your display is really good, then throw in a great natural environment and fantastic lighting, and the overall effect is off the charts. I love the night pics. I have never been able to get a good picture of our display at night, what's your secret?


Thanks, much!

I wish I had some secrets to share, but if there are any photos that turn out decently, I think it's mostly a product of the tool vs. the craftsman in this case....I have a Samsung Galaxy S9, and that's all I really use for photos and video. 

Since I'm a complete hack, and don't actually know anything, the sum total of my hard-earned 'wisdom' could be summarized as follows:

Hold very, very, very still
Ensure that there is some 'white' light in addition to any of the colored bulbs / LEDs that may be in use
Take lots of shots....electrons are cheap
I will also say that I get most of the shots on the Big Night after I've already had many nights of tweaking the lights, so while none of it is ever perfect, at least it's lit the best I can manage. 

I wish I had actual suggestions to offer! Unfortunately, while I always tell myself that I will actually learn how to take real photographs someday, I never really follow-up.


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## Malicious (Sep 8, 2014)

Stunning display!


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## matrixmom (Oct 29, 2010)

UnOrthodOx said:


> It's moments like this I'm reminded why I love this forum.


Omg EXACTLY. Sometimes I am looking for a simple genius and CHEAP idea such as this!


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## Corinne Adams (May 10, 2021)

Defenestrator said:


> *Day Photos (Continued)*
> 
> View attachment 742854
> 
> ...


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## whichypoo (Jul 29, 2009)

You rocked it outa da park.


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