# cardboard gravestones (how pathetic?)



## MurrayTX (Nov 4, 2011)

Am building chairs that came in boxes near perfect sized for raised graves (like New Orleans style) and other smaller boxes perfect for headstones. Bare in mind that I live in El Paso where it rarely rains and 30% humidity is high. Is there a technique where I can paint these for disposable props? Is a liberal use of masking tape and latex paint enough?


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

The first tombstones I made were cardboard and I just sprayed them with a primer and painted them with (as I recall) exterior latex paint. Not something I would put out in the rain, but they made it through a few Halloweens before we replaced them with foam stones.


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## MurrayTX (Nov 4, 2011)

Any trick.to add stone texture? Or is that just wasted effort on cardboard?


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

If you like how the prop turns out, it's never wasted effort

You can get a stone look by stippling on different colors of paint over a base coat - black, shades of gray, and white all work well for that effect. Here's how it looks on a foam stone I made, and it should work just as well on cardboard.


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## debbie5 (Mar 2, 2007)

Here's what you are looking for: http://davelowe.blogspot.com/2010/10/14-days-til-halloween-shipping-box.html


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## Dan The Welder (Jul 18, 2012)

Use elmers glue mixed with sand to get a rough texture


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## MurrayTX (Nov 4, 2011)

Am liking the Fedex stones.....


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## Lilly (Jun 13, 2006)

yeah sand mixed in the paint itself works good.


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## ezra zephyr (Aug 10, 2012)

hell paso tx? haha! i live in the same town! i am happy to know im not alone in keeping halloween alive in our culturally diverse city. great idea with the cardboard by the way. you might be amazed what adding a small amount of cement to your latex paint will do for rigidity. happy haunting in el choco!


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## pechee12 (Oct 20, 2011)

My cardboard ones lasted for years, and sand in paint is the easy, cheap way to go!!


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## fontgeek (Jul 24, 2006)

Unless storage space is an issue for them, why dispose of them?
Cardboard, foam, etc., as long as you are happy with them and they do the job, then who cares what they're made of?
If you want the recessed lettering in the cardboard, try cutting out the letters and the bowls (the pieces in the middle on letters like the A or O) and glue a backing piece of cardboard on the inside of the box, you can add those cutout pieces (or not) and have a nice three dimensional looking stone.
Stippling, sponging, or ragging on your finish can give you a variety of looks, add in the use of a brush and or airbrush and you can make spectacular looking pieces for almost nothing but your time, your patience, and a little bit of paint and tape.


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## Dark Angel 27 (Sep 11, 2008)

*Cardboard tombstones are Not pathetic in the least, my first cemetary ever was made of Cardboard tombstones. I was lucky to not get rained on and I only had them the one night. *


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## Troll Wizard (May 3, 2012)

You still might be able to purchase textured spray paint in stores. Might try your local independent paint store or even a automotive store to see if you can get textured spray paint there.


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## kprimm (Mar 14, 2009)

Save up your used cofee grounds and dry them out. Mix the coffee grounds into your paint for some nice texture. I like the coffee more than the sand look.


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## fontgeek (Jul 24, 2006)

As the picture shown illustrates, much of the subtle textures and colors used in props is lost when viewed at night. Unless the texture is REALLY heavy, it's effect will only be appreciated by you and those that will view your props up close and in the light of day. 
Go at it, and have fun!


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## ez360 (Aug 6, 2011)

Glad to see 2 other people from El Paso. Like the others said, get some sand mixed with glue or the paint itself to add texture to the stones.


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## DeadSpider (Feb 3, 2006)

I say there is nothing pathetic about cardboard.  
I use it a LOT. 
I made a simple tombstone for a friend who needed one for a dance performance for her kid. It did not need writing on it as the audience was only going to see the back of it. She wanted it to be plain basic rectangular shaped, which made it very easy to create. I textured it using a rough pulp-paper mache. 
I did not seal it for outdoor use, but it could have been...


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## Jaybo (Mar 2, 2009)

As long as you seal the prop with several coats of EXTERIOR latex house paint (any color) first, you can do almost anything you want to the prop. Don't skimp and use interior paint because it WILL wash off.

Texture, washes, and dry brushing are your friends. You want something on the surface of your prop to make it rough. Sand, coffee grounds, saw dust added to paint or glue work great. Glue crumpled brown craft paper to the surface to create a rough rock texture.

Basecoat the prop with a dark grey paint and let it dry.

Now, take the same grey paint and add white paint to the mix to lighten the color. Use this to heavily dry brush the prop.

Now, add more white paint to the mix and do it again, but do not lay it down as heavily.

Keep adding white paint and lightly drybrushing until you have a look that you like. 

If the prop looks bad, just repaint it with the dark grey and start over.

Once all the paint has dried, mix up a couple of washes of black, white, light green, and raw umber in plastic spray bottles. Also, have a spray bottle with only water. Your washes should be mostly water with a little bit of paint added.

Take your washes and spray down the stone starting at the top. Let the wash run down the stone creating streaks. Spray all of the washes on top of each other while they are wet and allow them to mix as they run down the stone. If you get too much color on the stone, then use the plain water to thin it out.

You can get some extremely realistic looking props doing these steps. Hope this helps.


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