Unobstructed View of the Haunted Tree!

Hey everyone,

Below I posted some new pics of the Hollow but it occurred to me that you don't really get a very good look at the Haunted Tree.

That's not right, so I thought I'd show you a couple pics of the tree without a bridge sitting in front of it.

The backside/street side of the tree (obviously, before we moved it to the Hollow).

The Haunted Tree in a tombstone free graveyard.

And there you go.  Hopefully, all our hard work shows!

Later!

Haunted Tree and Tombstones Finally in the Hollow!

Hey guys,

What a busy weekend.

First, we finished the Haunted Tree and moved it into the Hollow!

This also meant that we were able to get into the attic and pull the rest of the decorations down.  So, we now have the Haunted Tree and the tombstones displayed in the Hollow...

Left of the bridge, looking into the Hollow.

The Haunted Tree sits proudly in the middle of the Hollow.

And, somehow, I managed to not take a picture to the right of the bridge.  I really have no idea how I did that.  I'm certain I took the picture but I just don't have it.

Truthfully, that's alright.  I only took those quick pictures as it was starting to rain.  I plan on getting better pics in the next couple of days.

Plus, now that the tree is done, we move on to the other projects we have in store for this year.

I will keep you posted.

Later!

Mausoleum Is Up and Haunted Tree Update!

Hey guys,

The Mausoleum has finally been set up.

Not sure why I didn't take a closer pic, but there it is, way in the background.

As you can see, still no tombstones.  We really need to get on that!

Plus, we also got the second coat of paint on the Haunted Tree.  There's no need for a pic since it really doesn't look all that different.  The difference will come when we shade the tree, which we hope to finish up the next couple of days.

Of course, I'll have pics when that is done.

Later!

It Rained All Weekend!

Hey guys,

Well, as it says in the heading, it rained all weekend and pretty much made doing any real work on the Hollow impossible.  I wasn't able to put out the tombstones or anything.  :(

We did, however, get the first layer of paint on the tree!

Adding the first coat of paint.

First layer of paint complete!

And that is what we were able to do this weekend.  We're actually excited about painting the tree because for the first time, we aren't using paint brushes.  We got a sprayer, like the one's you paint cars with, and pretty much did the entire first coat in 30 minutes! It would have been a tremendous ordeal to paint by hand.  I'm very hopeful that we can put the second coat on tonight and then finish the tree in the next couple of days.

This is great news because we can then, finally, move the tree out of the garage and get some space back to finish all the other projects we have going.

Nothing like working until the last minute!

Later.

Hollinger Hallow Update!

Hey guys,

Alright.  Been pretty busy working on the tree these last couple of days.  We finally have it coated with a layer of latex and when it dries, we're going to paint it!

There's no point showing a picture since it pretty much still looks like the pictures I've already posted (except for a slight color change).

But, here is a picture...

Ah, the beginning of the Hallow.  It has already started to draw some attention in our neighborhood and we haven't even really started!

I hope to paint the tree tomorrow and work some more in the yard.

I'll let you know how that goes.

Later!

Hollinger Hollow Starting to Emerge!

Hey guys,

I worked into the late hours last night getting the Hollow started.

Literally.  The evening ended with me with a light strapped to my head so I could finish setting up the fencing.  I also have the Bridge and the Hell Hole (minus charred guy) set up. 

But, since it was dark, I wasn't able to get any pictures worth posting. 

I still have to bring out the Mausoleum and setup the tombstones before I can say the foundation of the Hollow is complete.  I'm hoping to do that Friday.  I don't want to run into another situation where I'm wearing a light on my head to finish and Friday is my next day off.

Over the weekend, we also started covering the Haunted Tree in a layer of latex and we continued working on a new prop (of which I'm not ready to start talking about).

So, it was a pretty productive weekend.  I'm hoping to have some photos for you tomorrow.

Later!

Haunted Tree Progressing!

Hey guys!

Finally, the Haunted Tree is sculpted!

It's...

...too big...

...for one picture!

But, we're probably only half done.  Since the tree is foam, we want to seal it up so the plan is to cover it with a layer of latex.  Then, we need to paint it and that will require several layers of paint.  As I said, still a lot to do!

And, since the idea of the tree is display our pumpkins, here is a pumpkin update...

I dare you to say "Staple Pumpkin" in a mirror five times!

So, we have a lot to do.  Especially since this weekend I plan on setting up the Backbone of the Hollow.

For those who don't remember, the Backbone is the foundation of the Hollow.  Fencing, Bridge, Mausoleum, Hell Hole and Tombstones. I hope to do that either tomorrow or Monday.  I'm not sure which since it is supposed to rain this weekend and although it's true to say that rain isn't a show stopper when it comes to setting up the Backbone, it sure does suck!

Updates to follow.

Later!

Tree Moving Along!

Hey guys,

Work on the tree continued this weekend!

Here the trunk is shaved down and the skeleton of the branches has been added.

Here the tree trunk has been partially carved and we started foaming and shaving the branches.

The tree is coming along nicely.  Most of the left branch has been shaved down.  The right branch had just started being foamed when I took the last picture.

This has turned out to be a real labor of love.  Overall, it isn't difficult.  I originally wanted the branches to be removable but at the last minute I decide to attach them permanently to the trunk.  It turned out that the foam was too heavy for the 1/2" PVC and I was afraid if I didn't permanently fix the branches to the truck they might just fall off.  Needless to say, that would not be good.

I guess I'll have to figure out where I'm gonna store this thing at a later time.

For now, we move forward with the tree.

I'll keep you updated!