Making a Life-Sized Shock, from The Nightmare Before Christmas

lock shock barrel

First, let me apologize to the several frustrated creators looking for directions for the Shock and Barrel tutorials. The posts were written, and I thought were linked/published. But after a creator clued me in on the missing posts, I went back and couldn’t find them. Continue reading

How to Fix a Crack in a Cheesecake

One large crack has already been fixed. The smaller one, closest to the front, still needs a quick swiping. Copyright 2021, All Rights Reserved.

So, you’ve worked hard to follow a cheesecake recipe, and maybe you even did a water bath. But as you pulled the cake out of the oven, you noticed a big crack in the center of your cheesecake? Don’t fret. You don’t have to cover it up with fruit topping, or a ganache.

If your goal is to have an aesthetically pleasing cheesecake, you’ll appreciate this quick tutorial on how to fix even several inch-wide gaps.

.

Continue reading

A Last Minute Valentine’s Day Gift to Make

After printing out on a black ink printer, use a red marker to fill in the hearts. Simple, but does the job.

It’s 2022, and many of us are still staying home, ordering online, or getting creative. Maybe we just forgot about getting a gift. This simple, quick template is not a fabulous design, full of flowers or crests. But for me, it does the job.

Continue reading

Making and Wearing Masks More Effectively

N95 masks are still hard to find. Ensure your homemade/bought masks
fit your face snuggly. The CDC now has new recommendations,
for cloth, and differences in respirators. Image courtesy of Mark Morrow.

This site generally doesn’t touch upon such serious subjects. Yet, with the newest, very contagious, variant Omicron, sometimes we need to.

It looks like mask-wearing will be part of our lives, for quite some time. Buying disposable masks, is costly. Buying really good grade, disposable (KN95 or N95) masks, is even more so. With so many fakes out there, it’s hard to distinguish, which are which. Below are a few options, that won’t empty your wallet.

Continue reading

Making Vines for Your Stranger Things Yard

After creating a Mind Flayer for my roof (tutorials Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3), I knew the creature needed something more: Vines. The Upside Down World was filled with vines that hung everywhere, and vines that attacked. They were a part of the hive mind, associated with the monsters of Stranger Things.

After scouring the web for prices on vines, it was clear: My budget couldn’t afford the 100 or more feet needed. Continue reading

Part 2 of The Mind Flayer Prop Tutorial

mindflayer on roof

Part 1 of the Mind Flayer Prop build, covered how to build the torso. Now we’ll move on to the head, and if not too lengthy, the legs.

Supplies Needed for Building Head

  • A Large Cardboard Box (Like from a 45″ or larger, flat screen TV)
  • Extra Cardboard for pointed end of head, and protecting work table
  • Pool Noodles (at least 2)
  • Wire
  • Toothpicks
  • Red/Black Acrylic Paint
  • 2 Hot Glue Guns
  • Glue sticks: Clear, red, and black
  • Plastic Dip or Flex Seal Rubber Spray
  • Plastic bottles or waterproof packaging, and Styrofoam, to add shape to head, and act as filler
  • A Can of Expanding Spray Foam (preferably the type for gaps over 1″)
  • Disposable Gloves
  • Clear Packing or Clear Duct tape
  • Black 6 ml Sheeting (* FOLLOW LINK IN PART 1 FOR WARNING)
  • Heat Gun with Hi/Lo options
  • Scissors
  • 6 ft. or longer table to work on 
  • 2 Plastic coated garden stakes ( approx. 3 feet each, optional, but recommended)
  • Drill 

If you haven’t gone over Part 1 with the body frame, please do so, before moving on. A few tips there can save you some unnecessary steps later. 

Directions:

Continue reading

Welcome, Dr. Finklestein!

Dr. Finklestein now joins my NBC family. Image courtesy of Debbie Morrow, All Rights Reserved

Just a brief post to introduce my latest Nightmare Before Christmas, Halloween prop created: Dr. Finklestein. I’ll try to add the tutorials, when I get the chance. He joins Jack Skellington, Sally, Lock, Shock, and Barrel, Oogie Boogie, and the Duck/Vampire prop. Zero, the ghost dog, was sadly showing his age, so I actually found a new one the same size, and is now happily flying in the yard too.

If anyone wants to scramble to make this fella, he stands about 5 feet or less, and I used extra couplers of 40 degree or 90 degrees to have him sit. So if you follow my usual PVC prop skeletons (See Lock, Shock, Barrel), you’ll be able to figure out the sizing.

The tutorial for Dr. Finklestein will be split into a few different segments, because there are too many steps (especially the head), to put into one single post. If you were determined or had help, all could be complete within a week. But alas, it took me at least four weeks to finish. If you want every post sent directly into your email, click the ‘Follow’ and you won’t miss the entire process. Thanks!

Lock, Shock, and Barrel Life-size Characters – DIY

Tutorial of lock shock barrel

Lock, Shock, and Barrel are now full sized and ready to join the Nightmare Before Christmas clan.

If you follow my posts, you’ll remember I made the Lock, Shock, and Barrel masks about two years ago. I’m pleased to announce their full life-size versions are complete and am here to start sharing how I did it.

Since tutorials tend to be long, each character tutorial from The Nightmare Before Christmas, will be split up for easy reading. The first tutorial will be on Lock – the devil costumed character. Continue reading

A Baby Vampire From The Nightmare Before Christmas

The baby vamp from Nightmare B4 Christmas. Copyrights reserved, Debbie Morrow

My previous post gave a tutorial on the duck that appears in the same scene as the baby vampires in The Nightmare Before Christmas (NBC) movie. Although in the movie the vampire didn’t ride inside the duck, I couldn’t help myself by making it so. It seemed like a fun and almost “Burton-ish” thing to do.

At first I looked at what others had done in their tutorials for making the vampire. They were either foam or stuffed and that just wasn’t what I was looking for. Since I was already creating more doll zombies and clowns, I sat there one night and thought, “why not turn a doll into a baby vampire?” So here is the quick tutorial to transform a plastic baby doll into a NBC vampire. Continue reading

Two New Nightmare Before Christmas Props Added to the Family

Made from a vintage duck blow mold and a doll, Nightmare Before Christmas magic was made. Image copyrighted, all rights reserved, Debbie Morrow

If you’ve been checking out this blog, you might have guessed that I love the Nightmare Before Christmas (NBC) characters. I’ve made the Mayor, Jack Skellington (with a few improved remakes or blunders), Sally, Oogie Boogie, and Zero. As you can see from the image, I’ve added a duck and baby vampire to the family. I’ll be breaking these tutorials into two posts for the sake of shorter, more manageable reading.

The Duck Tutorial:

You’ll Need:

A Plastic Duck Blow Mold
Large High Heat Glue Gun
Piece of Styrofoam or Foam from a Boxed Product
Black, Red, and White Acrylic Outdoor Paint/Brushes
Spackle or other Pre-made Drywall Compound/ Large Brush
A Dremel Saw or something else that cuts plastic easily
Artificial Nails
Tweezers/Marker
Super Glue Industrial Gel ( NOT liquid) for plastic and other materials
A Protractor or any round shaped item you can use for outline

Continue reading