Post by Michael West on Nov 4, 2005 15:54:19 GMT -5
Since I was a teenager, I've always done some form of haunted house in my home at Halloween. As I've grown, so have the haunts. This is the 11th year I've been in my current home. We started by decorating the outside...then the entryway of the home...then we moved out to the garage. Trashbag walls have long given way to wooden structures that now form this three-room attraction.
Prepare yourself for a tour of West Manor...
The Graveyard
Above: A view of my house from the street. The gate was constructed three years ago by my father and I. The two taller columns feature skulls with silk flame that light the area at night. Below: Close-ups of the gate and the graveyard.
Above: The zombies and ghosts that are rising from their graves are all store-bought. The headstones and monuments are made of wood and styrogoam. They have been covered in joint compound and latex paint and then detailed to look like stone. The "death angel" in the center is a modified plastic Christmas angel. Her eyes glow an evil red at night. Below: Close-ups of the graveyard zombies and stones.
Below: We had trouble with people going up to the front door after we moved the haunt into the garage, so now some monsters stand guard.
The Haunt
Below: The entrance to the haunt. It was constructed five years ago. The gargoyles are all store-bought. The gargoyle candelabras on the sides give off a flickering flame light.
Above: A close-up of the door. Two years ago, a few girls got so scared they ripped it off its henges trying to get out. Now we have a doorman on the inside to open it back up in case that happens again.
Below: Once inside, you enter The Great Hall. Pictures of ghouls line the walls and flaming Jack-O-Lanterns provide the only illumination.
Above: A visitor watches the holographic floating head that appears within the picture frame. The illusion was accomplished with a TV and a black mesh fabric that allowed light to shine through. Below: Upon entering the next room, visitors came face to face with our giant spider. This store-bought prop is four feet tall and its eyes glow under blacklight.
Above: A past visitor has found that the spider is hungry. This life size skeleton was hung on the wall beneath our eight-legged friend and covered in glowing web. A foot-long tarantula sits on his shoulder. Black thread was hung from the ceiling in this room to give the kiddies the feeling that they were walking right through the web. Below: If the Trick or Treaters lived through the spider room, they entered the lab where Frankenstein's monster was ready to greet them.
At first...they thought he was a simple prop...
...but he quickly proved them wrong! And if that didn't get them...
...I jumped out from behind a curtain!
Some of the visitors were so frightened by the scares in this final room that they ran out the back door and straight into my gas grill, knocking it over. Luckily, neither the grill nor the frightened patrons were harmed. Now I must begin planning next year's haunt. That's the only problem with West Manor: Every year must somehow be better than the last!
Prepare yourself for a tour of West Manor...
The Graveyard Above: A view of my house from the street. The gate was constructed three years ago by my father and I. The two taller columns feature skulls with silk flame that light the area at night. Below: Close-ups of the gate and the graveyard.
Above: The zombies and ghosts that are rising from their graves are all store-bought. The headstones and monuments are made of wood and styrogoam. They have been covered in joint compound and latex paint and then detailed to look like stone. The "death angel" in the center is a modified plastic Christmas angel. Her eyes glow an evil red at night. Below: Close-ups of the graveyard zombies and stones.
Below: We had trouble with people going up to the front door after we moved the haunt into the garage, so now some monsters stand guard.
The Haunt Below: The entrance to the haunt. It was constructed five years ago. The gargoyles are all store-bought. The gargoyle candelabras on the sides give off a flickering flame light.
Above: A close-up of the door. Two years ago, a few girls got so scared they ripped it off its henges trying to get out. Now we have a doorman on the inside to open it back up in case that happens again.
Below: Once inside, you enter The Great Hall. Pictures of ghouls line the walls and flaming Jack-O-Lanterns provide the only illumination.
Above: A visitor watches the holographic floating head that appears within the picture frame. The illusion was accomplished with a TV and a black mesh fabric that allowed light to shine through. Below: Upon entering the next room, visitors came face to face with our giant spider. This store-bought prop is four feet tall and its eyes glow under blacklight.
Above: A past visitor has found that the spider is hungry. This life size skeleton was hung on the wall beneath our eight-legged friend and covered in glowing web. A foot-long tarantula sits on his shoulder. Black thread was hung from the ceiling in this room to give the kiddies the feeling that they were walking right through the web. Below: If the Trick or Treaters lived through the spider room, they entered the lab where Frankenstein's monster was ready to greet them.
At first...they thought he was a simple prop...
...but he quickly proved them wrong! And if that didn't get them...
...I jumped out from behind a curtain!
Some of the visitors were so frightened by the scares in this final room that they ran out the back door and straight into my gas grill, knocking it over. Luckily, neither the grill nor the frightened patrons were harmed. Now I must begin planning next year's haunt. That's the only problem with West Manor: Every year must somehow be better than the last!
