Other Special Effects & Tips Here are some very helpful ideas, tips and other special effects you can use in your haunt, again these are quick and easy but have a great effect. Using foil and a strobe light If you have a room, hallway, garage, or anything with walls try covering them completely with foil either just flat or krinkle it up to make wrinkles it in. After you complete the walls put a strobe light or two into the room PRESTO!! You now have one awsome and almost unexplainable effect. *definately one of my favorites* Using fishing line with a strobe light Anywhere you have a strobe light and either a doorway or a ceiling try hanging indiviual strands of fishing line. Hang them down far enough as to where the "guests" will walk into them. It really gives you a weird feeling when they hit you and it kind of looks like rain falling. If you are just going for the rain effect I suggest putting pieces of black electrical tape here and there on each strand to get separate drops look. Using pasta Do you need some guts or brains for the kiddies to touch and feel??? Well if you do try putting cooked spegetti into a bowl or bucket for "guts" and in another put macaroni. Put a little bit of oil on the pasta so it won't dry out. And if you want to try putting a little food coloring into the water when cooking the pasta. Quick and easy!! Using a fan If you have "dummies", wood poles with costumes on, or "yardboys"(see props page), then here is a very easy way to make them move. This effect works best when you use thick wire for the arms and/or neck!! In whatever scene you have your yardboys in place a fan or two in front of them, now remember the stonger and bigger the fan the more movement you will obvoiously will get, but on the other hand the harder the fan(s) will be to discuise or hide. Remember when your yardboys have thick wire for hands and/or neck and the fan blows on them it will make them move back and forth. Without wire arms and/or neck just the costume will move around which is pretty cool too. (USE WITH A STROBE LIGHT FOR 100% MOVEMENT EFFECT) Now what I did to hide my fan was I used a cardboard box and cut out the back, painted the whole thing black and then on the front of it I painted a tombstone on it and placed it over the fan. Yes once in a while the tombstone would move but extra animation is a GOOD THING!!! Try it you'll like it!! Using RIT Whitner Brightner Using blacklights in your haunt or front porch? Then you can't be without this stuff! What ever you paint or spray this stuff on will GLOW a BRIGHT LIGHT BLUE! But, beware! DO NOT get this on anything you do NOT want to glow! (skin, floors, clothing, ect.)! It will NOT wash off, it has to WEAR off! You can buy RIT Whitner Brightner in powder or liquid form. The powder I mix with water in a large spray bottle, and the liquid I DO NOT mix with anything I use it straight from the bottle(great for painting things with a brush). Paint or spray this stuff on pumpkins, skeletons, tombstone letters, signs, writing on the walls, etc. In a bucket soak cheesecloth, spiderwebs, etc. This stuff is great! Once I discovered how awesome this stuff worked, I used it on tons of items! And I still use it today! Using a garden hook as a skeleton stand A 4 foot garden hook up hold a "bart" skeleton as a stand. If you want to hold up a "bucky" skeleton a 6 foot garden hook will work if you have it over a yard 6 foot yard fence, meaning the hook part is hanging over the other side of the fence and you skeleton is standing in front of the fence. I used this techinque for my skeleton bride. Real Buried Clothes for Zombie or Dead Character If you want clothes that have the perfect look for your zombie prop or costume here is a link to make zombie clothes by actually burying them. Keep in mind this method does take about 3 months, but look awesome! The link is to Skull & Bone's web site, and while your there check out the rest of their site, it is a great one! To view the distressed clothes page click HERE! Wind Sounds If you are using sound in your scene that includes wind. Use a fan hidden somewhere in your scene. That way your guests will feel the "wind". If you think about it, it really doesn't make sense to hear a howling wind when it is still without even a breeze. Someone throwing an old couch out sitting by the corner? Stop and ask if you can have the coushions, most the time they don't care. Take the FREE coushions and use for cutting out stones, bricks or rocks for walls or to use in a scene. You can also use as a part of a path to walk on. Just place the foam pieces down on the ground and place a large piece of black or clear plastic over the top of them, then stake the sides down into the dirt then cover up the plastic with dirt or leaves for an unusual squishy, muddy feeling! Great for graveyards! *Use "Sinister Scents" scent packets Use these to make your guests really feel like they are in the time, place, or setting your scene portrays. Adding this touch will complete your scene helping it become "real" weither it is a carnival, zombie, swamp, graveyard, witch, lab scene or in your concession stand area (to make people hungry), they have scents for you! Some of the scents available are....... popcorn, burnt flesh, decay, bubble gum, haunted house, forest, campfire, bacon, mildew, plus many more! You can purchase the different products from them, one of the most popular is the small or large scent packets. You can purchase a scent dispenser or an attachment for your regular fan to "blow" out the scent or you can tape the top and bottom of the packet just to the front of a fan to get the same effect! Click HERE to goto their online store.