Haunted House Wall Diarama (Not for Faint-Hearted)

Haunted houses can be fun, but only if you're not the one living in them. So if you're brave enough to want to own one then look no further. This instructable will have you admiring your very own haunted house wall diorama no matter what the season.

You're excited to begin. The thought of making something so utterly creepy and terrifying has all but consumed your thoughts. However, you must first become acquainted with the style (not the type) of home you wish to transform. The type is going to be apartment, condo, single, duplex, etc. The architectural style usually refers to a geographical location: Cape Cod, Antebellum, Ranch, Mid-Century Modern are just to name a few. The following links should be able to help you out.

https://99percentinvisible.org/article/style-house...

https://www.designevolutions.com/architectural-st...

Boxes come in all shapes and sizes much to your dismay if you're ever caught moving them. They can range from tiny and slim to gigantic. Remember, you are not aiming to recreate the Sistine Chapel here. The end goal is to have something that fits comfortably on your wall while still managing to attract attention. Refer back to your architectural types if you must. Use one of the box's solid, non-split sides as your foundation. Lastly, whether your home is more taller than it is wide, or vice-versa try to keep your dimensions under two square foot but no less than a foot. It looks more visually appealing on the wall.

Your main arsenal for this cardboard monstrosity will consist of four items:

1). Duct tape- used to hold any sections together for gluing.

2). Hot glue gun with plenty of glue sticks - creates a strong bond.

3). Craft sticks (plenty of these things too) - decorates the facade.

4). Assortment of spray paint in a range of somber pastels: black, white, gray, olive green.

Note: you can always add colors to your own liking. There is no set formula.

Aside from your previously assigned "home" work of reviewing architectural styles, you must also remember that this haunted house spectacle will be hanging from your wall like a picture. So as such, a little pre-planning is needed. First and foremost, remind yourself that you're only using the first inch or so of the box depth-wise. You're not hanging the whole bloody thing there so someone can slam into it while gathering their midnight snack. It is going to be noticeable and not obtrusive.

If you're like me, math is not your thing. But this step is an important one. You are going to have to somehow import all those many windows, doors, and whatever else of your chosen domicile onto your cardboard facade. It will be like pulling teeth for some and it's understandable if you just want to wing it. But if you are going to just be "eyeballing it" then at least try using a craft stick. After all, they're going to be on there eventually so might as well make sure they're going to fit between that window and front door before any glue is applied.

While you are whittling away at your box, remember not to be such a neat freak. The main body of your home should fit as much as possible on one clean box side. Any overage will have to come from some scrap pieces still lying around on your fine Persian rug. After all is said and done there still needs to be a roof (and quite possibly a chimney) on it some way, somehow.

By this time the house should have acquired various puncture wounds for windows and doors. While the facade should look more like a house by this time, you want to definitely make sure you that the depth is still there. If not then it's going to be up to you to add it. Like previously mentioned, you want some depth but not enough for your masterpiece to be accidentally knocked off the wall. An inch of depth all around should suffice. You should have had some left over whenever you cut off one of the sides of your initial box. Nothing's there but a flat panel from the box? Then it looks like you'll be adding some depth by taping some pieces to it and gluing.

Once you have the front done, your sides on, and an attempted roof line, then what you need is to apply a coat of paint that not only makes any crevices (that will show up later) stand out, but conceals any mistakes you might have made so far. What's the perfect color for this? Why it's black of course. I suggest using spray paint. Take the house as well as a section of unused newspaper to a well-ventilated area- preferably outside. Then hose your house down front, back, and sides.

With the most painful tasks out of the way, you've reached the summit in this dioramic mountain. You can go ahead and plug in your glue gun. Just make sure to keep it out of your way. And while you're at it might as well keep it away from anything flammable to play it safe. Start placing your craft sticks on your house. DO NOT GLUE THEM JUST YET! You're going to get some more measurements for cutting them down to size. Those dull, Kindergarten school scissors are not recommended at this point. You are going to need something manly for this task. The following is a link to something I use to get r done.

https://www.micromark.com/MicroLux-Mini-Miter-Cut-...

Once you have made absolutely certain of your calculations and cutting, you may proceed with gluing down the craft sticks.

This is the part where you can really get creative. This is your monster. You labored for hours to get to this point. Enjoy the fruits of your labor. Return to the great outdoors and spray away. Age it up. Weather it down. There is no exact science regarding this step. Just make sure to do it in a well-ventilated area.

Take a deep sign of relief. It's all over with but the crying once those ghosts invade your miniature house of horrors. What you're going to do now is to find something sturdy from which it can hang. Once located and applied, perform an initial suspension test close to the ground by holding onto the hanging material with one hand and your diorama with the remaining. Now release your hold on it and slowly let your diorama dangle. If whatever you have decided to use for hanging manages to break consider yourself lucky and start over again.

Well, you've always wanted your little house to be the center of attention. It has managed to hang successfully on your wall amidst your horror collection. Now what do you do. You take it to the next level by adding lights, maybe some bushes, and whatever else to get the point across. This is one bad little house. It deserves some respect.