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Merlin Calhoun, of Haunters Hangout shares with us how to create a killer scarecrow that will easily frighten your guests.

______________________________________________________________ These directions came from his site Haunters Hangout. The link is provided at the bottom of this page ______________________________________________________________

Recently I was ask by a local Jewelry store to help make a scarecrow for our towns annual Scarecrowfest. They wanted a theme that had something to do with jewelry So, the Legend of the Ottawa Scarecrow was born.

It is windy down town so I build the base out of 2 by 6 lumber to weight it down. A 2 by 4 was added for the scarecrow to be suspended from.

Next I needed to make the body of the scarecrow. It was made from PVC. Once the body was in the pose that I wanted I screwed the joints in place with 1 inch wood screws. A chicken wire frame was added and shaped to fill in the body.

Next I needed a face for the scarecrow. I used an old mask that I had cast and covered it in burlap then coated it with latex. The clothes were added and the scarecrow was attached to the post. I made a new set of latex hands and used wood screws to connect them also. Click here to see how the hands are made. I added PVC pipes to the back to hold the corn stalks.

I added the stone next. It is a piece of 3/4" plywood with two pieces of foam glued to the front of it. To see how to make some great tombstones click here. Once the scarecrow was complete it was time to apply Monster Mud to harden it. For info on how to make MM check out TerrorSyndicate.com.

Once the Mud was dry I applied a sealer to protect it from the weather. My wife carved out the lettering on the stone and the scarecrow was painted black. Light gray highlights were added to make the scarecrow look aged.

Once the Scarecrow was in front of the store the girls added the finishing touches to it. My wife painted a small red dot for the eye. It seemed to follow you as you walked by. That is it. The Scarecrow went over very well. It won first place. To my amusement it was rumored that it was a store bought prop. Which is one reason for this how-to.

The Legend of the Ottawa Scarecrow This is the story of Everett B. Styx Who lived in these parts Around 1806 Everett married Emma Whom some thought a witch A seamstress by trade That old girl could stitch Emma hoped for a diamond On their anniversary day But Everett forgot In the fields he did stay Emma wasn't happy And a high price was paid She stitched up poor Everett A new scarecrow made Now that was the legend But this much is true Diamonds last for ever Wife's tempers can too

Really it was not a hard project at all. You should try one for your self. Think of one hanging in your haunt.

______________________________________________________________ For larger versions of the pictures used in this article, and more awesome prop ideas, be sure to visit his site at HauntersHangout.Com ______________________________________________________________

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