Today was the first big walkthrough haunt area prop dump... where I am trying out different locations for the many props that will be outdoors.  My indoor prop dump happened a few days ago, but it is chaos in there so I won't show that just yet.  Just because you see something here doesn't mean that you will see it the same way on haunt nights.  I will wait until sunset to see what everything looks like in the moonlight and landscape lighting.  The skelly here seems less like a murder victim and more like someone who died of heat exhaustion... which is still believable here.  I am pretty happy with the spider so far.  I will need to see if he shows in moonlight.  The face in the vines isn't much by daylight, but I have a good feeling about it showing well at night.

The aerial map with a crude overlay of the haunt layout and points of interest.  The haunt is boundaried by my house and a 5 foot rockwall with iron.

I will try to minimize any spoilers.  1) Front entrance tent. 2) Real entrance to the sideyard. 3) First scene, mostly enclosed. 4) Second scene, gory. 5) Dark creep, heavy vegetation. 6) Somewhat open yard under the tree canopy, with 1st possible exit if anyone wants to quit. 7) Attached workshed, the entrance to the garage haunt. 8) Garage haunt, with final exit near where the vehicle is pictured.  Both exits dump guests into a large access alley to return to the front yard.

POI: A) TOT area, kid friendly.  B) Not my pool, behind a 12 foot rockwall.  C) Cool neighbor that doesn't mind my having a haunt.  D) My 73 Buick... to be parked in the front under the tree.  E) The access alley.  G1) Main graveyard, family friendly.  G2) Pet cemetery.  G3) Creepy graveyard within the haunt.

The Evil Dead series had an 1973 Olds Eighty Eight.  I have its slightly more classy sibling, a 1973 Buick Electra 225 Custom.  Different grill, near-same obnoxious engine.  Am thinking of cheesing it up with a homemade deadite or two inside for a bit of a creep factor before the TOTs get to our door and the others get to the yardhaunt. 

A practice run indoors with the Ghostly Apparitions DVD in a dimly lit room in the afternoon.  This is using a 150 lumens projector (i.e. inexpensive)... so it will be more than adequate during the night of the haunt outdoors.  To be only seen in the walkthrough.

My first standing prop for the season.  I haven't come up with a name for him yet... but he stands at 7.5 feet tall and will be in a dark garage (sectioned) as the last part of the haunt.  The only lights will likely be from two TVs playing AtmosFEARfx DVDs and several small spinning DJ lights.  

It is difficult to make a front yard menacing by daylight... but this is the future graveyard for the TOTs to view.  Rather than wrestle with electrical cords, the lighting will be handled by a handful of LED flashlights in light diffusing boxes.  The graves will face the house.  Rather than attempt realism or go solely with puns and abbreviations, I am experimenting from grave-worthy quotes from movies to test the nerd cred of my audience.  The creepier and borderline sacreligious gravestones will go in the walkthrough section... not open to the younger TOTs.  Again... this should look more spooky at night. 

I am just starting to sort through my haunt stash from last year to remember what I have and what I still might need to get.  Yes, I am a mass-produced-prop junkie, like most other yardhaunters.  But I think there are ways to display these without making the yard look like another Spirit showroom.

 

 

The ugly, naked truth before the paint goes on...  These are just a few of many to come that were recently carved using my new Hot Wire tools, etc.  They will get painted in the next few weeks and be stored for the family-friendly front yard graveyard.  A few less than family-friendly ones will find a home in the age restrictive walkthrough.

My first headstone from Hauntcon 2013.  Sidenote: the Hot Wire Foam Factory package has been ordered today, so the front yard graveyard props should be in full production mode by late next week.  The handful I began using razor cutters and exacto knives came out decent, but lack good definition and take forever to do.  So the wire router, sculptor, and hot knife will come in handy.  Am still unsure what I will use the 3D scroll table for...but I am sure something will come to mind.  In the meantime, marvel at my first foray into gravestones... the one I made under the direction of the people from Davis Graveyard.  http://davisgraveyard.com/

Disclaimer: My new ones will likely be more elaborate... but I had only an exacto for this one at the time.

Here is one perspective of the side yard that will serve as the first part of the walkthrough haunt this year.  Since the pic was initially taken, much of the concrete has been removed and replaced with wood mulch.  There will be no need to add fake vines and creepy plants to disguise wires, props, etc. considering the real stuff growing everywhere.  I am planning to construct 2 rooms/scenes and at least one actor scare point in this 60x8 space. 

Here is the star of the 2013 haunt... my bruja.  The storyline being that "there once was a witch... etc ... and now my yard is a walk into all sorts of nastiness."  I will post the full storyline by October. I didn't know I needed her, but I became infatuated when I found her at (the 10th annual )Hauntcon 2013.  I think it was her smile that won me over. 

It is difficult for props to not look cheesy in daylight, but trust that my friend here was looking pretty impressive during the night with colored, flashing lighting for the 2012 yardhaunt.  This pic was taken from the adjoining alley, with the walkthrough being on the other side of the iron-topped rockwall.

I am the caretaker of The Kerbey House yardhaunt. I will try to update this blog frequently with some 2012 (first run) haunt pics and updates of the much bigger build for 2013.  The face will change, as I haven't settled on a persona yet.  What you see here is what will be greeting you on Halloween night if you decide to visit.  Salud.