Always great when I'm flipping through flickr.com and I see those red eyes...it's becoming an annual tradition.
Click below for the photo series...
I see a lot of people beating themselves up over keeping the same elements in their Haunt year to year, though I've never seen any problem whatsoever with that. When I was young, I'd set out on Halloween night HOPING I'd see the same stuff I loved the year before.
So change is not necessarily a good thing in the world of Yard Haunting.
My two cents.
12 comments:
Thanks Rot - those are some words of encouragement to us stuck-in-a-rut haunters everywhere!
I think we're cursed with thinking about and looking at our props 365 days a year. Trick or treaters see it once a year for only a few minutes, if not seconds. I can recall a year a small witch prop wasn't where it was supposed to be at a favorite house in my old neighborhood. It was devastating.
And my later years are definitely going to be spent reusing old props. I'll change lighting and pumpkins and other things... no apologies from this guy.
Those are words of encouragement.
I find it very hard to do the same thing every year though, just like doing things differently each time. I don't want people to get bored with seeing the same thing all of the time. I may use the same props, but put them in different positions/scenarios. Like my bucky skeletons, I have been piecing them together each year, ex: arms and legs. Some time I might tear them apart to use them in a different scene.
And cant agree anymore, we haunters are cursed with thinking and looking at our props all of the time.
To show my compulsion to my Haunter's Curse, the ghost was added at the final minute. It was supposed to be an indoor prop, turned it into an outdoor one.
Haunter's curse...... should be added to the Haunter's Dictionary.
Yeah, I think the kids are just happy that a house in their hood has made the effort to put something out. And to see an old familiar prop may fun and something of Halloween tradition. Your Goon is an example. I had a lot of fun reusing a few props this year. The kimono vamp, Ash vamp, etc. just glued some teeth to them and gave some things a makeover. I do feel overly guilty throwing somethings away, so if I can display a prop in another area and change the lighting, then it keep things exciting. The older I get, the harder it is for me to spend a lot on halloween. And I feel like i may be on a lifetime show soon- Halloween Hoarders - Man dies from Halloween prop avalanche in his garage.
Yeah...I kicked the Creepy Family out if the basement...built a shack for them in the backyard.
The concept is getting old but I can never get rid of the "family"...I just need to rework the basement. This way I "feel" like its a change.
I agree!! I have some props that I've been using for at least 10 years or more and just by pairing them with a different one than the year before or moving it's location people see it in an entirely different way and think it's new. And by changing the pose and location you can create a narrative that continues to evolve each year. I have some that are my absolute favorites that I was unable to put out this year because of the horrible weather we had. It just didn't feel the same not having them out there.
NoahFentz, you can't get rid of Sally. I would miss her terribly.
Jay....
Never get rid of her but possibly make her a whole body. She is only a head and shoulders. That is why you only see her wrapped in a blanket or with an extra large hoodie. One day you might just see her standing up!
I agree with my fellow posters here, that it is hard to find that balance between keeping a "tradition" and keeping us from boredom. I think the trick is to keep some elements from year-to-year, while adding to the overall display, or rearranging those items that are always a part of it. In some cases, giving a prop a makeover is all that is needed (and, sometimes, it's a necessity). This past year, due to the move and weather issues, I was forced to scale back. In some ways, it was a blessing, because I had to use props that hadn't been in the haunt for several seasons. Many of these had been "retired" previously, due to upgrades or just a shifting of theme over the years, but using them this time around led to an overall "old school" motif. I quite enjoyed the simpler, more whimsical look of the whole thing. What I'll do next year, I can't say, but I do know that at least a few elements from this year will be kept for 2016.
yeah, i am really a sucker for tradition.
people that live in the hardcore part of downtown, don't usually have much outside space to decorate for Halloween......but the LOVERS of the Holiday always find a way to shower Halloween with proper love.
there are 2 houses, that have a very special place in my heart.
one..is a house (up in the Fairmount section of town) that has a pretty large front garden with a giant tree...& man oh man, what they do EVERY year is absolutely beautiful & SO Old School. it's the same display each year, but...it's also slightly, ever so slightly, different too. like, something small will be added or placement will be a little different. but yeah, it's the SAME every year & i LOVE it tooooo shreds. i call it, "My Halloween House". i pass by it all the year thru, i see it in every season & dress, all the while dreaming of it's October best. i love THAT house/family.
two..is a townhouse (just a few blocks away) with wonderful window displays. they do the same EXACT display each year. they hang old school 3D--skulls, white twinklies, small stacks of jacks (like that Wyeth painting) & with the way everything is placed, right above the decadent blooms in the flower boxes, the result is SO Victorian & haunted &....spooky too!!! for some reason, it always makes me think of the original Suspiria trailer (with the skull & the lil poem)... : D
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJ1jmAVbNgc
anyways...
i pray for the return of these loves each year & i DON"T ever want them to stop, or change. they're like a permanent part of MY October..<3
thanks for sharing that.
VERY cool
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