# Front Yard Fright 2010



## Front Yard Fright

So I figured I might as well start this know before I get much further into planning things and all that. As some of you may know, I was actually planning on trying to get a commercial haunt up and going this year, but things aren't really working out as I hoped they would. We were actually contacted by a gentleman and his wife about moving out to his farm last September.
He actually just moved into the area and started a pumpkin patch there on his farm. He seemed like a very genuine guy and really seemed excited to have us out there. He showed us around his property, showing us a large garage he wanted to do a haunted house in. I was ECSTATIC to finally have something work out for us!

We talked throughout the season about business and what not. He was quite busy with his pumpkin patch as must as I was with the haunted house. He ended up coming over one night to drop some pumpkins off for our kids day (we had free pumpkin carving stuff, it was great!) and we ended up talking for a few hours out in the bitter cold. We talked about how things would work out as far as us moving out there and all that jazz. I explained to him that I wanted complete control of the haunt, and didn't want to have to follow what he wanted to do and all that. He completely understood, and explained that with the pumpkin patch, he wouldn't even have time to deal with the haunt, so there were no worries there.

He then asked if I was 100% sure I wanted to go out there and I said something along the lines of "It's already October and I've got to put it somewhere!" And I think he took that as "I don't really have any option" or something like that because he then said "Well I don't want you to get into something you're not sure about" or something like that. Ever since that conversation he seemed kind of standoff-ish and leery about us moving out there.

We continued to talk and he agreed to let us store some of our things out there after Halloween was over because we had added a brand new fun house haunt and we had a full storage unit as it was!

We didn't talk much during the haunting season as we were both very very busy. He came through the haunt once or twice with his wife and seemed really excited about it. He told me what I did well and what I needed to work on (He actually used to run a haunt with his brother a few years ago, and knows a lot about the industry and all that. - Another plus!)

After Halloween was over, and we began to take things down, we rented a large UHAUL to move all the haunt stuff to our storage units. We rented it for two days, and we left all the wall panels aside so we could move them out to the farm. (They take up the most room and are easier to move.)

During the first day of moving I gave him a call to see if we could figure out where we could put things and what not. No answer. I leave a message, asking for him to give me a call back so we can get things figured out because we weren't going to have the UHAUL for much longer. The next day I give him another call in the afternoon. Still no answer. Leave another message, and we worked on getting everything else into storage. He finally gave me a call back later that night and explained that his father had just had a heart attack a few days prior so he was going through some stuff and they were in and out of the hospital visiting and that's why he wasn't able to return my calls. I told him I understood and what not... But I gotta get this stuff gone - and soon! He said something along the lines of "I think it's a little too early in the decision process to have you move things out here" or something like that. I was thinking to myself "YOU CONTACTED ME!!!" but I didn't say anything. I explained that we simply didn't have the room to put these walls anywhere else, and that I was planning on moving them out there as we had talked about before. He understood what a pickle I was in, and agreed to let us store the walls out there.

We loaded up the UHAUL PACKED FULL of walls and drove the 15 min drive to the farm. He showed us to a little plot he wanted the walls and we unloaded them. He even lent a hand and helped stack them! It was great to see that things could possibly still work out. After unloading everything him and I talked for a bit and I told him some of the things I'd like to do on the farm. I then mentioned how great it was going to be to be in the large garage he showed us when we were first out there. He seemed somewhat shocked by that, and said that we weren't going to be able to go into the garage because of all the stuff he needed to store in it and what not... I was completely dumbfounded! Shortly after we had agreed that with how stressful things were for him, and how busy I was with Halloween coming down and Christmas going up, that we would talk about things after the holidays.

Now here's the jerker... I haven't heard from him since. I've been so busy with school, and now, work, I haven't been able to call him. And frankly, I fear what will come from the conversation so I'm in no rush! In the back of my mind, I know we aren't moving out there, considering how flaky the guy is, and how we just simply can't afford all the expenses that come with running a pro haunt. So for right now, I've been making plans to stay home yet again. -sigh-

I'm not very happy about it, but at least I'll be able to still do what I love doing. I've already contacted the city and am awaiting a reply about us still doing it at the house. Last year there was a HUGE deal about the haunt, but the city let me do my thing. I just want to get everything figured out now before I start getting to work on things and what not.

Since I nearly killed myself last year with how large of a haunt we put together, I'm thinking we may downsize and focus more on the finer details of the haunt. I'm wanting to do a larger fun house and have a lot more to it. I'm toying around with the possibility of doing another haunt in the garage OR turning it into a cast/crew area so the kids that help with the haunt don't tear up our house while the haunt is open. (My poor parents!)
I'm hoping that I'll be able to save some money up to get a location for 2011. I just don't think I could do it this year with school and work. Who knows what will happen!

ANYWAY, now that you're all caught up... I'm planning on using this thread to update you on the progress of Front Yard Fright 2010! I've got some ideas brewing in my head and I'm just now getting time to get them put onto paper. My first project for 2010 is going to be a laughing clown prop that will sit out front of the fun house. You can read all about that in the thread I started here:
http://hauntforum.com/showthread.php?t=19961

I'm also hoping to upgrade our large clown facade for the fun house. I've come up with a drawing of one possible way of doing it, I'm not 100% sure I love it, so I'm looking around for some ideas of other possible ways of doing it. Here's a picture of the first one I put together:









I don't know If I like how sinister it looks as I kind of want to make the fun house seem more like an actual fun house rather than a haunted house fun house... if that makes sense! I want to to seem more like it was an actual fun house at one time, until evil clowns showed up and started cutting people into little pieces... Get it!? .

I will be scrapping the cemetery and probably the house as well to make room for the fun house expansion. I'd like to hopefully cover the whole side yard with one giant haunt! Depending on how things work, we may still do the TOXICORP haunt in the garage, OR do 'the house' in the garage... Decisions decisions!

Anyway, now that I'm sure half of you have stopped reading this by now, I'll end this post! I'll be sure to keep you all updated as I continue to get things figured out!

Thanks for reading!
:jol:.


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## Warrant2000

The ups and downs of planning sure can lead to some restless nights. Be assured that you have the skills, talent, and resources to make the haunt you want!


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## jdubbya

If I were you, I'd arrange to retrieve my wall panels sometime soon. The way things have unraveled with this guy, I don't think I'd want any of my stuff on his property. JMO


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## Front Yard Fright

Warrant2000 said:


> The ups and downs of planning sure can lead to some restless nights. Be assured that you have the skills, talent, and resources to make the haunt you want!


They sure can! And thanks!



jdubbya said:


> If I were you, I'd arrange to retrieve my wall panels sometime soon. The way things have unraveled with this guy, I don't think I'd want any of my stuff on his property. JMO


Only thing is, I have nowhere to put them! Plus, they're still under a foot or two of snow I'm sure!
.


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## fick209

Too bad that whole thing fell apart for you, but better that it happened now instead of say August, Sept or even Oct. Your 2010 plans sound like a lot of fun, I'll enjoy reading your updates and seeing your progress throughout the year! Good luck!


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## Erebus

My neighbor did something like that for this past halloween. He did a circus theme and painted a big clown for the entry. He ran out of time so the details are the best. But he just used 2x4's to make the frame and covered it with plywood and painted that.


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## joker

Sorry to hear it about the possible opportunity. I can relate to the storage issue, but I'd really consider trying to find a way to go get those panels ASAP. 

I figured up last year that for us paying for storage was going to be about the same as re-building the panels. If the cost was going to be the same I'd rather not have to re-do the work. 

As flaky as this guy sounds he may have already claimed ownership to them. I wouldn't be surprised to hear that he has put them up in his garage and is building his own haunt with them.

As far as your 2010 idea I like it! Some day I'll do an evil carnival theme. An old distressed entry could be very creepy, especially if its distressed and has some vines and moss growing. One thing to think about is why did the attraction close? What brought on the evil clowns? Might help come up with ideas.


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## Front Yard Fright

I just got started on Flickr last night and I just now uploaded some pictures of some recent purchases I've made for FYF 2010. Check them out below.

New Purchases - a set on Flickr


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## Psyc0 Walrus

Wow man that sounds like a crap load of work lol thats the first big thread i ever read during the time i've been on here lol Going pro sounds like a big deal too if i were you i would take this slow and take time to think about it and maybe find a better location then this farm lol Maybe look for a house that you can rent out for a month or two? That may work but hey if you do that remember your taking advice from a 14 year old haha also I love clowns XD


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## tot13

I'm not sure I agree that the deal is off just yet. He's obviously had a stressful holiday season and may need some time to get his life back in order. And he may be thinking of all the potential complications of having a haunt run on his property. If you're tactful with the way you handle it, you may be able to ease his concerns and everything could still work out for you.

I think you were dead-on in letting him know up-front that you would run the haunt your way with no interference. But what about him? Are you willing to compensate him for the use of his property? Do you typically buy event insurance to protect your landowner whether the haunt is at your family's home or somewhere else? What about security or a law-enforcement presence, bathroom facilities, electrical needs, exterior lighting, and parking? Letting him know that you are thinking ahead and protecting him and his property by taking care of all these things may go a long way in getting you into your new haunt. 

I'm no expert by any stretch of the imagination, but I have run a volunteer fund-raiser haunted trail for four years with a staff of about 100 people each year, and on the property of two different landowners. I would be more than happy to share what I've learned with you if you feel it could help you in any way.


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## Front Yard Fright

tot13 said:


> I'm not sure I agree that the deal is off just yet. He's obviously had a stressful holiday season and may need some time to get his life back in order. And he may be thinking of all the potential complications of having a haunt run on his property. If you're tactful with the way you handle it, you may be able to ease his concerns and everything could still work out for you.
> 
> I think you were dead-on in letting him know up-front that you would run the haunt your way with no interference. But what about him? Are you willing to compensate him for the use of his property? Do you typically buy event insurance to protect your landowner whether the haunt is at your family's home or somewhere else? What about security or a law-enforcement presence, bathroom facilities, electrical needs, exterior lighting, and parking? Letting him know that you are thinking ahead and protecting him and his property by taking care of all these things may go a long way in getting you into your new haunt.
> 
> I'm no expert by any stretch of the imagination, but I have run a volunteer fund-raiser haunted trail for four years with a staff of about 100 people each year, and on the property of two different landowners. I would be more than happy to share what I've learned with you if you feel it could help you in any way.


The main reasoning I know it's off is because like I said, I simply can't afford anything right now. Being a college student, working at a restaurant, I simply can't afford all the expenses that come with running a haunt. I had plans on creating a business plan and go into detail about all the expense entailed, but that's just not realistic for me right now.

Over the weekend I met with some friends of mine from Minnesota who are looking to start a commercial haunt. We've known each other for a few years now and we get along great. They approached me about starting on haunt where they would take care of all the location aspects, leaving me to just put the haunt together. We are hoping to get something figured out by 2011.

Until then, we'll see how this year goes.
:jol:.


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## trentsketch

I have a few suggestion for your clown sign in the front. If you want to go with a less menacing clown, you could plan out a really fun and friendly looking clown to start with. Then, you can figure out where you can break it apart a bit just to make it look a little off. For example, if you have a large smile as the entranceway with a big set of perfect white teeth on top, you could black out some like the entire tooth fell off the facade. You could yellow out the teeth like the paint faded in the sun. You could even do them up with a crackling technique (dark base color, crackling medium on top, white paint lightly applied on top) to look like the paint is falling off from disrepair.

What about building the face facade elements out (like this funhouse facade: 2-D elements are actually sticking out from the house, like the shutters and climber), like the eyebrows, hair, nose, or lips, and have a major piece unhinged from it's intended position? The eyebrows, for example, would be designed to ideally look like this ( ^^ ), but would be hanging from your entryway like this ( <^ ), partly covering the eye and cheek on the side that's hanging. 

Good luck with wherever you're hosting your haunt.


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## Front Yard Fright

trentsketch said:


> I have a few suggestion for your clown sign in the front. If you want to go with a less menacing clown, you could plan out a really fun and friendly looking clown to start with. Then, you can figure out where you can break it apart a bit just to make it look a little off. For example, if you have a large smile as the entranceway with a big set of perfect white teeth on top, you could black out some like the entire tooth fell off the facade. You could yellow out the teeth like the paint faded in the sun. You could even do them up with a crackling technique (dark base color, crackling medium on top, white paint lightly applied on top) to look like the paint is falling off from disrepair.
> 
> What about building the face facade elements out (like this funhouse facade: 2-D elements are actually sticking out from the house, like the shutters and climber), like the eyebrows, hair, nose, or lips, and have a major piece unhinged from it's intended position? The eyebrows, for example, would be designed to ideally look like this ( ^^ ), but would be hanging from your entryway like this ( <^ ), partly covering the eye and cheek on the side that's hanging.
> 
> Good luck with wherever you're hosting your haunt.


I never even thought of that! Thanks for the idea!
.


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## Front Yard Fright

Well I'm hoping to FINALLY start on something this weekend. The friends that said they would help me with Rico are having some plumbing problems with their house so they are trying to get that figured out before we start on any projects or anything like that.

Anyway, in search of new ideas for the haunt this year I decided that I wanted to attempt to do a hallway full of funhouse mirrors however to actually buy them would be insanely costly. I looked into how to make them yourself and I found this link: http://www.carnivalmirror.com/ but even those are $30.00+! So I did a eBay search for reflective milar sheeting as that looks like what the mirrors are made of... I found a 50" by 50' roll of the stuff for something like $30.00 shipped to my door!

I just received the roll in the mail yesterday and I'm thinking about starting to build the frames for them this weekend. I've got a pretty good idea as to how I'll make them, just need to take a trip to Menard's to get the supplies.

Hopefully I'll get something started and I'll post pictures as soon as I do!
.


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## Front Yard Fright

So I saw The Crazies over the weekend (ended up going to see it again tonight!) because I REALLY liked it! If you haven't seen it, I HIGHLY recommend doing so. Also, DO NOT watch online previews for it. It will give away some really good scares you normally wouldn't be expecting!

Anyways, with this, I am really thinking about turning the haunt completely 180 and focus on a whole haunt themed on this movie. With that said, I'm a little leary of doing so as I've already got a couple hundred dollars invested in the clown haunt theme. I would normally do just two haunts... But the city is giving me grief and is limiting me to 750 sq ft of outdoor haunt space. (250 sq ft less than last year) so I'm not sure two haunts could be done.

What do you guys think I should do? Just stay with the fun house theme or go with the newer, less predictable, Crazies theme?


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## scarymovie

I want to see that film as well is it very scary I love scary films!


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## Spartan005

Front Yard Fright said:


> So I saw The Crazies over the weekend (ended up going to see it again tonight!) because I REALLY liked it! If you haven't seen it, I HIGHLY recommend doing so. Also, DO NOT watch online previews for it. It will give away some really good scares you normally wouldn't be expecting!
> 
> Anyways, with this, I am really thinking about turning the haunt completely 180 and focus on a whole haunt themed on this movie. With that said, I'm a little leary of doing so as I've already got a couple hundred dollars invested in the clown haunt theme. I would normally do just two haunts... But the city is giving me grief and is limiting me to 750 sq ft of outdoor haunt space. (250 sq ft less than last year) so I'm not sure two haunts could be done.
> 
> What do you guys think I should do? Just stay with the fun house theme or go with the newer, less predictable, Crazies theme?


haha... I had the same thing happen two years ago. I watched pirates of the caribbean and wanted to do pirates. then I watched dawn of the dead and wanted to do zombies. and then I saw people's pics on this site and wanted to do a haunted mansion. give it a week or so and then decide imo...


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## Zurgh

Yes!!!! Let a muse carry you for a moment...but a short one. Look at the plan you had... sleep on it... Look at it a second time... Think... What do you want vs. what you have.... Think some more... Decide & focus on that. Give up one to 2011, save the other for this year!!!... Flexibility can be good... Mush is bad... Not ALL or nothing, but some & something!!! Divided can destroy your own plans!!!


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## Front Yard Fright

Needless to say, things for this years haunt are moving at a snail's pace. I've been planning a lot of small projects and get one started, only to stop 1/2 way and start another.

I'm just in a "funk" right now and not feeling the Halloween spirit yet.

With school and work, I've been quite busy and haven't been able to do much of anything. Also, with us still not being sure where the haunt is going to be, I'm just unsure of what I should do.

I had come to the conclusion that finding a location for this year just wasn't going to be able to happen. Not only because we couldn't find a building, but because I simply just don't have a lot of money right now to open a commercial haunt.

Anyway, I had my mind set that I was going to have the haunt at home and have been making some different plans and layouts for the haunt. Well, it had come into conversation with my dad the other night about how, since we don't have a location for this year, I would just do the haunt at the house... He was less than amused.

However, it was kind of a given that if we weren't to find a location, we would be back at home - he understood. Mom, on the other hand, did not. She had mentioned taking a year off and I told her I just couldn't do that. This is the ONLY thing I do. I think about it every single day. There's no way I could just NOT do it.

Anyway, I guess dad ended up looking at a building located just down the street from us. It's an old grocery store with a bowling alley in one half and a Dollar General in 1/4 of the remaining half. I believe it's got around 6,000 sq feet and has electrical and everything. Dad really liked it and is considering renting the space out for July-November so we could do the haunt in there.

It's still up in the air, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed.


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## Devils Chariot

Hey FYF, I'm driving over to your house to punch you!

I spent all weekend drawing ideas for my carnival themed haunt, and the entrance is 90% like yours. WAR!!!!!

LOL, you better stick to your drawing! I'll just have to up my design game to compete!

I'm digging this thread too!

EDIT: Good luck with gettin your stuff back and finding a new location. Don't get discouraged!


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## DeathTouch

The only problem with this thread is that it makes me not want to send in my haunt video to hauntforum for next year. My God! How can I compete. Don't know how you do it. The only thing I can pull out of my head is earwax. LOL


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## Devils Chariot

DeathTouch said:


> The only problem with this thread is that it makes me not want to send in my haunt video to hauntforum for next year. My God! How can I compete. Don't know how you do it. The only thing I can pull out of my head is earwax. LOL


Pull yourself together DT, and get back in the game!


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## Spookie

Zach, totally understand thinking about planning something and then feeling like it's so much a part of you that you really have to follow through. And you do a great haunt by all the videos and pics I've seen of your work over the past few years. 

Question for you. Aside from your love of haunting, are you thinking of doing the haunt to recoup money or make it into a money-making venture? The reason I ask is because if it's for the love of doing the haunt, have you considered seeing if you can run it as a charity benefit for one year? Maybe a worthwhile charity would help find a place for you to store your setups and provide you with haunt space come closer to the season. A win for them by donations raised and a win for you by giving you a temp home for your setups and haunt space for the season. You certainly have a portfolio to show prospective groups you might partner with and I'm betting with the economy the way it is some donor/sponsor for some charity most likely has real estate connections with just the right spot for your haunt. You'd also get more exposure because of the charity; and so when you do have the funds and place to do a pro-haunt you'd have a larger pool of past haunt-goers who might return to something you sponsor. In our area, some of the local high schools have started doing haunts to help raise money for class project. You might also get additional volunteer help from some of the charity workers. Just a thought.


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## DeathTouch

Devils Chariot said:


> Pull yourself together DT, and get back in the game!


Thank you sir, may I have another? LOL. You are right, I needed a swift kick! Have to focus power! I know, DT too much tv. LOL


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## tot13

Spookie said:


> Zach, totally understand thinking about planning something and then feeling like it's so much a part of you that you really have to follow through. And you do a great haunt by all the videos and pics I've seen of your work over the past few years.
> 
> Question for you. Aside from your love of haunting, are you thinking of doing the haunt to recoup money or make it into a money-making venture? The reason I ask is because if it's for the love of doing the haunt, have you considered seeing if you can run it as a charity benefit for one year? Maybe a worthwhile charity would help find a place for you to store your setups and provide you with haunt space come closer to the season. A win for them by donations raised and a win for you by giving you a temp home for your setups and haunt space for the season. You certainly have a portfolio to show prospective groups you might partner with and I'm betting with the economy the way it is some donor/sponsor for some charity most likely has real estate connections with just the right spot for your haunt. You'd also get more exposure because of the charity; and so when you do have the funds and place to do a pro-haunt you'd have a larger pool of past haunt-goers who might return to something you sponsor. In our area, some of the local high schools have started doing haunts to help raise money for class project. You might also get additional volunteer help from some of the charity workers. Just a thought.


This is an excellent suggestion. Doing your haunt as a fund-raiser has tons of perks plus the feeling you've helped someone. One of our "charities" is our local sheriff's dept.'s Fallen Officers Fund. Guess who provides free security for our haunted trail?


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## joker

tot13 said:


> This is an excellent suggestion. Doing your haunt as a fund-raiser has tons of perks plus the feeling you've helped someone. One of our "charities" is our local sheriff's dept.'s Fallen Officers Fund. Guess who provides free security for our haunted trail?


I agree. As a lot of you know the charity haunt I did last year opened up a great opportunity for me to put a 5000 sq. ft haunt together that I would have never been able to accomplish on my own.

Specifically event insurance, location, free/discounted advertisement and volunteers are things that I wouldn't have been able to accomplish on my own. I have developed a really good relationship with last years volunteers that are hooked and will be a great asset in the future regardless if I continue charity work or venture out on my own. Not to mention the exposure, experience, and knowledge I gained from it.


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## tot13

joker said:


> . . . I have developed a really good relationship with last years volunteers that are hooked and will be a great asset in the future regardless if I continue charity work or venture out on my own. Not to mention the exposure, experience, and knowledge I gained from it.


Yep, I consider it all part of my free, hands-on education of running a haunt should I ever decide to leave fund-raising.


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## Front Yard Fright

I had actually full intentions of donating all of my proceeds to a local human society. However, they have no location or anything like that. They do, however, have land they are planning on using in the years to come.

I've thought about doing a fundraiser for Make A Wish or some other larger charity but I was just afraid as to who would get what, who would pay for what, and all that stuff. I guess I never really thought too much about it, but I guess it's one way I could go.

Thanks for all the advice and support guys... It truly means a lot.
.


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## joker

Front Yard Fright said:


> I had actually full intentions of donating all of my proceeds to a local human society. However, they have no location or anything like that. They do, however, have land they are planning on using in the years to come.
> 
> I've thought about doing a fundraiser for Make A Wish or some other larger charity but I was just afraid as to who would get what, who would pay for what, and all that stuff. I guess I never really thought too much about it, but I guess it's one way I could go.
> 
> Thanks for all the advice and support guys... It truly means a lot.
> .


I would suggest finding a local charity or local chapter for a larger charity. I worked with Habitat for Humanity last year and with their connections and albeit limited budget we were able to pull it off. Agreement was pretty much if they would get the space, some materials, cover the insurance and take care of the utilities and some marketing I'd handle the build, actors and actually running the haunt. We ended up spending about 4500 of their money and brought in a little over $10,000 in 3 weekends charging only $5/head with the exception of Halloween and we charged $8.

Local population is only about 15,000 peeps.

I didn't make any money, but was able to convince them to put some money back for 2010.


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## tot13

joker said:


> I would suggest finding a local charity or local chapter for a larger charity. I worked with Habitat for Humanity last year and with their connections and albeit limited budget we were able to pull it off. Agreement was pretty much if they would get the space, some materials, cover the insurance and take care of the utilities and some marketing I'd handle the build, actors and actually running the haunt. We ended up spending about 4500 of their money and brought in a little over $10,000 in 3 weekends charging only $5/head with the exception of Halloween and we charged $8.
> 
> Local population is only about 15,000 peeps.
> 
> I didn't make any money, but was able to convince them to put some money back for 2010.


Well done, Joker! Awesome numbers and for a good cause. I know you must be proud of your success. I hope this year exceeds your expectations.


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## Front Yard Fright

Joker, How did you get in contact with Habitat for Humanity?


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## joker

Oddly enough they approached me for some web design work, and in casual conversation I just asked them about their means of fund raising and if they would be interested in possibly doing a haunted house. 

Most charities are always looking for ways to generate additional funds so they were almost immediately excited that I had even mentioned it. I told them of what I had done at my apt in previous years, the amount of props and equipment, as well as the number of people who had helped in the past. One thing led to another and The Asylum was born. 

There were struggles, frustrations and problems along the way that had to be addressed, but all in all was a great success. I've seen industry figures that say on avg for a 1st year haunt you should expect 11% of the population. For us that 11% ,magic number was 1650, and I don't remember the exact number but it was actually a little higher than that.


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## Spookie

Zach, my husband has volunteered a few times for Habitat projects. You should be able to find a local chapter by going to their website. 

If you think you might try pursuing the charity angle, make up a list of organizations in your area to contact. Don't over look the fire department, police department, cancer ward of your local hospital. Another thought would be organizations like the masons, shriners, even your chamber of commerce, or food bank. So many groups out there have community outreach programs to help others and need funding during the year for their programs that I wouldn't be surprised if you made some calls you'd come up with more than a few groups willing to sponsor a haunt. If they say well we don't have any space for your setup, ask them if they might have patrons who have some vacant property right now that they could donate the space rental for the project. 

I wouldn't be surprised if the property owner of a vacant building or store front could get a tax break for donating his space for the month or two necessary for the use of the charity. He might not be able to get "rent" from the charity for the space but a write off might not be so bad from his end. By donating the use of the space for the charity it also lets him be part of something bigger for the community as well (and worth a mention as a sponsor on any advertising I would think). I think this angle is something worth mentioning to any group you might be trying to work with that would be arranging for the location space. Maybe someone here has some first hand knowledge how a donation like this would work. Always good to go into the negotiation with ways for them to help you that makes it easy for them to do so.


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## joker

Spookie said:


> Zach, my husband has volunteered a few times for Habitat projects. You should be able to find a local chapter by going to their website.
> 
> If you think you might try pursuing the charity angle, make up a list of organizations in your area to contact. Don't over look the fire department, police department, cancer ward of your local hospital. Another thought would be organizations like the masons, shriners, even your chamber of commerce, or food bank. So many groups out there have community outreach programs to help others and need funding during the year for their programs that I wouldn't be surprised if you made some calls you'd come up with more than a few groups willing to sponsor a haunt. If they say well we don't have any space for your setup, ask them if they might have patrons who have some vacant property right now that they could donate the space rental for the project.
> 
> I wouldn't be surprised if the property owner of a vacant building or store front could get a tax break for donating his space for the month or two necessary for the use of the charity. He might not be able to get "rent" from the charity for the space but a write off might not be so bad from his end. By donating the use of the space for the charity it also lets him be part of something bigger for the community as well (and worth a mention as a sponsor on any advertising I would think). I think this angle is something worth mentioning to any group you might be trying to work with that would be arranging for the location space. Maybe someone here has some first hand knowledge how a donation like this would work. Always good to go into the negotiation with ways for them to help you that makes it easy for them to do so.


spookie that's what we did for the building. Habitat just gave them a tax credit for the amount he would have gotten for rent.


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## Spookie

Glad to know that's how it works out Joker, seemed like it should be but always worth knowing for sure. BTW I thought you had a great year last year. Those were pretty nice statistics. With so many charities having funding sources cutting back on their support I'm sure your efforts were sorely needed and very appreciated in your community.


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## Front Yard Fright

Thanks again everyone for your thoughts, suggestions, and support. Today my parents and myself went down to the warehouse space my dad had seen earlier to check it out. It's roughly 6,000 sq feet and is a PERFECT haunt building. Easy access to electrical, bathrooms, and multiple ways out of the building.

We called today to meet with the realtor to see how much they want for it a month. Hopefully we'll get something worked out - but I'm not holding my breath

I'll keep you posted.


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## Psyc0 Walrus

Front Yard Fright said:


> Thanks again everyone for your thoughts, suggestions, and support. Today my parents and myself went down to the warehouse space my dad had seen earlier to check it out. It's roughly 6,000 sq feet and is a PERFECT haunt building. Easy access to electrical, bathrooms, and multiple ways out of the building.
> 
> We called today to meet with the realtor to see how much they want for it a month. Hopefully we'll get something worked out - but I'm not holding my breath
> 
> I'll keep you posted.


Sounds great FYF! Cannot wait to see what you are going to do this year! I really hope you get the space at a good price! Sounds like FYF may be going pro


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## Front Yard Fright

Finally got a meeting figured out with the realtor - We are meeting at 6pm today.
Send good thoughts and wish me luck!
.


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## tot13

Good Luck! and think positive -


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## Psyc0 Walrus

Good luck! Hope you get the space!!! Cannot wait!


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## Front Yard Fright

The meeting went well... The reltor said they were asking 1,500 a month, but we could offer whatever. The guy that owns it is a big wig car dealer with lots of money so money isn't really an issue - which can be awesome, or terrible. He currently uses it to store his "toys" (Cars, boats, and stuff) so the realtor said that he might not take a lower offer just because it's nice for him to have a place to store his stuff.

Anyway, we're going to discuss this all tonight and see what we come up with. I'll keep you posted on anything that happens.
.


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## morbidmike

good luck FYF I hope it works out for you guys!!


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## Front Yard Fright

Just wanted to give you all another update on how things have been... I had put a hold on everything dealing with this year’s haunt simply because I didn't think we were going to have a location in time... And right before I was going to throw in the towel, I had a conversation with my parents...

My dad just said that I just couldn’t take a year off... He said it would really upset not only our patrons who love coming to it, but the dozens and dozens of kids that help out every year. (No duh dad!)

He went on to say that he didn’t really mind the idea of having the haunt at the house again, we would just need to scale it down a little bit. (Had plans on doing so anyway)

So it looks as if Front Yard Fright is set to be at our home, yet again, for 2010!

My mind is going a million miles a second as I've got LOADS to do and 1/4 of the time I usually have to get everything planned out and done!

I will post any updates on projects and stuff once we get back to work on things!
:jol:.


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## jdubbya

Hey, at least you have a place locked in now and can focus on the details of the haunt. Glad it has worked out this way and it will be a lot less strssful for you, your friends and family. Given your age, your ambition is admirable! I can see a great commercial haunt in the offing someday with your motivation and talent, but for now, enjoy the smaller scale your home affords and keep the fire burning!


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## Hauntiholik

That's wonderful news FYF!


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## RoxyBlue

Your dad gets Supportive Haunt Dad of the Year award for this


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## Front Yard Fright

Currently working on getting things with the city squared away. The city zoning official has been awesome to work with... Just wish I could say the same about the building inspector! None the less, we are making progress.

I've recently been trying to get some marketing stuff thrown together in order to get my printing materials done and ready.

Here's something I cooked up today... Not sure what I'm going to do with it... But I like it!
:jol:


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## Front Yard Fright

I've arranged a meeting with the city zoning official this Thursday morning. I'm going to be showing him my plans for everything and making sure everything is up to code. Then I'll be meeting with the building official to make sure that everything I plan to build is up to code as well. A lot of work - But I'd rather have everything get figured out now than have what happen last year!

I'm also working on getting some t-shirts made. Here's the same design as my posters, just simplified.


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## Front Yard Fright

Right now I'm working on getting more promo items made along with an all new website. One thing I'm stuck on is this year's haunt name. Last year we added a funhouse/carnival themed haunt called "The House of Slaughter". This year, I'd like to keep the funhouse/carnival theme, but was thinking about maybe changing the name to involve the word "Circus". I've come up with a few ideas... but nothing really jumps out yet... I'd love to hear your opinions! Here's what I have so far

Grinz N Gigglez Circus of Horrors
Grinz N Gigglez Circus of Freaks
Grinz N Gigglez Circus and Freakshow
Grinz N Gigglez Midway Circus

I just can't come up with anything catchy... What do you guys think???


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## scareme

I like the first one.


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## Front Yard Fright

scareme said:


> I like the first one.


That's the one I was leaning towards...

Just made this mock up for the new sign... What do you think?


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## MooreEnt24

Pretty damn impressive!


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## The Rotten Pumpkin

Looks Nice!


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## Howlinmadjack

I love it!! The play on words is awesome, gives it a come on in type of feel, there's nothing to be afraid of....yet!!!


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## Front Yard Fright

Thanks for the comments guys!

Still nothing construction wise going on right now... Still trying to get everything planned out before we start doing anything.

I have, however, been working on getting more promo type stuff together. I just received our first shipment of t-shirts for this year. I'm going to be selling this to some of our fans and volunteers in hopes of raising some hype for this year. I'm going to have two or three different t-shirts designed - This being just one of them.

If you are interested in purchasing some, they are only $15.00 +S&H. I will be placing my order at the end of the month - So please get back to me before Friday, August 27th. I would prefer Paypal as it's easy and safe for the both of us!

On to the pictures!


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## The Rotten Pumpkin

*Looks Nice!*

I like the design! Very cool!


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## Front Yard Fright

Thanks Rotten! I think they came out pretty cool! A little more orange/yellow than my original design, but I think it gives it a really gross creepy look to it!

I also worked on getting a new site up and going last night.... Check it out at http://www.frontyardfright.com/


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## Psyc0 Walrus

:O wow FYF this sounds like a crazy good time! Any designs for your haunt your willing to share with us??


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## Eric Striffler

Just read your first post and I have to say that I feel your pain to some extent. I've been working since October 2009 to rent a building for my haunt and literally this week we finalized a location. ALMOST A YEAR. We don't even have a building, but that's a whole other story that I'll get into on here at some point haha. I can't believe how long it takes to get things done when it could be as simple as a phone call to finalize a deal. That's too bad about everything falling out with the guy on the farm, but I guess all the craziness that goes with planning is part of the spirit of being a haunter. I think we all go through it year after year haha.


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## Front Yard Fright

When I thought I had everything figured out with the city we hit another snag...

For the past month or so I have been e-mailing back and forth with the city zoning official to assure that no more "hiccups" happen again this year. I supplied all the information to him and told him exactly what was planned. About a week or so ago I sent a final draft of the final layout of the haunt and which showed where it would be located in our yard. He shortly replied with an e-mail saying that everything looked great, and now I was to contact the building department about getting a permit.

Permit... WHAT permit!?

Last year with the big hiccup with the city I was asked to fill out a permit application in order to continue construction on the haunt. Shortly after they deemed it not necessary and allowed me to finish construction without a permit.

Anyway, I ended up going to the building department and gave them the same map of the final layout. I attached my contact information and told them to contact me as soon as possible if they needed anything else from me.

I got a e-mail Thursday morning from the county building inspector asking me to fill out the attached building permit application... This of course the DAY before we are supposed to start setting up.

I filled out the application, scanned it, and replied to his e-mail as fast as I could and told them that I needed a reply quickly as we had planned on getting things set up this weekend. Of course I didn't get a reply yet, but I'm freaking out.

Anyway, aside from all that, we were able to get SOME stuff done yesterday. I started to clean out the garage and started to get some lumber from the storage unit moved to the house. I ended up having a friend from work come and we started to get wood cut for our new clown facade this year. Shortly after another one of our volunteers showed up and we started to get things put together. By the end of the night we had the entire framework for the facade done!

I was able to take a few pictures, and will be hopefully getting those uploaded Sunday or Monday.

Today we are going to get a UHAUL and move all of the walls from the farm back home. From there we'll sort through the walls that we need and get everything else put into storage.

Thank you all for your kind words and encouragement... It truly means a lot. I was really hoping this year would go without any problems but it's already been proven that that's not gonna happen!


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## Front Yard Fright

Finally got around to uploading the pictures we were able to take during our first weekend of "construction". Seeing as we are still waiting to hear back from the city about when we can start the actual setup of the haunt, we weren't able to get anything set up quite yet. We were, however, able to get all of our walls moved off of the farm we had them on and get them home. We had a crew of around 6 help move everything so it only took us a few hours. (The longest part was driving there and back!)

I'm hoping to get some props started and our new sign painted this weekend. It will definitely be a photo finish yet again this year. Only 43 days left until opening night and not a single wall in place! EEK.

2010 Construction - a set on Flickr


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## Darkwalker

Thats some serious work! Good thing you had help. Can't wait to see more pics.
Especially as it gets closer to completion. I'd like to do a walk through next year. 
I had the green light this year but not enough time or money to make it happen.
Plus. Aside from a little help from the kids with painting. I've been alone in my endeavors.
My hats off to you guy's. 
By the way. I have a mummified rodent if you'd like to add it to your collection of dead critters I'd be happy to send it to you.


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## Dark Angel 27

great job so far. that facade looks awesome. i hate it when the city mucks everything up.

best of luck to you and i hope everything gets ironed out soon.


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## Glyphen2010

Hey FYF, Gly here. Sounds like you need a drink! Hit me up sometime and we'll plan a "guys night out". My fellow co-haunter is in a pickle too with our haunt. We do it at his house every year and try everything in our means not to inconvenience his wife but she announced this year she wants a divorce over it and she is giving him everything, house, kids, car...all of it. So he's a tad stressed too! I think we all need to take some time off for a beer!


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## Front Yard Fright

Still no real progress as of yet... I spent all day yesterday working on the new circus sign I have planned... Got a lot of it done... But a lot is left to do! I spent the better part of the day continuing to work on the sign, as we as getting some things moved out of storage. I was able to get some help from a friend of a friend and her roommate.... It's amazing how many people you can "sucker" into helping out!
.

We got some plywood moved out of storage and all piled up to be moved back to the house tomorrow (was without a truck the latter half of the day.)

Tomorrow I've got a small crew coming over to get some more things done. I'm going to start screwing some walls together and brace them with 2x4s on the top and bottom. That way, come set up time, all we'll have to do is flip the walls and up go to town on getting everything set up as fast as possible.

I also put together a blueprint of the entire haunt and numbered every wall panel as well as listed each number and what kind of wall panel needs to go there... A LITTLE overkill, but I want to make sure that come set up time EVERYONE knows what's going on and what needs to be done... We've got 40 days until we open and not a single wall is in place... I'm KIND of starting to freak out.
.



Dark Angel 27 said:


> great job so far. that facade looks awesome. i hate it when the city mucks everything up.
> 
> best of luck to you and i hope everything gets ironed out soon.


Thanks! I'm actually going a different route with the facade... However it will still be a clown face - Just a different one!

And as far as the city goes, I have NO problem making everything up to code... I prefer to! It's just all the hoops you have to jump through to get something so simple done... It's a BIG waste of time!



Glyphen2010 said:


> Hey FYF, Gly here. Sounds like you need a drink! Hit me up sometime and we'll plan a "guys night out". My fellow co-haunter is in a pickle too with our haunt. We do it at his house every year and try everything in our means not to inconvenience his wife but she announced this year she wants a divorce over it and she is giving him everything, house, kids, car...all of it. So he's a tad stressed too! I think we all need to take some time off for a beer!


Sorry to hear about your friends situation... I can't imagine going through something like that! Hope you're able to get something figured out... And soon!


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## ScreamingScarecrow

I feel for you as we too have out grown our home haunt and would like to find a reliable partner where we could setup something more permanent! Best of luck to you!


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## Psyc0 Walrus

:O :O :O

Still haven't heard back from the city about that permit!?!? So you aren't aloud to start building until they get back to you??? What happens if they reply like 2 days before opening!? UH OH hehe I may be adding to your stress XD


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## Front Yard Fright

Finally heard back from the city today. We are all set to go! I've got everything planned out so come Friday we'll be hopping!

I will also be posting pics from last weekend sometime this week!
:jol:.


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## The Rotten Pumpkin

Awesome! Glad it all worked out! Can't wait to see what you're doing this year!


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## Front Yard Fright

The Rotten Pumpkin said:


> Awesome! Glad it all worked out! Can't wait to see what you're doing this year!


Thanks. I too am glad things are finally starting to come together... I was very worried and quite down in the dumps this past weekend simply because I didn't know if we were going to be able to pull this off.. We are looking at producing a 700+ sq ft haunt in 4 weekends (12 days). It's quite a daunting task. However, with the support I've got, and the large crew we're able to assemble ever year, I'm keeping my thoughts positive and hope, hope, hoping we're able to pull this off!
:jol:.


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## Front Yard Fright

Things are slowly but surely progressing. Today was spent on getting some more prep work done for the big day (set up) which will begin tomorrow. More pics have been added to my Flickr account... I promise the next time I upload photos it will be a LOT more interesting!
:jol:.

2010 Construction - a set on Flickr


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## Dark Angel 27

looking good!


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## Front Yard Fright

Today started off with my friend Nina, her boyfriend Chris, and myself. I was a little disappointed with the turn out, however we were able to get a LOT done in a short period of time with just the three of us! Luckily, over the past two weekends, I've been able to plan everything out to a T to assure that once things got rolling, it was smooth sailing. Luckily, it was just that! The three of us were able to get the facade front up, along with the side supporting walls. After that, walls were going up left and right! We had a few girls in the garage sorting through screws while the three of us continued to get walls up. Then, as the day went on, more and more people started to show up. We had roughly 10-15 of us out there getting stuff up! It had also started sprinkling out when we were about 1/2 way done but we worked our way right thought it!

In the end, we were actually able to completely build the circus building!

Tomorrow will be spent on touching up paint as well as painting the new walls we added. Then electrical, props, and all that other stuff will slowly make its way out there... It's amazing to think that just 12 hours prior there was nothing but a facade sitting in the yard!!!

Here are some pics... I will get some more taken tomorrow once things start to look spooky!
.

2010 Construction - a set on Flickr


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## Eric Striffler

WOW, that all looks fantastic! It's inspirational to me seeing how well your haunt is coming out, I can't wait to see more!


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## Darkwalker

I can't tell you just how impressive that is.
I can't wait to see more. Hopefully a video or two of the circus in action.


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## Front Yard Fright

We continued to work on the haunt Sunday morning but due to the weather, we weren't about to do too much. I continued to cover some of our one-sided walls with plywood and had some painters come over to touch up some of our black hallways.

I'm hoping to get to work on the clown/facade tomorrow. (weather permitting)

Otherwise I'll be working on some cotton candy cocoons for one of our hallways... I'm really excited for them!

I'll post some more progress pics here in the next few days.


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## Front Yard Fright

Worked on a few things today solo. Seeing as most of my volunteers are in school, and many have jobs, it's hard to get help during the week.

I repainted the entry way, touched up our big yellow room, and painted the back of the facade black (Alone, on a windy day, 12ft in the air )

I also started work on a cotton candy cocoon I plan to add to our first hallway. I really wasn't sure what I was getting myself into, but I think it turned out pretty decent. Got it all covered in chicken wire and started to cover it in bed sheets dipped in latex paint to give it a good thick skin.

The weather isn't supposed to be any good Saturday (Imagine that) so I'll probably just continue to work on the cocoon as well as some of my other small side projects.

I'll post some pictures of what I accomplish tomorrow!
:jol:.


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## Front Yard Fright

As expected, the weather here was quite crumby today. However, I was able to get a few things done with the help of a buddy of mine. We got our stacked Jack-In-The-Box done. The window you see is actually a drop panel... Spooky!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/zachwiechmann/?saved=1


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## Front Yard Fright

I've hit somewhat of a creative road block...

I can't decide what to paint the Jack-In-The-Box! I have three others, but don't like how they turned out last year so I plan on fixing them up for this season... But I can't for the life of me figure out how to paint them! I was thinking white with red trim.. But I can't decide!

Do you have any suggestions!?
.


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## The Rotten Pumpkin

*Jack in the Box...*

Maybe a yellow base with red trim. Green paint wash over the whole thing, left alone for decades.

That what pops into my mind...


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## Front Yard Fright

Just a little update... Things are finally starting to come together... I apologize for the lack up updates and pictures.... I've had a hard time remembering to take pictures, and I hardly have the time to sit and upload them! I promise to update my Flickr account here in the next few days... My weekends consist of little to no sleep and spending the entire day (and night) outside working on getting things done.

I've official hit mass panic mode where I can only work on one project for a little bit before starting to work on anything! This weekend was spent starting on the clown facade, getting some lights set up at the front of the haunt, getting out and cleaning all my foggers, tearing apart and rebuilding out jack-in-the-boxes, and building a cotton candy cocoon (Which turned out FANTASTIC I might add .)

Anyway, things ARE progressing (though it doesn't feel like it!) I'll definitely post some progress pics here in the next few days - sorry for the delay!


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## Front Yard Fright

Finally got some more picture uploaded to my Flickr account. Check them out here: Front Yard Fright 2010 Construction - a set on Flickr

Things are coming together... My to do list is getting shorter... So I must be doing something right! Spent the better part of today working on getting some different projects finished up. Still working on getting the facade painted, but I have most of the lighting done. Still have a LOT to do, but it's nice to see a few things coming together.

Stay tuned for more updates!
:jol:.


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