# Blackbeard's Tombstone



## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

*Mark Boundries*_ (not pictured): _Mark off the top and bottom boundries of the scroll while the paper is still on the stone. That way you won't carve those sections away. 

*Shape 'Map'*_ (picture 1): _Use the Stanley SureForm Shaver and bits of the shaver to gouge and shape the face of the stone so it curves like an open scroll map. Be sure that you don't carve too far into the stone. There must be room left for the interior PVC channels. Do the front side only and put back into the base for the next step.

*Shape other Side* _(picture 2): _Draw a line for what needs to be carved away on the other side using the carved side as a reference. Remove from the base and carve the other side.













*Sand Surface:* Very lightly sand the surface to get it to look more like smooth map parchment. 















*Dremel out PVC Channels:* Cut two lengths of 12" PVC pipe. Place them both on one opened side of a tombstone face so they are equally distant but not too close the the edge. Keep them as vertical as possible. Move them down 3/8" to allow them to protrude into the plywood base you will be using for the tombstone. Trace the PVC pipes with a marker. Cut the area out using the multi-purpose cutting attachment for the Dremel just halfway deep. You will be doing the same thing on the other side so the pipes will be in the center of the stone. Place the PVC pipe into the hollowed channel and apply some paint to the top. Grab the other tombstone face, flip over and center over the matching one and press down. This will leave paint markings where you can easily trace out the channels for the other side. Cut that side out also. 
















*Trace out Design*_ (picture 1): _Use painter's tape to attach the design to the stone. Trace out a section with a ball point pen, remove one side of the tape and lift the paper. Retrace the impression left with the pen again to make a clearer line. You will have to do this in sections because the impression left by the pen starts to fill back in after a while and becomes hard to see. Remove the paper when all finished. 

*Fill in* _(picture 2): _Fill in any complicated designs with a marker so you won't lose your place while Dremeling out.

*Dremel out Pattern* _(not pictured):_ Use the Dremel with the multi-purpose cutting attachment to cut out. For very small or detailed fonts, go shallower. If not, the centers of 'e' , 'o' and 'a' would flake off.












*Glue Tombstone Face:* Glue sides and PVC together using foamboard adhesive. Weight the top while curing.













*Mark Plywood* _(picture 1): _Put the tombstone face back into the foam bases. Center it on the plywood so there is even space in the front and back. Trace a line around the stone with a marker. Remove the tombstone and put on it's side. Apply some paint where the PVC is. Lift up the stone and center it over where those lines are and press down. It will leave a paint impression showing you where holes need to be cut out of the plywood. 

*Cut Plywood* _(picture 2): _Drill out a pilot hole your jig saw can fit into to cut the circle out. It's hard to drill out a 1/2" hole first so start by using a 1/4" drill bit then switch to the 1/2" drill bit. While you are making these holes, also put two in the far diagonal corners. These holes are later used to tie off your stone to ground stakes. This helps add more wind protection and helps it defend against burglars when out in your graveyard. Use the jig saw to cut out the larger holes for the rebar/PVC hole.













*Harness for Sword:* Insert the sword back into the stone and move around until it's right where you want it to be. Take a length of hanger wire and push into the seam of the stone. Bend with needle nose pliers to adjust into a good place where when the sword is permanently placed in the stone, the wire will be fairly hidden from view. Remove the sword but leave the wire in place.














*Glue base:* Glue the bases and tombstone face to the plywood one by one starting from the bottom. Use the same foamboard glue to 'caulk' any open seams. Weight down and allow to dry overnight.















*
Design Coral Base* _(picture 1): _Cut out a circle from paper and trace out over and over again onto the base. 

*Chip out *_(picture 2): _The Multi-Max Dremel was great for this. Chip out the circles.

*Smooth* _(picture 3): _Use a grinding stone attachment _(part 952)_ for the regular Dremel to smooth away the rough edges.







Continued...


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## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

*Make Cracks:* Mark out 'crack' lines on the stone. Use a pick or a tool that will allow you to cut/pick a thin 'crack' into the stone. I used a tool from the sculpting tool kit. 














*Apply Acetone: *Place some acetone in a non-reactive plastic container and brush it onto the cracks and any blemishes that are already on the stone. This will open them up and amplify damage. The way it eats into the stone looks like what weather would do to stone over the decades of time. Be sure to wear a good mask and eye protection as a precaution.














*Fill Seams:* Fill any seams and cuts you don't want in the foam. Wear gloves and dab some filler onto a fingertip. Press into the seam and feather away using your gloved finger. It is easier to smooth the wood filler while wet. It's very hard to sand dried wood filler on foam. The sand paper tears up the foam too easily. Let dry overnight. Check the next day to see if there are any raised ridges. Use a smooth metal tool to burnish down. Had used one of the sculpting tools. Also check to see if any filler had shrunk down too much and use more to fill. 













*Apply Barnacles:* Google some good pictures of barnacles to use a reference. Wet some DAS clay on a tray and knead to get fairly wet _(loose). _Place a small grape-sized glob onto the stone. In the sculpting tool set there is a tool that has wires at the end. Bend them to one side and fan out. Dip the tool in water and then press the DAS clay on the edges to make them smooth away onto the stone. It will make the glob look like a volcano. Grab the sculpting tool that looks like a needle, dip in water and use that to stab into a side of the interior of the barnacle to separate the inside from the sides. Keep stabbing until you start to get a pea-sized creature in the inside. Finally stab the center of the creature so it's halved like a clam. Repeat until you get nice groupings of barnacles being sure to change up the sizes of them. Just like in nature.















*Prepare Coins* _(picture 1): _Mock-up placement of coins so it looks like they are being absorbed by the stone. Two options here: You can cut the coins in half using a tin snip or you can cut a scar into the foam and insert them. The latter step is shown near the end of the tutorial. It's also the way I suggest. They will be much stronger inserted into the stone. 

*Monster Mud Coins* _(picture 2): _Dip the coins into monster mud and place on the stone. Use a large brush to press the coins and smooth away the mud. Have a scraper nearby to help clean the brush of excess mm. Keep doing this until the mm makes the coins have a nice transition to the stone. Dip the brush into some water and carefully and gently wash away some of the coin face so you can still see the raised ridges of the design. Also use the brush dipped in water to help smooth away the edges of the monster mud. Let dry overnight.















*Caulk and Drylok Bottom Base *_(not pictured): _Turn the stone on it's side and caulk the opening where the PVC pipe meets the foam and plywood so only the interior of the pipe is open. Allow to dry overnight. Paint a layer of Drylok on the bottom of the base and allow that to dry overnight. Next day, do a second coat of Drylok and let dry overnight again. 

*Coat with Drylok* _(picture 1): _Turn the stone right-side up again. Coat entire stone in Drylok. This step takes longer than you think though. The epitaph gives you some painstaking work. For tiny fonts you will need to press the Drylok in and then scoop the extra away using a tiny brush. It will take repetitive passes. For large fonts it will also take many passes to scoop out the extra Drylok. The font will fill in and disappear because Drylok is so thick if you don't do this step. To help pass the time - pour a drink first. 

*Second Coat* _(picture 2): _Paint a second coat of Drylok. 















*Painting Crevices and Epitaph *_(not pictured): _Using a small brush and dark gray exterior paint, paint the inside of the epitaph. Use a larger brush to paint the crevices but also feather out to the edges. This will help to add depth to those cracks and crevices. No need to allow full drying for the the next step. As long as it's partially dry in spots you can move to the tea-staining step.

*Tea-staining:* This is a very messy step so put some painting tarps on your workbench. Dip a 2" brush into the dark gray exterior paint and mix into a 1/2 filled glass of water. You are making paint that is like tea. This will let you stain the stone so it looks like it's been out in the dirty air for centuries. Start at the top and roughly drip it down the tombstone and help brush it down in places. Do it over and over again until you like the look. You are trying to make it look like this stone has been in the weather forever. You can take breaks here and there to allow the previous tea-stain to dry a bit. If you do this you will see more definitive lines. If you don't take breaks then the lines will be muddier looking. It's all your preference. For this stone I took very short breaks so you get a bit of both. Muddying and definitive lines.

Sop up any excess paint with paper towels. Use small items under the the base to prop it up and allow air to flow underneath so it can dry. Dry overnight.
















*Red Accents:* Thin out red paint and wash some red color where the footsteps and treasure 'X' is.














*Dry-brushing:* A miracle step. Get a dry 3-inch brush and dip it in white exterior flat paint. First brush it dry on a paper towel. Lightly brush the entire tombstone. This will paint only the raised edges of the tombstone and you will be amazed at the transformation. Instantly your tombstone will look like real stone.





Continued...


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## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

*Attach Sword:* Put some foamboard glue into the opening for the sword and glue the sword in. Use the foamboard glue to also 'caulk' the edges of it. Q-Tips are good here to wipe away excess glue. Bend the wire in place to anchor the sword. Cut away any excess wire. 















*Attach Gold Coins:* Use an eXacto knife to cut a slot for the coins to slide into. Take a sculptor's pick to pick out some foam to make room. Add some foamboard glue and glue the coin in place. For a coins that's just resting on the outside of the stone - just glue the back of it to the stone. You can use the foamboard glue for that.















*Lichen & Moss Color Accents:* Raw Sienna is the perfect orangy color to add a rust-colored lichen look. Dip the 2" brush into the paint and brush off excess onto a paper towel. Streak the paint down in some areas of the tombstone. Prepare your brush the same way using the dark green paint. Pick a few places that a spot of moss would look good. Don't streak it down though. Just a quick, short, downward brush stroke.

*White Lichen and Bird Droppings: *Place some white exterior paint on your pallet. Get a crumpled up rag or paper towel and dip into the paint and dry off a bit on another paper towel. Dab the tombstone a couple of times in the same spot while turning the rag until you get the look you want. Dip a small brush into the white paint on the pallet and brush on some bird droppings.















*Drylok & Drybrush Visible Glue:* Cover up any visible glue seams with some Drylok. Let dry and then quickly drybrush with white to help blend it back into the stone.















*Black Detail Lines:* Paint a very thin line in the center of any cracks on the stone. Use flat black paint for this. Extend the line past the real cracks to make a faux crack on the edges. This adds realism. If the shade of black isn't dark enough it won't be convincing so you may need to go over your line twice. Paint a line across the center and outside perimeter of the creature inside the barnacles. 

*Fix Dark Areas:* Sometimes the tea-staining step will wash away some of the dark crevice paint details. Go back over any areas that needs additional shading with a brush. 















*Apply Seaweed:* Apply some seaweed to the stone using a hot glue gun. 


















_Whew! You are done! Step back and admire your new creation








_














*Display in Graveyard:* Lay the tombstone on it's side where you want it in your graveyard. Line up the two rebar stakes where the holes are in the center of the tombstone. Pound the rebar 10" in the ground. Lift up the tombstone and slide over the rebar. This will help keep your tombstone upright on windy days. If your yard is sloped, use a plank or two of wood to shim up the bottom so it's level. 

Lace some string though the holes in the far corners of the tombstone and tie off to ground stakes. In a few days the grass will camouflage the string and becomes nearly impossible to see. The ground stakes add additional wind resistence and some theft deterrent.




Thanks for checking out the tutorial


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## creeeepycathy (Jul 12, 2011)

absolutely beautiful.  and great tutorial.


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## Raven's Hollow Cemetery (Jul 3, 2011)

Gorgeous! Thanks for the how-to Terra!  The crack detailing will come in handy shortly while finishing my Celtic cross.


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## Uruk-Hai (Aug 31, 2008)

I'm in total awe! This is such an amazing tombstone! The level of thought and detail you've put into it really makes it stand out. Excellent tutorial! Now I have to figure a way of fitting something like this into my haunt - maybe one of the Blackstone ancestors went to sea?


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## DaveintheGrave (Feb 12, 2004)

Looks fantastic, Terra! Another masterpiece!


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## BlackBlade (Nov 25, 2011)

WOW Terra!! Simply Amazing....


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## Ghost of Spookie (Sep 28, 2008)

Wow Terra that's an amazingly detailed stone. I love your composition and the use of the sword, gold pieces and " seaweed" to make it appear even more realistic. Your YouTube video was very helpful in seeing it come to life.

Oh and great barnacles!


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## Mourik (Nov 7, 2011)

Terra,
I truly enjoyed watching you create this stone. So much in fact I couldn't wait to try my spin on it. I hope you don't mind.
I will have some pictures taken of it this weekend and will try and post it. Like the one you made, this is a gift for my sister who has a wonderful 
Halloween party every year and I have been helping her with the props. This is my first attempt at doing something like this so I hope I 
did it justice.


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## Bryan316 (Oct 18, 2009)

The base stone's sculpting looks amazing! It looks like rock that's just chiseled or broken away, as opposed to working a smooth stone surface. If you have any extra photos of that technique, please add them here!


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## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

creeeepycathy said:


> absolutely beautiful.  and great tutorial.


Thanks Cathy!



Raven's Hollow Cemetary said:


> Gorgeous! Thanks for the how-to Terra!  The crack detailing will come in handy shortly while finishing my Celtic cross.


Yeah, my old tombstone cracks never convinced me they were real. The black line helped a lot.



Uruk-Hai said:


> I'm in total awe! This is such an amazing tombstone! The level of thought and detail you've put into it really makes it stand out. Excellent tutorial! Now I have to figure a way of fitting something like this into my haunt - maybe one of the Blackstone ancestors went to sea?


Appreciate that. This was a fun one to build. Beginning a new love - for pirates 



DaveintheGrave said:


> Looks fantastic, Terra! Another masterpiece!


Thank you Dave. You treating my car good? heheh.



BlackBlade said:


> WOW Terra!! Simply Amazing....


Glad you like it!



Ghost of Spookie said:


> Wow Terra that's an amazingly detailed stone. I love your composition and the use of the sword, gold pieces and " seaweed" to make it appear even more realistic. Your YouTube video was very helpful in seeing it come to life.
> 
> Oh and great barnacles!


Glad the video was helpful. Wasn't sure if I should record the build or not because already have a tombstone tutorial but thought the whole build video would help others to see the entire evolution. Currently editing a second video showing the Doc Holliday_ (western themed)_ tombstone. Hopefully done in two weeks or so.



Mourik said:


> Terra,
> I truly enjoyed watching you create this stone. So much in fact I couldn't wait to try my spin on it. I hope you don't mind.
> I will have some pictures taken of it this weekend and will try and post it. Like the one you made, this is a gift for my sister who has a wonderful
> Halloween party every year and I have been helping her with the props. This is my first attempt at doing something like this so I hope I
> did it justice.


No problem. Just Whisper was very cool about having me post a tutorial. Thanks again JW!



Bryan316 said:


> The base stone's sculpting looks amazing! It looks like rock that's just chiseled or broken away, as opposed to working a smooth stone surface. If you have any extra photos of that technique, please add them here!


Surprisingly, I don't have any more pictures of the part _(usually take boatloads)._ Happy to answer any questions you may have about it.


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## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

Bryan316 said:


> The base stone's sculpting looks amazing! It looks like rock that's just chiseled or broken away, as opposed to working a smooth stone surface. If you have any extra photos of that technique, please add them here!


I went back through the videos and cut this short video to show more of how it was carved:





Want to thank you as well. Been procrastinating on creating a new YouTube channel to hold short little videos like this. It's called TerraLair


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## HallowSusieBoo (Aug 11, 2009)

*LOL "Stop snickering...." Well - you have done it again. ANother amazing stone with a special twist. We visit the OBX of NC each summer and folks still believe that Blackbeard's treasure is buried somewhere on Ocracoke Island. Luv how you built in the Spotswoode aspect. Hallow-storians will get a kick out of that for sure. Splendid. You can be my SR next year! *


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## Phantom Blue (Sep 28, 2008)

Very nice work Terra! I love your attention to detail. I see that I need to add a dremel tool to the Christmas list. Thanks for the tut!

PB


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## Bryan316 (Oct 18, 2009)

AAAAAAH!!! You cleaned it up a bit with a Dremel afterwards! I thought using that electric chisel seemed rougher and more aggressive than what your results looked like, but using the Dremel to smooth it over carefully is what I was looking for. NICE.

Damn fine work, as always!


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## Mourik (Nov 7, 2011)

Ok Here goes. 

Just remember this is my first attempt at this, but please don't hesitate to tell me what I could do to make it better. 
Looking at it now I still see the pink foam board inside it. This has always been my problem when making anything.
Plus this is the first pictures I have posted so I'm still learning this as well.


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## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

WOW! That's amazing work. I first thought you sneaked over to JustWhisper's house and took some more pictures of it. Most excellent! 

I understand the difficulty of covering up all the pink. That second coat of Drylok helps a lot but you have to go close with a tiny brush to make sure. Even then, don't ever turn it upside down or something. That's when you really notice spots missed, LOL! The epitaph is the hardest because you need to scoop a lot of the Drylok out to keep it still visible so you end up with just a thin coat of Drylok. But, when you come in with the dark gray paint it's usually gets good coverage. 

Again, fantastic. Are you going to do the seaweed later? Not a biggie. It will just add some color. But, if you want a somber, spooky graveyard then it's not necessary.


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## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

HallowSusieBoo said:


> *LOL "Stop snickering...." Well - you have done it again. Another amazing stone with a special twist. We visit the OBX of NC each summer and folks still believe that Blackbeard's treasure is buried somewhere on Ocracoke Island. Luv how you built in the Spotswoode aspect. Hallow-storians will get a kick out of that for sure. Splendid. You can be my SR next year! *


It sucked that I had to say Rasterbator on the video, heheh. Then I was afraid it would get a profanity flagging on YouTube. heh.

Blackbeard's real story was fascinating to read. Especially the lore of his skull being used as a drinking glass. Here's a link to the story if anyone's interested: http://www.history.org/foundation/journal/blackbea.cfm



Phantom Blue said:


> Very nice work Terra! I love your attention to detail. I see that I need to add a dremel tool to the Christmas list. Thanks for the tut!
> 
> PB


You won't regret getting a Dremel. One of the most go-to tools I haver short of the power drill. The Multi-Max tool I haven't found many uses for... yet.



Bryan316 said:


> AAAAAAH!!! You cleaned it up a bit with a Dremel afterwards! I thought using that electric chisel seemed rougher and more aggressive than what your results looked like, but using the Dremel to smooth it over carefully is what I was looking for. NICE.
> 
> Damn fine work, as always!


You're welcome. If you don't have the multi-Max Dremel, you can still get the same look with just the Dremel. Just takes a bit longer.


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## Mourik (Nov 7, 2011)

I was wondering how you shipped this without it getting damaged?


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## Mourik (Nov 7, 2011)

Terra said:


> WOW! That's amazing work. I first thought you sneaked over to JustWhisper's house and took some more pictures of it. Most excellent!
> 
> I understand the difficulty of covering up all the pink. That second coat of Drylok helps a lot but you have to go close with a tiny brush to make sure. Even then, don't ever turn it upside down or something. That's when you really notice spots missed, LOL! The epitaph is the hardest because you need to scoop a lot of the Drylok out to keep it still visible so you end up with just a thin coat of Drylok. But, when you come in with the dark gray paint it's usually gets good coverage.
> 
> Again, fantastic. Are you going to do the seaweed later? Not a biggie. It will just add some color. But, if you want a somber, spooky graveyard then it's not necessary.


I have been looking for some of the "seaweed" at the different craft places but have yet to find what I'm looking for.
I did find some clumps of short grass I was thinking of adding to make it look like it was growing out of the base on the right side and behind the shell on the left. 
Still thinking about that one tho.


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## Raven's Hollow Cemetery (Jul 3, 2011)

Mourik said:


> I have been looking for some of the "seaweed" at the different craft places but have yet to find what I'm looking for.
> I did find some clumps of short grass I was thinking of adding to make it look like it was growing out of the base on the right side and behind the shell on the left.
> Still thinking about that one tho.



Pet stores like Petsmart, & PetCo carry seaweed, and other artificial aquatic plants. Really, any pet store that has a decent selection of aquarium supplies and critters, will offer it for sale. 

Excellent work btw!


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## Mourik (Nov 7, 2011)

Thanks Raven

I would have never thought of looking there. I will be checking it out one night this week to see what I can find.


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## bobzilla (Nov 15, 2008)

Great job Terra!


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## Raven's Hollow Cemetery (Jul 3, 2011)

Mourik said:


> Thanks Raven
> 
> I would have never thought of looking there. I will be checking it out one night this week to see what I can find.


No problem, glad to be able to help  *tips hat & bows*


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## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

Mourik said:


> I was wondering how you shipped this without it getting damaged?


It's quite the endeavor. I fill gaps with bubble wrap. Wrap the entire stone now in bubble wrap. Then put some popcorn in a box and drop the stone in. Fill the rest of the box with popcorn so it's filled 102%_ (per UPS recommendation). _Then... I get a slightly bigger box and fill that a bit with popcorn. Put the interior box in and fill 102% with popcorn.

Brace yourself - shipping is in the $70 to $80 range. You've also got to make sure you stay under UPS's oversized box perimeters or the shipping goes sky-high. That's why the stone is undersized.

Here's pictures of the interior box. Couldn't help decorating it


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## Mourik (Nov 7, 2011)

> Brace yourself - shipping is in the $70 to $80 range. You've also got to make sure you stay under UPS's oversized box perimeters or the shipping goes sky-high. That's why the stone is undersized.


WOW!
I was thinking of mailing a tombstone to my sister. She only lives 45 minutes away so I will be delivering it myself. Then I can tell my wife I saved 80 dollars and I should be able to use the savings to buy more supplies!!! Yess!! Thanks Terra. I owe you one


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## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

Cool! The first year I mailed a stone - almost died from the shock. What made it worse was I was mailing two to two different locations. Was apologizing all over myself to the hubby and swore I'd find a cheaper way. He was so sweet about it. 

*For anyone else considering shipping a stone... *info for you to avoid the shocking pain at the UPS Store in front of witnesses: 

You can shave off the price of shipping if you can find boxes that are the perfect fit. When you get up to the larger sizes every additional inch adds about $8 to the cost. The only outside box I could find was 3" too long so was paying $24 more than needed. It was 36x22x21. The good news is that you could put up to 101# of weight in it, heheh. You could also shave shipping costs by forgoing the second box. It's probably overkill anyway. Oh, another thing: it's really hard to find boxes this big. The UPS Store sells them but they aren't cheap either. That 36x22x20 box was $24!

Here's box sizes and their rates _(UPS as of 9/11):
_30x18x17: $43 (56# billable weight)
32x19x18: $48 (66# billable weight)
36x21x20: $70 (92# billable weight)
36x22x20: $78 (101# billable weight)

This is all calculated by going to UPS to calculate billable weight LxWxH _(select Detailed Time & Cost): _https://wwwapps.ups.com/ctc?loc=en_...yPickUp=NO&modPickupAdded=&modifyClicked=true

The large package surcharge is an additional $50. To determine that take the length + girth (2 X width + 2 X height). If it exceeds 130" but doesn't exceed the max UPS size of 165" you get that charge also. Note: the UPS Store guys said UPS isn't doing that anymore but this is still on the UPS website.


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## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

Oh yeah, when UPS measures it, they will round up to the nearest inch. I had a 36x22x20 box. After filling it, it measured at the UPS store as 36x22x20 1/4. It wasn't really and I'm sure I could have fought that but honestly didn't remember the size of the original box at the time. They charged me for a box of 36x22x21. So, pre-measure the box before you go to UPS and fight 'em a bit if they are adding that extra inch. May save you a few bucks.


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## Raven's Hollow Cemetery (Jul 3, 2011)

0.0 Holy ****!!! Wow, and I thought I was being raked over the coals when I shipped Bethene her animated zombie for the Secret Reaper! Turns out that I had it good, it seems. Shipping companies... -_-


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## Uruk-Hai (Aug 31, 2008)

One other thing you can do when shipping tombstones, which I've done for secret reapers with the Ontario Haunters Club (now Canadian Haunters Association - shameless plug! ) , is to not include the plywood base. I package up the finished stone much as Terra describes and include instructions for the reapee on diff. options for mounting the tombstone for display. I figure we're all haunters so it shouldn't be too difficult for them to handle. It really saves on the weight/cost.


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## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

Uruk-Hai said:


> One other thing you can do when shipping tombstones, which I've done for secret reapers with the Ontario Haunters Club (now Canadian Haunters Association - shameless plug! ) , is to not include the plywood base. I package up the finished stone much as Terra describes and include instructions for the reapee on diff. options for mounting the tombstone for display. I figure we're all haunters so it shouldn't be too difficult for them to handle. It really saves on the weight/cost.


That's a great tip on reducing the weight. There is a limit on the box size for when they determine the weight. Once the box gets over a certain size (irregardless of weight) they charge by the size of the box. Here is the formula they use to determine if your box falls under the weight charges or the size charges:


*Determine the Dimensional Weight**
*


Next, determine the package dimensions in inches. Multiply the package length by the width by the height. The result is the cubic size in inches. If the cubic size of the package in inches is 5,184 or larger, divide the cubic size by 166 to determine dimensional weight in pounds. *If the cubic size in inches is less than 5,184, use the actual weight of the package. *

 Because the tombstone is light I have lots of extra weight I could put in the box. They call it billable weight. I could have put up to 101#. Doing the quick math the smallest box that can be used to fall under the weight determinations is 32x10x16. That would make a very small tombstone but doable.


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## Rclsu13 (Aug 23, 2011)

Awesome Terra, you make the best Stones hands down. I love your vids. These pics were nice too, showed soem details the vid missed. Is it jsut me or did the stone seem much larger than it was? I was convinced this was a full sized stone, but it was a little more than 2 ft?


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## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

Rclsu13 said:


> Awesome Terra, you make the best Stones hands down. I love your vids. These pics were nice too, showed soem details the vid missed. Is it jsut me or did the stone seem much larger than it was? I was convinced this was a full sized stone, but it was a little more than 2 ft?


Yes it does seem bigger in the video. Guess it's like the camera adds pounds or something. Here's a good picture to help show that is indeed just over 2' tall. It's laying on my sitting workbench which is 24" deep:













*Update: *While I'm here thought I'd put up the other tombstone that was made at the same time. Hope to get the full build tutorial up here in the next few weeks:


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## HallowSusieBoo (Aug 11, 2009)

*STAND BACK N' PUT YOUR HANDS IN THE AIR PARDNER!!! Now --- start clapping!! Yay Terra!! Another great stone for us all to try. 
Watching your super fun video gave me ideas too! Howzabout dry locking a western hat and hang it over the corner of the stone - or at the base. Craft a fake bullet out of sculpy clay- paint it brass and stick it into the stone near one of the bullet holes. Or even one out the back. Also - might be able to get a little western pistol at the dollar store and dry lock that at the base. The "rope" lights certainly stylize a "lariat" look. Just another fantastic way to Terra-ize cemetery headstones! Here's lookin' at you kid! BOO!*


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## Raven's Hollow Cemetery (Jul 3, 2011)

Gorgeous! Terra =/= the Martha Stewart of haunting to the 5th power!  *insert standing round of applause, & crowd cheers here*


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## stick (Apr 2, 2009)

Wonderful work on this stone Terra.


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## dionicia (Nov 5, 2006)

I'm always impressed with your monster mud technique. It looks so much like stone. Very cool.


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## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

HallowSusieBoo said:


> STAND BACK N' PUT YOUR HANDS IN THE AIR PARDNER!!! Now --- start clapping!! Yay Terra!! Another great stone for us all to try.
> Watching your super fun video gave me ideas too! Howzabout dry locking a western hat and hang it over the corner of the stone - or at the base. Craft a fake bullet out of sculpy clay- paint it brass and stick it into the stone near one of the bullet holes. Or even one out the back. Also - might be able to get a little western pistol at the dollar store and dry lock that at the base. The "rope" lights certainly stylize a "lariat" look. Just another fantastic way to Terra-ize cemetery headstones! Here's lookin' at you kid! BOO!


Thank you and I agree about adding a hat. Kept going back and forth about whether to add one. The cool thing about the lights is that they should melt into the grass in the graveyard and the rope part of the lighting should be pretty hard to see. You should just get the effect of the uplighting.



Raven's Hollow Cemetary said:


> Gorgeous! Terra =/= the Martha Stewart of haunting to the 5th power!  *insert standing round of applause, & crowd cheers here*


heh. Thank you so much 



stick said:


> Wonderful work on this stone Terra.


Loved making this one. Thank you so much.



dionicia said:


> I'm always impressed with your monster mud technique. It looks so much like stone. Very cool.


Thanks and I too love the monster mud. You get such a great effect for a minimal amount of work. Love those tricks!





*UPDATE:* I realized that in one picture I had the scale wrong _(the picture with the tombstone layout on the pink foam). _It's since been fixed. Sorry about that.


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## SavageEye (Aug 30, 2010)

Are you kidding me! What beautiful work! I was just getting enough courage to start my first tombstone project and I come across this tutorial… I'm not worthy!!! Terra, you are quite the inspiration.


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## ROCKNRUDE (Apr 13, 2009)

Back to shipping tombstones, if I remember correctly, I saw a vid the Davises did. In it they actually scored or snapped a tombstone in half, for shipping. It could be to be glued back together, when reassembling it with barely a seam showing.


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## Bobbywan (Dec 16, 2011)

*Gorgeous!!!!*


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## camsauce (Sep 20, 2008)

My favorite one you've done so far.


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## ELH(Erin Loves Halloween) (Nov 5, 2008)

I absolutely love this tutorial, hope I get you as my SR this year. Best tombstone ever you are so talented


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## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

SavageEye said:


> Are you kidding me! What beautiful work! I was just getting enough courage to start my first tombstone project and I come across this tutorial… I'm not worthy!!! Terra, you are quite the inspiration.


Thank you and hope the turoial will help smooth out the learning curve.



ROCKNRUDE said:


> Back to shipping tombstones, if I remember correctly, I saw a vid the Davises did. In it they actually scored or snapped a tombstone in half, for shipping. It could be to be glued back together, when reassembling it with barely a seam showing.


Can't tell you how many times that was considered. Was also thinking of shipping the stone with the base unattached and a little bottle of Drylok. But, it's a gift and thought it would have been awkward to do that. But, if it was sent to a fellow haunter - definitely an option. Would really cut down on the size of the box.



Bobbywan said:


> *Gorgeous!!!!*


Thanks. I like the way the sword angle makes you curve the direction of your eyes to take it all in. Heard that's an old artist's technique of giving correct flow to the art piece. 



camsauce said:


> My favorite one you've done so far.


You know, me too. Of course it was the one that's being given away. Isn't that always the case? LOL!



ELH(Erin Loves Halloween) said:


> I absolutely love this tutorial, hope I get you as my SR this year. Best tombstone ever you are so talented


Thanks Erin. I love being part of the Secret Reaper too. It's a thrill to see the likes of the victim and then determine the design of the tombstone. What a fun challenge!


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