# New Graveyard Project for 2015



## tarpleyg (Nov 4, 2014)

Hi all...I'm new here. Been reading and looking around for about a month now. I've decided that I want to build a realistic graveyard for next year. Rough dimensions now are 16' x 16' with 8-9 gravestones. I am currently working on the fence columns and finished the first one this weekend. I have one more like this one (4') and 5-7 short ones to get done plus all my gravestones and the actual fence pickets. Lots of work!

After much research and decision making, I ended up going with a process for this that SK at The Haunting Grounds shows in a 2-part video tutorial on youtube (



).

This one column took about 20 hours to complete but I think that once I start the short ones, I can knock them out rather quickly.

Tech specs for anyone wanting to know how I built it;

- 2" XPS foam
- Overall height is 48"
- Largest top and bottom pieces are 16" x 16"
- The next largest pieces are 14" x 14"
- There are 2 - 8" x 8" pieces inside the column that I used to secure to. Those are glued to the top and bottom platforms as well
- Everything is glued together with foam board adhesive
- I have about 15 pounds of sand in two gallon freezer bags in the bottom
- The light is wired with 120V with a flicker bulb and I am installing a couple of 120V LED indicator lights in the skull's eye sockets as well

I'd like to give a special thanks to SK for posting his tutorials and also answering a couple of questions I had in a timely manner.

Please let me know what you think.


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## jdubbya (Nov 6, 2005)

I think you knocked it out of the park with this! That looks amazing! Nice weathering/aging, and I like the coach light too. Great job, and welcome to the forum too! You'll find a wealth of information and very helpful members too!


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## The-Hog-Flu (Oct 21, 2013)

Looks great. Looking forward to seeing more from you.


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

You're off to a great start


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## tjc67 (Jul 28, 2013)

Excellent work. I look forward to seeing your other projects


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## tarpleyg (Nov 4, 2014)

Here it is completely finished...on to the next one...ugh!


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## jdubbya (Nov 6, 2005)

Sweet!!


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

The glowing eyes on the skull is a nice extra touch.


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## The-Hog-Flu (Oct 21, 2013)

Yes, Graveyard scenery is such a bore to build, but you're doing a fantastic job with it.


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## tarpleyg (Nov 4, 2014)

Thanks! It will definitely all be worth it once my girls get to see the finished product. They are consumed with all things Halloween...especially the younger one.


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## Pumpkin5 (Aug 8, 2010)

:jol:I like this, very nice design. I agree with the others, the painting technique and aging is very good. I can't wait to see what you do with a whole cemetery. Welcome to the forum!


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## Bone Dancer (Oct 7, 2005)

Yes, very nice work and looking forward to seeing more.


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## Headless (Sep 4, 2011)

WOW I can't wait to see what you come up with for the rest of the graveyard! Nice work!


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## spokanejoe (Sep 16, 2006)

Beautiful. Welcome. Keep up the good work, Looks like we might be able to learn something from you,


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## halstaff (Nov 18, 2009)

Welcome to the forum.
You're doing a great job on these. Looking forward to seeing what else you come up with!


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## booberry crunch (Aug 14, 2014)

Bomb-diggity!


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## tarpleyg (Nov 4, 2014)

Here's the second gate column. I shamelessly stole the name from somebody's suggestion here on a long-forgotten post It's fitting for me...

I forgot to put a cap stone on the second one. No big deal...I'll cut one and paint it up with whatever my next project is. Totally didn't realize that until I put them side by side.

I also learned that when painting stuff like this, you should paint them at the same time. I think the colors would've been more uniform. I may add some more black overspray to the lighter one and see if it'll darken up a bit.


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## elputas69 (Oct 27, 2014)

Very nice! It's a lot of work, but well worth it, especially when you see other people's reactions.


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## tarpleyg (Nov 4, 2014)

I was able to get quite a bit done over the past two weekends. Gate is mostly done and all my fence cloumns are finished.


All Photos-16 by tarpleyg, on Flickr


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## tarpleyg (Nov 4, 2014)

All Photos-14 by tarpleyg, on Flickr


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

Looks great!


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## tarpleyg (Nov 4, 2014)

I was able to get one fence section put together as a prototype. Now I only need 7 more. Painting them is the biggest hassle (I am using cheap flat black spray from Wally World). I also installed finials on my finished gates and bent some of the PVC pipe to give it that lived-in look.



















I will post this drawing I made just in case someone else can use it for inspiration. It always helps me to put my visions to paper.


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## jdubbya (Nov 6, 2005)

Really looking great! I like the graduating height on the fence sections and the bent pvc is a nice touch. This is going to be very impressive when it all comes together!


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

I really like those finials.


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## tarpleyg (Nov 4, 2014)

RoxyBlue said:


> I really like those finials.


Thanks! They ended up being WAY more expensive than I had intended (about 50¢ ea) but they really make the fence stand out.

Greg


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## bobzilla (Nov 13, 2008)

Beautiful work!


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## Grimm Pickins (Nov 4, 2013)

Beautiful work, can't wait to see it up and all ghastly on the night of nights!


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## tarpleyg (Nov 4, 2014)

I put the fence work on the back burner and started working on some tombstones. How do these look? I have maybe 6 more to do.


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## tarpleyg (Nov 4, 2014)

All Photos-7 by tarpleyg, on Flickr


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## tarpleyg (Nov 4, 2014)

All Photos-15 by tarpleyg, on Flickr


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

Good looking stones!


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## Great Pumpkin (Feb 21, 2011)

Awesome job on everything!!!


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## jdubbya (Nov 6, 2005)

The stones are perfect!! They'll be a great compliment to the fence and columns.


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## The Halloween Lady (Aug 18, 2010)

Beautiful work! Everything you've done so far is lovely. I look forward to seeing your whole set up.


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## punkineater (Apr 26, 2014)

Most excellent! Always happy to hear when somebody's kids are into Halloween too :biggrinkin:


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## Headless (Sep 4, 2011)

WOW those stones are amazing. Love the moss in the cracks! Well done.


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## tarpleyg (Nov 4, 2014)

Here's the latest one. To me, ot's just, "Meh..." Not what I was going for.


All Photos-6 by tarpleyg, on Flickr


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