Some additional props I made this year are the upside down portal and a Chrissy. For Chrissy, I found a cool YouTube video of someone making her from an old Halloween Spirit prop. But the prop is discontinued and I could only find it on sale for $350 – $400 and I wasn’t willing to spend that much.

So for my budget Chrissy I started with a Styrofoam head that I already had and Billy Butcherson’s body. I used this screaming nun mask as the template for her face (I searched lots of masks and this is the best I could find for my purpose). I bought a bunch of pool noodles for her limbs, and used some heavy wire from Lowes to bend and form the noodles. I also bought some teeth for her mouth.

For her costume I used a girl’s costume, sweater, socks, sneakers, and wig. I also ordered this dickie to cover up the corpse body from Billy.

The biggest adjustment was the mask. I cut out the eyes and mouth. Then I painted the mask. I used landscaping fabric to fill the void of the eyes and mouth. Then I pinned the mask to the Styrofoam head. I cut the heads neck at an angle to make the head a little crooked. I added some teeth and the wig to her head. BTW, this wig is great, maybe the color doesn’t match Chrissy 100%, but the hair style does.

Oh yeah, I also bought her hands, but they didn’t arrive on time so I had to order replacement hands. They weren’t quite what I wanted. I couldn’t find any female hands. I even tried to make my own hands, but that turned into a big mess. In the end, I just used wire in the hands to break the fingers, and I painted them because the were too pink.

Next up was the portal to the upside down. I used a painting canvas, spray foam, red film, and lights. I cut a gash in the canvas and painted the canvas all black. Then I laid the canvas out on plastic and sprayed the expanding foam coming out of the opening. I also had a couple go across the opening. Then a spray painted black. Once dry I flipped it over, carefully to add the red film and lights. I just used tape because I was afraid of hurting the foam. Then I attached a wire to hang it on the wall.

Oh yeah, and I bought these because they were awesome and I couldn’t make them myself.

I lied. My Stranger Things decorations were not done. I found a new Facebook group called DIY Halloween Decorations and Props and I have been getting tons of inspiration from these talented people. I decided to add to my Stranger Things decorations.

Several members of the group made the demo dogs. one used the Home Depot Wolf skeleton as a base, some used bottles and pool noodles, some molded their heads, some one used a yoga mat. So I had a lot of ideas to work from and I decided to use pool noodles wit heavy wire running through. Then I used some one litter bottles to fill out the thigh muscles and a milk gallon jug to fill out the chest.

I added additional wire for the feet and then I wrapped everything with self sticking bandages. I tried to paint the bandages, but they just soak up the paint. Then I used some spray paint on then, but that didn’t add too much color to him.

The hardest part was the head. I decided to use foam clay in a bowl to create the inner mouth. Then I measured the bowl on poster board, measured out the circumference for five petals and made a template for the petals on poster board. I made cut out five petals from EVA foam. Once the clay had dried, I pulled it away from the bowl. This was my first time working with foam clay. It’s pretty funky. I think I need a lot more practice, especially if I want to use it for sculpting. Then when I glued the petals to the bowl shape, only 4 fit. I guess the foam had shrunk, so my demo dog only has 4 petals for his head.

I painted the inside of the mouth red, the EVA foam also absorbs the paint, so it took about 4 coats of paint. Then I painted the outside of the head beige to match with the body. The teeth were made from fake nails that were cut into claw shapes. I used these for the claws also. Then it was a matter of hot gluing everything.

So next year I definitively want to improve his head, and maybe build out his body a little more. But he’s still pretty cool and cheaper than buying the wolf skeleton.

Oh, I also made a Chrissy and an Upside Down portal, so more to come.

Well, as I’ve been writing about, my theme for Halloween this year is Stranger Things Season 4 and I’ll be dressing up as Eddie Munson. I started by trying to re-create the Grandfather Clock from the first episode. Then I built Vecna using a lot of foam and tape. And most of my other decorations center around Eddie’s story from Season 4.

Most of the stuff I used for decorations I found on Amazon, a couple of demobats to hang from the porch, a Stained glass poster to hang on my storm door, bats, pom poms, Tigers patch, and door mat. I also found Dusty’s hat, but that link doesn’t work anymore. I’m surprised I couldn’t find more.

A few things came from Etsy including a Hawkins sign, a Vecna garden flag, and headphones. And I bought a bunch of stickers from RedBubble to make my signs and a poster of Eddie’s guitar.

A hung the grandfather clock on our tree and made a Chrissy sign with a pom pom and Tigers patch. A blue spot light shines on it at night.

I put Vecna on the front porch and used my vines to attach him to the porch posts. I also added vines to the house in several locations. My vines were several sizes because I used foam sliced in strips, for the thicker vines, and clothesline and dollar store clothesline for the smaller vines. They were wrapped in black duct tape and/or electrical tape. I also had some white spooky cloth that I wrapped around the vines in some locations.

Part of me wants to create a ton more vines to cover the house. And the other part of me say, just let it go.

My second prop for Halloween this year was Vecna. I wanted a life sized Vecna for my decorations, but I couldn’t find anything, so I made it.

I started with a Styrofoam head, cut off the nose and used modeling clay to add the embellishments to his face. I also learned a lesson about Styrofoam. I already knew not to spray-paint Styrofoam. Now I learned not to add modeling clay directly to the Styrofoam. It will eat away at the Styrofoam as well and cause it to sink away, until eventually it just falls off and leaves the eaten away Styrofoam. In this particular case, he kind of reminded me of Vison from the Avengers.

So after my first failed attempt, I decided to try again, but this time I made sure that I primed the Styrofoam a few times first. This time the clay stayed on and I was able to finish his head with paint and some doll eyes.

Next up, creating the body. This took a lot of foam and white duct tape. Oh, and a few wire hangers, plus some spooky hands. I started with the arms, then the legs, created the body and then taped them all together. Even Mara Jade jumped in to investigate.

I used brown packing paper, soaked in water and wrinkled up to glue on. Before papering the body and legs I speared the body with a broom handle because I wanted to use an umbrella stand to hold him up.

Once the “skin” was on I started painting, and painting, and painting. Plus I attached the head to the broom handle also.

I already made many vines for the house and to attach him to the house. I used lots of cut foam, clothesline, black duct tape, and electrical tape.

But, I found some great YouTube videos from Cris Alex, with lots of the embellishments for Vecna, including the vines, cones, and veins. It really helped me to take him to the next level.

My husband says he is the best thing I’ve ever made, and I have to admit that I’m pretty proud of him.