I always like the idea of a wooden decoration, but they can be so disappointing, especially for children because, if you use the felt pens often supplied with them the ink almost always bleeds into the wood, which is why I tend to varnish all the pieces first before getting the Sharpies out.
This haunted house kit came from Hobbycraft (£3.00 - 2022 Halloween Range). I liked the design, so bought it thinking I could add some more MDF shapes that I already had to make it completely over the top.
I started by varnishing all the house and cemetery pieces using Wilko Quick Drying, clear, satin varnish as they were the most tricky when it came to colouring with pen.
It then took two good coats of pen to give a deep coverage of colour.
Next came a layer of green Dovecrafts 3D Enamel Effects (£1- The Range) to slime the house, fences and ground.
I left everything to dry overnight before putting it all together.
It looked good, but I knew I could do better……… but in my excitement forgot to take many photos, doh!
I added MDF bats, ghosts, skeletons, a cat and headstones (all from e-bay from various shops), using white Ranger Enamel Accents on the ghosts and skeletons, black Sharpie on the bats and cat and grey and silver on the headstones, followed by a layer of Ranger Glossy Accents plus tiny flat back gem eyes.
The pumpkins were table confetti bought long ago, which were again given the Glossy Accent treatment.
Extra lines for crumbing brickwork and to emphasis the various parts were added using a fine tipped, permanent black pen and a white acrylic pen, followed by another layer of the green Enamel Effects to add more dimension.
It’s safe to say I went mad with on the detail……..
……….. but, I think it works.
Then, just as I thought I’d finished, I suddenly remembered the bottle stopper lights Marc got me from Poundland (£1 a pack of two) a couple of years ago, when everyone was going mad for them and they were almost impossible to find ………
OMG, they couldn’t have been more perfect, the stopper hidden between the back two panels ………
……. to add the final touch of magic and sparkle, ready for my annual Iris and Bertie Halloween sleepover ……… I’m sooooooooo dead chuffed!!!!!
