# My 2011 Tombstones



## Dixie (Feb 18, 2009)

As I have decided to call this the year of the tombstone for myself - (I only made ONE stone last year?!?!) so I thought I would make one place to post pics of them as I am working on them, or finish them. I'm making a realistic goal of 210 stones this year. Ok, not really. I just wish I could, hehe.

So far I only have one "finished", and the others are in process, but just some foam eye candy, as I know how much we all love pictures.

This is the first one. The date is the day that The Omen opened in the US, and the Latin phrase is just the tag line of the movie translated.










Everything from here down is still a work in progress. Some are really obviously not done, haha.

Next, we have a tombstone that I promised for a good friend, using his name. He chose the phrase underneath, while it is hard to see because I tried to letter with my soldiering iron, swearing that if a lot of people on the forums could do it, then *I* could too. Proved myself wrong on that one.










Super special thanks to Frog Queen for the killer swirlie thing at the top. I'm hooked on these things, woman!

Next up, a hand drawn stone that I came up with, thus the crookedness, LOL









And finally my Turner stone.... or rather Uruk-Hai's design that I >stole< ! Thanks so much for posting that pattern, Uruk-Hai, I adored carving this stone.










Special thanks to Haunt Forum member erebus for the white beaded foam columns (and the rest of the truck load of foam!) this years tombstones are all dedicated to YOU my friend!

Last but not least (or even shortest), this is a stone that I found in a cemetery, photoshopped, enlarged at blockposters.com for free, and am going to attempt to build.










Thats a yard stick in front of it, so its 4 feet tall right now - will probably be 
5 or 6 when I get done with the base. Jaybo is already planning on what to make pop out from behind it, LOL


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## Sawtooth Jack (Apr 9, 2011)

Wow, these look great! That second stone really has some terrific texture to it, your friend is sure to be happy with that. And that celtic cross looks like it is actually made of stone. I'm liking the darker shades in the relief areas a lot. Nice work.


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## Ryan Wern (Dec 3, 2009)

Beautiful! Can't wait to see what they all look like after you place them.


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## Spooky1 (Aug 25, 2008)

That's a great set of tombstones. I've always been partial to the Celtic designs.


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## SoCal Scare (Aug 3, 2007)

Great looking tombstones, I would love to make a 6 footer!


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## CreeepyCathy (Mar 28, 2009)

wow! Those look awesome! Especially love the 1st one; and the creativity & uniqueness of the 2nd & 3rd ones are fantastic; the celtic cross is beautiful (I, also, stole it. lol) and that thing you did in the middle of it is absolutley wonderful. I think I put a styrofoam ball in mine. Looking forward to seeing the 6-footer, loving the shape of it.  

btw- my mouth 'bout flopped open when I read you're 'making a realistic goal of 210 stones this year'. LOL 

Again, fantastic job!


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## Bone Dancer (Oct 7, 2005)

Excellent work Dixie. From looking at all that detail you must put alot of time and care into each one. Looking forward to seeing your graveyard.


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## jaege (Aug 23, 2009)

OMG. They look like you are actually working with concrete and stone, hammers and chisels. The depth you have gotten into them is just amazing. By the way, I needed another design to make a second "rocking" tombstone, so I going to be be stealing your newton design. Phenomenal work.


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## Dixie (Feb 18, 2009)

Gosh, thanks for the kind words you guys  

I love using Wood Filler and Monster Mud on my stones after they are carved - the wood filler gives it that texture, then the MM seals it and brings it all together. Another bonus for me is the weight it gives each stone. That, along with the embedded PVC keeps my stones in place through any October wind.


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## debbie5 (Mar 2, 2007)

(envy)


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## niblique71 (Dec 2, 2009)

Great work Dixie!! I'm also partial to the Celtic cross design. Amazing Detail!

Great tip on the wood filler and MM


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## Kymmm (Jul 1, 2011)

GREAT work!! I really, REALLY like the second one and the cross!! Is it true that your goal is 210 tombstones this year?? WOW!!! I have a feeling that you wont want to see another piece of styrofoam after this year.. for a loooong while anyway! lol


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## Frighteners Entertainment (Jan 24, 2006)

nice stones Dix!!


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## IMU (Apr 8, 2009)

Great job Dixie ... love all the shapes and texture.


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## DarkLore (Jan 25, 2009)

Those are great. I prefer the first one. Very original looking. Only 206 more to go.


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

I don't think that celtic cross fits your theme, but it will definitely fit nicely in our yard. I'll send you my address for shipping

You almost got me on the 210 tombstones, too


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## Lady Nyxie (Aug 30, 2006)

What a fantastic job. Keep us posted on the new ones, please.


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## killer20 (Jun 16, 2011)

They all look great


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## nightrideproductions (Oct 25, 2007)

Awesome work so far. Just awesome.


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## Goblin (Jun 3, 2009)

Awesome work Googlie. I love the second one most of all!


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## MapThePlanet (Nov 12, 2010)

The talent and creativity around these parts never ceases to amaze me. They look fantastic!


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## tuck (Oct 27, 2007)

Wow Dixie! You have been busy...my favorites are Damien Thorn since our birthdays are only one day apart  and of course the Celtic cross. The detail is beautiful. Although my new favorite may become this last one you are still working on...that looks like LOTS of work!


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## hpropman (Jul 27, 2008)

Beautiful work Dixie? All they all hand carved or did you use some type of foam cutter. Can you please show us some of your techniques? I am looking for a good project for my foam cutting table and that second stone looks like I may try it.


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## JohnnyAppleseed (Apr 8, 2009)

Dixie, really enjoyed checking out your work. All of them are quite good, however I am drawn to the second one as well. IS it all one piece carving or did you layer pieces onto a base stone? I like the rough texture as well, looks like an old, ornate stone of a well to-do family out of a local cemetery. I'd surround it with more basic stones to make it "pop"!


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## Dark Star (Nov 6, 2007)

Beautiful work.


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## Devil (Nov 10, 2008)

WOW they look so real. You really did a great job on them. I have only made 1 1/2 stones so far and I think I need to re-do my first one now LOL ! Keep them coming I want to see more..!


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## Draik41895 (Oct 25, 2008)

I really need to try this technique, the texture is amazing. Id be lucky to get mine looking half as good as yours! Theyre stunning! Cant wait to see the next one.


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## goneferal (Sep 8, 2010)

You did a great job. I can see that a lot of hard work and talent went into them.


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## Dixie (Feb 18, 2009)

Wow, Thanks again for all of your kind words everyone, you have really made my day.

@hpropman - Everything is hand carved except the columns - they are white beaded styrofoam given to me by Erebus - Oh, and the scroll at the top was an applique. It could definitely be done with a hot wire table though. I am going to do a tiny little video showing the texturing - since I seem to be a bit wordy, and pictures show better than words. Hopefully I will get that finished in the next few days. But basically - cheap Elmers wood filler and monster mud.

@ JA - The Newton stone is in fact layered. From top to bottom: The half moon shape at the top is carved out and the applique was glued in. The center was carved out, leaving the four square cross intact. The two end caps were later glued in, as the area was originally going to have dates running vertically, but I ditched that idea and put those funny little curved rectangles in just to take up the void. The columns I totally cheated on those of course - The stone with the wording on it was glued on after it was lettered, to give it some more dimension.

Ok, as for what I got done over this long holiday weekend? Well....... I started on the monster. Went from this.....










to THIS....










And just that small amount took forEVER! It's only the first plate, or layer. After I finish all of the carving on the first piece, I will trace it about 5 or 6 times onto white beaded styrofoam to make it thicker. Then it will be gluing, texturing, and painting. I bet this one takes a couple of weeks since I will only get to work on it a few times a week. But it IS very interesting to work on!!


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## fick209 (Aug 31, 2009)

amazing job on all of the stones! Really looking forward to progress pics of this monster stone you have in progress!


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## The Halloween Lady (Aug 18, 2010)

Wow Dixie those are rockin! I have yet to make a stone. I need a kind of special one for this years theme, so I think I am going to have to give it try. Good job!!!


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## PirateLady (Jul 23, 2010)

Great Job on these stones.


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## bobzilla (Nov 13, 2008)

Kick-a$$ stones Dixie!!! Beautiful


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## Uruk-Hai (Nov 4, 2006)

WOW! Those are looking really great!! You're going all-out this year. I really like them all but the Newton one is awesome! I love the texture and sculptural details - really makes it stand out. Of course I also LOVE your celtic cross!! I think it's great that others are doing my design and no you did not "steal" it, given that I got my inspiration in turn from the crosses made by Merlin at Haunters Hangout and Casa de Sade. We all learn from each other - that's what makes this hobby great!  I'll be looking forward to seeing the progress on your next one - it looks like another masterpiece.


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## flesh1031 (Jun 28, 2011)

These look great! Working with multiple materials to make the illusion that it was actually only one material used is a great talent to have. Especially with what everyone on this forum does! Great work!


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## buckaneerbabe (Jun 5, 2007)

Beautiful work Dixie!


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## trishaanne (Aug 20, 2005)

Awesome stones. I am partial to Damien Thorne, especially since all the headstones in my cemetery are movie related. Mine are all actual people that have starred in horror movies (Bela Lugosi, Claude Rains, etc., with their actual date of birth and death) This would fit right in though. I may have to "borrow" your idea for the next time we set up the yard.


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## spideranne (Jul 17, 2006)

You've been busy. They look awesome.


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## Dixie (Feb 18, 2009)

Well, I'm kind of all over the place while working on these, so I continue to have a bunch of stones in various levels of completedness.

Jaybo took these pictures, and he is leaps and bounds better than me at photography. The first two are the texture on the Mr. Turner stone.



















This is the first coat of paint on Elizabeth Abner.










And these last two are more work on the Beast. I don't know what the name on this one will be, but I'm thinking it will be something that loosely translates to "labor intensive". Yes, I know there is a hole in it, but it will have another sheet of foam behind it, leaving the bottom of the oval empty to be filled in with roses, or skulls, or both. I can't make up my mind.



















I have already cut out the layers that go behind it - it sits at 4 feet thick right now - Jaybo is trying to talk me into going thicker because it will be so tall, to make it look proportionate. Sometimes I never know where I'm going with something until I accidentally carve it!

*I haven't glued the layers together yet, because it is much easier to carve on a 1" thick piece, rather than a 4. But I will make sure and photograph how I texture them.


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## Allen H (Feb 13, 2010)

Awesome stones, great job and dedication. I can only imagine the time you put into them.


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

Dixie said:


> And these last two are more work on the Beast. I don't know what the name on this one will be, but I'm thinking it will be something that loosely translates to "labor intensive"


How about "Opus Magnificus", which is Latin for "grand work"?


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## Dixie (Feb 18, 2009)

Haha Roxy, thats awesome - I adore latin


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## IMU (Apr 8, 2009)

Love all the great shapes .... very nice work!


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## deanhunt (May 27, 2008)

Beautiful work! You can always tell the handmade ones from the store bought ones.


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## Spooky56 (Jul 31, 2009)

Wow! I love them all! The "Beast" will definitely be a sight to see! It wasn't until that last picture (next to the fence and taller than the garage!!) that I grasped how BIG it was!! WOW! I have GOT to see your haunt this year!! Kudos!!


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## Dixie (Feb 18, 2009)

Thank you all so much for watching - this is the first time that I have ever done a WIP thread, and its kind of fun to go back and see where they started 

Spooky56, you had better slow down long enough to say hi when you stop by this time!!!


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## Dixie (Feb 18, 2009)

Ok, I get a night off thanks to the Hauntcast BlogTV extravaganza tonight!!

She finally got a name, so I gotta stop calling it the Beast. Still gonna think of it as the Beast though, lol.

Here's the name, and matching pattern from around the oval. Sorry I take crooked pictures


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## niblique71 (Dec 2, 2009)

MUST CARVE FOAM... MUST CARVE FOAM.... THis has become an obsession for you hasn't it??? Just like it is for me. You are really creating some impressive stones here my dear. Jaybo MUST be Impressed!!! Love 'em all, and Keep on "Carving Foam"


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

Beautiful job, Ms D.


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## Dixie (Feb 18, 2009)

Thanks so much Roxy! And sssssshhh Niblique! I was hoping Jaybo wouldnt NOTICE my slight addiction to pink foam. I keep making him park in the front yard so he wont see the garage


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## BarBWire (Jul 14, 2011)

*drops jaw* those are amazing! Tombstones are one of my favorite halloweenie things^_^ i love making them too!


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## Daphne (Oct 18, 2006)

Oh my GOSH! Those look fantastic! It makes me want to put mine out on trash day and start over. How in the world did you do the letters?

Mine look handmade also except mine look like they were done by a 2 year old!

Really cool!


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## Bethene (Jan 19, 2008)

wow, Dixie, those are so beautiful! you did a amazing job on them!! when you say you used elmers wood glue and monster mud, did you mean mixed together and used like paint?

LOL, Daphne


> Mine look handmade also except mine look like they were done by a 2 year old!


 i hear ya, mine look like that compared to Dixie's also!!!


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## Dixie (Feb 18, 2009)

Oh hush, Daphne and Bethene! I have some really cheesy tombstones in my graveyard that I made when short on time. The only reason this one is turning out is because of the time I'm able to put into it - no special talent at all! Believe me, I will kick out a few crap stones in desperation around September 15th, LOL

As for the wood glue and monster mud - no, I don't mix them together, sorry I was unclear. I usually adhere my foam with elmers wood glue - but with this stone, I'm using white beaded foam because I need so much of it - and am finding I'm having a HARD time adhering white beaded foam!!! My normal liquid nails at through it (whereas it doesnt do that on pink) and spray adhesive ate it (again, spray adhesive works great on the pink) and the wood glue never dried. Finally, I stole some of Jaybo's gorilla glue, and thats holding.

So to make a long story short - when I glue pink foam to pink foam, i just use wood glue. The monster mud came into play because I use it to conceal the seam between the two sheets, and that gives it an even stronger bond.


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## Dixie (Feb 18, 2009)

Ok I have sanded my overall shape, and am now ready to seal the seams.

















As you can see above, I still have gaps, but it is glued securely enough that I am just filling it in.

It's just like frosting a cake. I use a plastic putty knife. You can still see the seams, but I can go over anything that bothers me with a thin 2nd coat of wood filler.








But this is where my initial texture comes from.

















Never mind the paint cans holding it down, that has nothing to do with the wood filler. I just never removed them after using them as clamps while the glue dried. At this point it is taking up the entire length of my workbench, I'm not moving it ALOT, lol.

So now I could sand it smooth, or leave it textured. Then I "paint" on a coat of monster mud, thats tomorrow night!


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## bobzilla (Nov 13, 2008)

great job Dixie


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## IMU (Apr 8, 2009)

Looking good ... thats the same filler I use.


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## Death Wraith (Mar 23, 2006)

Thanks for sharing the details of your building techniques. Your first pictures gave me one of those "how'd she do that" moments. I love that! But I'm more impressed with how you combine the designs/patterns and shapes on the stones. Unfortunately I don't have that artistic eye. I can copy things, maybe adapt someone else's ideas a little, but not that great on designing complex layouts like you do. Don't sell yourself short on your talent. Many of us would love to be able to do what you do.


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## Dixie (Feb 18, 2009)

What a lovely compliment, Death Wraith, it is much appreciated 

I haven't posted the BEAST in a few weeks because it is not turning out the way I want it to, and in true Dixie style, I got heart broken and set it aside for a bit. I started again on it last night, having Jaybo set up the blue lighting in the drive way for me to paint by, trying to make it look best at night. I will try to get him to take some pictures tomorrow so I can post. 

I have also started a few new ones, and will be posting those as well. 40 consecutive days of 100+ temps in Dallas have made me S-L-O-W, lol.


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## JohnnyAppleseed (Apr 8, 2009)

Whoa, didn't know you were turning this into a WIP thread! Great job, but holy cow, you are a tombstone fiend this season my dear! Same filler I use as well, love a good, cheap wood filler like Elmers!


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## Acid PopTart (Oct 29, 2007)

I'm late/catching up but wow! Go girl! I'm quite impressed with the detail and how real these look. You've got skill.... seriously!

Sidenote: my husband's name is Damion (14 years together tomorrow!) and he was named for the priest in the Exorcist, seriously. When The Omen came out, he was in high school.... Catholic school to boot.... oh the comments. Probably the dark hair, angry face, dark clothing probably didn't help at all.


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## VillaHaunter (Jul 13, 2011)

Great Looking stones. 

I made wood tombstones one year, placed them in the yard they did look good. The house spirits were not happy, I didn't get a good nights sleep for 3 nights. Gave the stones to a friend, they look great in his yard, and I can sleep.


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## HalloweenZombie (Jul 22, 2007)

You won't find those stones at iParty! Fantastic!


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## Dixie (Feb 18, 2009)

Before I update tonight, I just had to say - APT, that is the craziest thing I have ever heard, named for one horror flick, then lived through another even more infamous rising of his name 14 years later! I love that story! And Happy Anniversary!

Thanks again to everyone for the kind comments, even to Villa, whom I think just cursed me to an October with no sleep while these are in my yard, LOL 

Tonights pics are blue, because of the time I night i just took them, and because I used my camera phone. Jaybo got called out of town suddenly, and I forgot to make him take some decent pics. But I think you will get the gist of where the beast is right now.

She still doesnt have her big base built yet, which I think will do a lot for her proportions.

Here you can see where the top of it comes up to, comparing it to the gate latch and hinges...


















And a close up of the 4 million paper mache skull casts that Jaybo made for me (I married a Halloween angel, I tell ya!)









And one showing the thickness. I still need to do more mud, to cover up the seams a little better.


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

Holy crap! Look at all those little skulls!


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## IMU (Apr 8, 2009)

WOW ... just, freakin ... WOW!


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## Spooky Dave (May 12, 2011)

Looks like the smell of "icky burned ick" was worth it after all!


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## Dixie (Feb 18, 2009)

Spooky Dave said:


> Looks like the smell of "icky burned ick" was worth it after all!


And in THAT moment, it was found, that my *own* words... bit me in the butt.

And just for clarification - yes, the icky burned ick was very, very useful indeed.


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## Spooky Dave (May 12, 2011)

Looks great, Dixie, I'm going to have to try the paper mache casting technique for sure, now. Only, my spouse is not as Halloween-obsessed as you, so I may have to set up the box fans ahead of time! 

Great job on the stone!


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## cerinad (Jun 23, 2008)

Wow those are some great stones.. I especially like the Beast..by far my favorite..great job!!!


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## Acid PopTart (Oct 29, 2007)

Hahaha!!! We were doing "art night" with some friends and discussing movies and my friend was talking about The Omen and she was like "YOU'VE NEVER SEEN THE OMEN?!" and Damion had to explain his distaste of being relentlessly compared to the film in high school.

And thanks girl! 14 years and we've not killed each other! I repeat the words of Cleopatra to him, " "Fool! Don't you see now that I could have poisoned you a hundred times had I been able to live without you."

*Now to the latest Annie tombstone: DAMN GIRL!!!!! YOU ROCK THE DETAILS I LOVE IT!!!*

That is some amazing work.... so many may not know, I'm actually attempting filming my first horror film, we need a cemetery, I think we'll just grab cast and crew and visit your front yard, hahahahaha! <3


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