# Improving a Plastic Cauldron



## dave the dead

I am working on a stirring witch this year, and wanted to improve the look of a plastic cauldron. There really isn't anything wrong with the shape of the typical plastic halloween cauldron, but the overall look is, well, plastic-y. I have set out to re-work one, and thought I'd share some progress pix and methods.

Texture:
I have added alot of texture to the plastic surface by mixing oatmeal and sand into a water and glue mixture. I randomly applied it all over the cauldron.
Mmmmmm...Oatmeal.









Once that dried to a very, very hard surface....(I mean really, have you ever tried to get oatmeal off a bowl after it dries????Impossible!) ...I primed the cauldron with flat black. 
<<<note on paint...I have been using Rustoleum flat black primer/sealer rather than the cheap 96cent walmart paint...it has alot more pigment and therefore covers much better...this also means you use alot less of it>>>









I have started with a rusty paintjob here using acrylics. At this point I am not 100% happy with the look, but need to progress a little farther on the cauldron stand before I go any farther with it.









More to come....


----------



## beelce

Looks great Dave


----------



## mymania

Very nice look!


----------



## Haunted Bayou

Really!
I may have to upgrade my plastic cauldron with oatmeal of all things.


----------



## Lilly

lookin good Dave...
okay i gotta ask..
reg oatmeal or quick?
LOL


----------



## dave the dead

Lilly said:


> lookin good Dave...
> okay i gotta ask..
> reg oatmeal or quick?
> LOL


It was, if you must know, Kroger brand instant oatmeal, cinnamon & spice. (but I'm sure other flavors and brands would work just as well....I put it on uncooked.


----------



## Dr Morbius

Plus, it gives your cauldren a nice cinnamon-spice scent! Good work Dave.


----------



## Lilly

that's funny dave 
and here I thought you were using good old real oatmeal..
amazing what we use to make stuff hey


----------



## dave the dead

Lilly, I have no reservations about using any kind of stuff to make other stuff.

The oatmeal texture was a trial and error process....some things that didn't work too well are scrambled eggs, pancakes, sausages, poptarts...and don't get me started on the grapefruit halves!!


----------



## Sickie Ickie

LOL well at least we know what you do with your left over breakfast!


----------



## Lilly

ha ..grapefruit halves dried could be used as a giant beehive thing.

but really the cauldron looks cool ..im sure you will make it all right


----------



## HalloweenZombie

Holy cow! You could make a castle out of a turd. Is there anything that you can't make look good?


----------



## Spider Rider

The rust turned plastic into 200 lbs. of cast iron, very nice. The stand fixes my main dislike of the plastic cauldrons always sitting on the ground.


----------



## Darkside

Man, Dave. That looks great. Is your mind ever anywhere other than on Huant props?


----------



## dave the dead

Spider Rider said:


> The rust turned plastic into 200 lbs. of cast iron, very nice. The stand fixes my main dislike of the plastic cauldrons always sitting on the ground.


heres a better shot of the stand. (in progress, of course...)


----------



## Daphne

Wow, that looks amazing! How tall is this? What foods did you use to build the stand ha, ha!

Dave you are incredible, I have struggled for months on my current Halloween project and you slap your breakfast on a cauldron and create a masterpiece!

Wonderful job though, I have never seen anything like that!


----------



## Bone Dancer

Amazing Dave, oatmeal would not have been my first thought for this project. I have had good luck making rust by layering flat black, rusto red primer, and med. brown. And I just use spray paint. 
Like the stand too. Keep us posted on the project please.


----------



## frstvamp1r

"Now little Timmy, you need to finish your breakfast" "no I don't, daddy will just use it on a couldron, flying crank ghost, flicker light or something" hahahaha...Dave, I LOVE the way your mind works


----------



## dave the dead

its all about the texture....oatmeal has that great flaky texture of heavy rust...


----------



## Liam

Nice work, Dave! Thanks for the great idea. I'll definitely be adding oatmeal to my next shopping list. 

L


----------



## dave the dead

*super cheap strobe!!!!*

Now that I mostly have the cauldron painted how I want it, I started thinking about other things to make it unique. I have the stand pre-plumbed to pipe fog into the cauldron from a hidden fogger source. I wanted a unique light effect to set off the "steam" coming out of the cauldron...
this is what I came up with









What you see here is the finished LED strobe strip that has green strobing and a slower flashing blue LED circuit. The chip that runs the strobe came from the strobing flashlight wand pictured here purchased from Deals (a local dollar store) I have seen them for just about any holiday (really big around July 4th)

The chip inside has a red + and a black - wire going to the power source. There is also a + and - contact where the lights attach. All I did was connect wire leads to the light source contacts and string together 9 green superbright leds in parrallel. The leds were mounted through a piece of plastic hose that I joined in a ring shape. 









The slower flashing chip came from a "lightning bug gummy candy" display. It is a similar chip to the strobe chip, and was connected the same way, alternating a separate circuit of blue ultrabright leds on the ring strip. I then attached the + and - wires from a 4.9 vDC cell phone wall charger to the input terminals of both chips.

All totalled, this project took about an hour, and less than $5 to complete.

Here is the finished strobe inside the cauldron. The effect seems much slower in the video, but looks really, really cool in person.:ninja:
the elders :: strobe011.flv video by davethedead - [email protected]@[email protected]@http://vid105.photobucket.com/player.swf?file=http://vid105.photobucket.com/albums/m240/davethedead/the%20elders/[email protected]@[email protected]@[email protected]@[email protected]@[email protected]@[email protected]@m240/davethedead/the%20elders/strobe011


----------



## beelce

That's going to look great!


----------



## dave the dead

Final tweak on the coloring....I removed the rusty drippings from the base columns because I didn't like the look, toned down the stone look of the base with dark acrylic wash, and blackened the bottom of the cauldron.


----------



## STOLLOWEEN

Very nice work. I'm gonna have to "borrow" the oatmeal idea....creative idea!


----------



## Bloodhound

Nice job, Dave!


----------



## Bethene

that is so cool, Dave, you come up with such amazing ways to do things, and they all turn out so good! What is the stand made out of? Dang, I keep finding new things to add to the I want one of these list!


----------



## dave the dead

Bethene said:


> that is so cool, Dave, you come up with such amazing ways to do things, and they all turn out so good! What is the stand made out of? Dang, I keep finding new things to add to the I want one of these list!


The stand is made from freezer waffles. I will eventually have a flaming bowl (also rusted with oatmeal...lol) underneath the cauldron.

(ok, actually the stand is styrofoam with a mache coating):googly:


----------



## RAWR

this is so cool i always avoided buying the cauldrons as they look so plastic-y as you said. also so common. this cauldrons unique.


----------



## scareme

Nice idea. I use my cauldron to hold the candy. Would look great.


----------



## Draik41895

this is totally awesome!!!!


----------



## Spookie

Thanks Draik41895 for bringing this older post up. Hadn't seen it before and was just thinking albeit kind of late into the game that my witch's kettle looks pretty plain. Dave's idea looks great. I love the crusty character of it and the stand is pretty unique too. Great use of skulls at the base.


----------



## NickG

that's awesome. great job


----------



## Moon Dog

Great work Dave! I really like the lighting effect!


----------



## Alucard

Love the paint job!


----------



## Day of the Dead

Dig it!


----------



## Lady Nyxie

How did I miss this thread? I love this project.


----------



## Haasmama

Wow! I really like the finished project! I have so many of those cauldrons in various sizes that I couldn't think what to do with them because the original look was just...blah! Great job! 

I wonder how it would look using Cream of Wheat...

Very nicely done!


----------



## MorbidMariah

What a creative idea! I have always just passed by the plastic cauldrons because they're too fake-y....I have no idea why it never occured to me to do stuff to them to make them more realistic. This is ingenious...perfect and simple and extremely effective.


----------



## sparkleclown

I am brand new to this forum and am an amature to this kind of thing. Would love to make this cauldron. What did you do to get the rusted look after you painted it black?


----------



## Troll Wizard

Hey there Dave, did you have to degloss the surface of the cauldron before gluing on the oatmeal and other items? I'm wondering because it's plastic and sealed will you have any problems with it staying on after sometime?


----------



## Pumpkin5

:jol: Dave you are a genius! I love this idea...my husband will never believe me when I tell him I am going to buy some 'prop making' supplies and come back with oatmeal.....ha ha ha....


----------



## PaolaShawn

*Cauldron stand?*

What did you use to make the cauldron stand? It appears you're very resourceful, so I'm curious what you used.


----------



## RoxyBlue

Paola, here's Dave's answer from a couple pages back:



dave the dead said:


> The stand is made from freezer waffles. I will eventually have a flaming bowl (also rusted with oatmeal...lol) underneath the cauldron.
> 
> (ok, actually the stand is styrofoam with a mache coating):googly:


----------



## hulianne

*caludron*

Dave - Your caludron is awesome! I purchased supplies from your brief description- and have enough oatmeal for 110 servings - ghouls come on over! Anyway, did you use acrylic spray paint for the rust effect or did you paint by hand? I can't wait to try this and see what results....


----------



## The Thing

Great DIY upgrade to the cheap cauldron. What acrylic colors did you use for the rusty effect?


----------



## debs7089

This is such a great idea i was wondering how i could make my cauldron look more realistic...Thanks


----------



## Debj

I have been looking for some way to improve the look of my plastic cauldron for my witch station. What a wonderful idea! what type of glue did you use??


----------



## HalloweenCrazy9899

*Very creative*

I love it! It is so cool. I would like to ask can I please barrow your idea? I have the same plastic cauldron and this would be fun to do.


----------



## Palmdale Haunter

Very nice. I have one of these for my witch so I may rehab it...


----------



## Acid PopTart

I missed this thread too. Great job! Love the whole thing together.


----------



## dave the dead

The Thing said:


> Great DIY upgrade to the cheap cauldron. What acrylic colors did you use for the rusty effect?


Burnt Umber, raw sienna, terra cotta, and barn red, ( and of course black)


----------



## dave the dead

hulianne said:


> Dave - Your caludron is awesome! I purchased supplies from your brief description- and have enough oatmeal for 110 servings - ghouls come on over! Anyway, did you use acrylic spray paint for the rust effect or did you paint by hand? I can't wait to try this and see what results....


I started with a coat of flat black primer and then brushed the rusty colors on by hand


----------



## dave the dead

Debj said:


> I have been looking for some way to improve the look of my plastic cauldron for my witch station. What a wonderful idea! what type of glue did you use??


elmers... I'd suggest you go with an exterior glue, though. Over the years I have has some minor peeling near the rim, but it has been very easy to touch up.


----------



## Dr. Maniaco

odd... I usually put my oatmeal IN the pot... 

Well, whatever works!! looks really good. I'm takin' notes!


----------



## Cal78

Dave, Quick Question, How did you get the Oatmeal on the Cauldron, Paint it on or Throw it and see what Sticks.


----------



## dave the dead

Cal78 said:


> Dave, Quick Question, How did you get the Oatmeal on the Cauldron, Paint it on or Throw it and see what Sticks.


Pretty much just smeared it on by hand.


----------



## disneygram

I just bought a plastic cauldron and wondering did you paint it first with the black primer paint and then did the oatmeal/sand/glue? do you remember what ratio of the water/glue and sand? or just kind of make personal judgement.

By the way, yours looks awesome!!


----------



## TJN66

This is so awesome! What is the ratio of glue, oatmeal and sand that you used?


----------



## Debj

Thanks!! I can't wait to get this project finished!!


----------



## icemanfred

*oatmeal samd recipe*

I would like to know the recipe for this concoction.
looks really good.


----------



## icemanfred

dont see where to edite previous post....

like to know :
glue to water to oatmeal ratio
and how much to cover a 22" cauldron


----------



## Fiend4Halloween

Great looking cauldron....and thanks for the "how-to"!


----------



## beadyeyedbrat

I am a Queen of Cheap so of course I love this.


----------



## zsuedaly

*rusty cauldron*

I am working on this right now and it is turning out great! Have done the with theme before but this is a great detail to the exhibit! I am going to add some of that fake grass powder that you use in Dept. 56 village displays-when you add a little watered-down glue and sprinkle the grass on it looks like moss/mildew! I will post a pix when done!
Thanks for the tip!


----------



## dave the dead

Great to hear this is helping some folks get their spook on!


----------



## turtle2778

Dave ur STILL a stud even after all these years LOL. I get TONS of compliments on my cauldron.


----------



## george_darkhill

Would have never thought to use oatmeal for anything but making breakfast and fake vomit...


----------



## Ladyhawke

I <3 this calduron idea! I've had a witch in my yard for several Halloweens now and her calduron is always a challenge for me. I'll definitely be "antiquing" my generic kettle! Thanks for the great ideas!


----------



## immyboat

I might just have to make over the plastic bucket..looks good


----------



## Rhea of the Coos

I would of never thought of using oatmeal. .brilliant!!


----------



## Bone Dancer

Agreed, the glue/oat meal mixture looks very good. Even just a coating of flat black spray paint helps to get rid of the shiney plastic look. A sand and glue mix might also work.


----------



## [email protected]

*Dressing up Cauldron*

Just love the finished product !Setting up to start mixing tonight


----------



## gjbailey

Did this technique with my small one. Took another idea and did some great stuff hot coals and stand. Cant wait to be able to post pics.


----------



## jdubbya

I'm going to start on mine. I messaged Dave asking about the glue:water ratio and also what kind of glue. See he hasn't been active for 2 years so if anyone can throw some advice my way I'd appreciate it. Thanks!


----------



## RoxyBlue

jdubbya said:


> I'm going to start on mine. I messaged Dave asking about the glue:water ratio and also what kind of glue. See he hasn't been active for 2 years so if anyone can throw some advice my way I'd appreciate it. Thanks!


He mentions earlier in this thread that he used Elmer's glue. I sent him a message on Facebook about your question here, so hopefully he will log in with an answer:jol:


----------



## jdubbya

RoxyBlue said:


> He mentions earlier in this thread that he used Elmer's glue. I sent him a message on Facebook about your question here, so hopefully he will log in with an answer:jol:


Thanks RB. Appreciate it!


----------



## DUG117

RoxyBlue said:


> He mentions earlier in this thread that he used Elmer's glue. I sent him a message on Facebook about your question here, so hopefully he will log in with an answer:jol:


I read on another site they used a 50/50 mixture of oatmeal Mod Podge from a craft store to get the same effect.


----------



## BluJay75

Love the LOOK!! But I have to ask... Outside, does it attract any critters??


----------

