Summer Slaycation Update #11

 

Here is some current news as to what I have been up to for those wondering:  http://kidschlocko.blogspot.com/2011/09/summer-slaycation-11-women-rastlin-and.html

I also did manage to finally field test my dollar store budget peel-and-stick blood, as you can see from the pic above, and the results were decent enough if shot right.

DIY FAKE STONE WALLS

Here is a nifty way to make more realistic stone walls for your next home haunt or even a mad scientist lab flick. Full details here.

Dumpster Diving Finds: Mad Scientist/Steampunk Goggles

For those wondering of dumpster diving for props and parts is even worth it?  Here is some proof; I found these goggles in someone's trash.

They look like a pair of mad scientist goggles, don't they?  I am really digging the cracked lens.  This thing has tons of character.  Sometimes dumpster diving pays off. 

DIY Steampunk Airship Goggles

The perfect thing for all airship pirates and mad scientists out there.  Go here for full instructions.

MEDUSA'S HEAD

Theatrical prop artist/maker Eric Hart has posted this neat how-to look at his prop build of Medusa's severed head which was made for the stage. Go here for more details.

INSPIRATION: ALIEN LEGACY BEHIND THE SCENES

HOW TO BUILD A BREAK-AWAY PHONE

From Eric Hart's excellent blog is this how-to look on building a break-away phone.  Go here for the full details.

RECYCLED HOLLYWOOD

It's not a big secret that lots of times low budget filmmakers will re-use their own props, costumes, sets, and stock footage for other films.  Troma Studios is a great example of this technique. 

However, from time to time even larger studios have been known to re-use props from other films for other TV programs and movies. 

To discover yourself more on how this technique has saved filmmakers money go over to Den of Geek which has listed a great top-50 list of Hollywood re-used props and scenes examples.  Go here for the full list and the next time you watch a film or TV show see if you can spot any props that have been re-used.

BUILD A FLYING DROID

This has to be one of the coolest tutorials from Indy Mogul.

MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000: BEHIND-THE-SCENES

Here is a collection of some neat behind-the-scenes vids on from the cult show Msytery Science Theater 3000.  What makes these videos so great is that we finally get to see a bit about how the puppets were made and worked alongside a look inside the props room.

PROP INSPIRATION: BUSTER GRAVESLEY

From the fantastic propmaking site Stolloween comes this utterly amazing prop build which was made from recyclable parts including a box that once contained a Rock Band video game system.  Full details here.

HOW TO BUILD CHEAP SKULLS

Here is a nifty vid I stumbled upon over at Youtube on building cheap no-budget skulls.:

As a bit of caution Expanding Foam can be a bit dangerous if not used properly.  Remember to use gloves and goggles to protect your skin and eyes and of course use adult supervision for you youngsters out there.

HOW TO BUILD A ROCKET PACK!

I am in total awe at this how-to video from Indy Mogul.  It's a tutorial on how to build a rocket pack!  It's straight out of the serials and comics that I love dearly.  Now I just gotta write a Rocket Man-esque script so I can have a reason to build my own.

MAKE YOUR OWN VINES

I stumbled upon this nifty tutorial on DIY artificial jungle vines for exterior set dressing. Go here for the details. (via Haunt Forum)

BUILDING AN ALIEN POD

Here is a nifty tutorial on how to build an alien cryo pod. It's the perfect thing for those needing one for that next sci-fi flick or just to have a conversation piece in the living room. Full details over here.

BUILD YOUR OWN PROP DRINKING CANS

Eric Hart has posted a neat article on how he had to create fake beer cans filled with something non-alcoholic that actually looked real and even gave a nice pressurized hiss as they were cracked opened. He even goes as far as to show two seperate methods as to how this prop build can be achieved. Go here for the details.

BUILD A RETRO CONTROL PANEL

Here is a nifty tutorial on building a retro control panel that actually lights up! It's the perfect thing for that next sci-fi or mad scientist movie. Full details here.

GET FREE STUFF FROM SPARKFUN

Sparkfun.com is doing something truly awe inspiring, ballsy, and downright awesome. On Januarary 7th, 2010 they are giving away free stuff. This is a great way to get me hooked to their goods. In the meantime be sure to support them by buying their components and helping yourself by creating some kick-ass props.

Snipped from Sparkfun.com:

You can blame it on Chris Anderson's book Free. After reading his book, I started kicking around the idea of what we can do that's 'free'. Sure, we have free bits (open-source hardware designs, available code, etc.), but we don't have free physical widgets. Now combine that with our love of creating shear havoc (AVC, C&D letter, Portable Rotary Phone), and you get Free Day.

Nobody gives away a free physical thing. There's always a catch. So up front: you have to pay shipping. Other than that, it's open season.

• $100 max per household
  


• You pay shipping


• Limit of $100,000 in giveaways for the day
  


• Starts 9AM MST January 7th, 2010


• Ends 11PM MST January 7th, 2010 (or when we hit $100k, whichever comes
  first)
  


• Rainchecks for popular items will be
  allowed

Why are we doing this? It's not that I want to create hell for
the shipping, production, and the IT teams at SparkFun. There's a multitude of
reasons.

First and foremost, we want to give back. We've had a stellar
year in 2009, and it's all because of you. So please, have a beer (or a Stepper Motor
Driver) on us.

Second: We wish we could sponsor more groups
but we don't have a sound way of selecting appropriate projects. Because we
can't afford to say yes to everyone, we have to say no to everyone. It pains us
every time we have to do it. So this is a way for us to evenly enable all the
students and great minds of the world to pickup a $100 worth of free gear. Go
for it!

Third: Free Day will possibly create a maelstrom of site traffic,
the likes of which our servers have not seen. At the beginning of December,
2009, SparkFun will be graduating out of its high-chair and moving into a server cluster. We are excited to
have the breathing room, and Free Day will help us evaluate just how much
breathing room we're getting. We'll do everything in our power to keep the site
up but please understand that the site may go down.

Fourth: We turn 7
years old! SparkFun is now over 70 employees and is the ripe old age of 49 (in
business and dog years). We'd like to celebrate our birthday with a
party.

More nitty gritty details:

• There is no special code to type in. But you get only one order on Free Day, so spend it well!


• Only one $100 credit per household. We ask that you respect this limit and
  don't try to abuse this gift.
  


• There is no minimum or maximum order. You can spend more than $100, the
  balance of which will be charged to your method of payment.


• Only Credit Card and Paypal orders will be eligible for the $100 credit. We
  don't want to have people tying up inventory with POs, wire transfers, checks in
  the mail, or lost faxes.


• You will see whether or not your order qualifies for a credit in the
  checkout process.


• Free Day does not apply to our distributors. Sorry!


• Gift Cards cannot be bought on Free Day.
  


• Every order isn't going to ship on Free Day, or for a few days after. We've
  got extra tape guns on hand, but please be patient and give us some time to
  catch up!


• We are ratcheting up inventory for Free Day, but backorders (a.k.a.
  rainchecks) are allowed on most items (some items we simply can't get
  anymore). We'll get you your goodies
  just as soon as we can get them back in stock.
  

As we usually do things here at SparkFun, these rules are open for revision. We may need to tweak
them as our astute users point out how silly we are. If we have to make any
changes to the rules, we'll let you all know here on our homepage. So mark
January 7th, 2010 on your calendars - it's Free Day!

CREATE A DIGITAL HAND SCANNER EFFECT

Here is a neat tutorial that I have stumbled upon for After Effects on how to create a digital hand scanner effect. It's the perfect thing for anyone doing a sci-fi or spy genre flick. Details and more here.

YET ANOTHER COOL BRAIN IN THE JAR PROP

Man, The Mad Lab, is one of the coolest sites out there for propmakers like us. Here is yet another Brain In the Jar tutorial which has more a steampunk to it.