What People Throw Away

I feel guilty when I look in the garbage.  I look in my garbage and think about stuff I should be composting, recycling (although my wife is good about grabbing that stuff), or just the fact that I'm adding to a landfill somewhere.  I also look at the stuff other people throw away, not to the extent of opening bags of garbage but more of glancing at it.  Many times people throw stuff away that stumps me.  There was the photo album (made me wonder who throws away an album or why it was thrown away), the Christmas tree still wrapped in lights and ornaments (I collected a couple), or the case from a technical school with books, IDs, and tools still in it.

Then there are the times that I find something neat and it just makes me want to look at the garbage even more in the future.  I've mentioned the table I found and refinished, but in the past I also found an old steamer trunk, a rolling metal tool chest with stuff inside, our coffee table, and multiple DVD's, CD's, and books.  I'm especially proud of having salvaged multiple fresnel lenses from big screen t.v.s that people have thrown away.

My latest find?  A gas mask!  It's in good shape but needs to be cleaned.  It's got leaves and dirt on it from sitting on the ground near the dumpster.  My first thought was to use it for a Halloween prop or costume (you have to admit, gas masks are creepy).  My wife mentioned it would be great for a zombie apocalypse.  I think she may have been mocking my taste in movies...

To Do List 2011

There are many things that didn't get done (or even started), but on the positive side I did finish some.  Others were done more as an experiment or as a way to test things yet still accomplish something.  (I know experimenting is a way to learn and practice but I hate to waste material that I had to buy.)

1. I found a table near our dumpster one night.  I looked at it and all the parts seemed to be there.  The legs were off to one side of the top and skirt.  In the pale light, I could guess that the colors were not the best.  We needed a much larger table, so I brought it back to the shop and found that it was in good shape.  It just needed to be put together and refinished.  I painted the legs and skirt and the top was sanded, stained and refinished.

2. I built a stand.  It originally was meant to hold our son's Moses basket but when we no longer needed it, we moved it outside to use as a plant stand.  It currently resides in our bathroom because all our succulents are on it safe from the cold spell South Florida is experiencing.  This was the first project that I really wanted to look nice since it would be inside for a while and I wanted my wife to like it.
3. While my wife was pregnant, she did some work from home.  She wanted to be able to work in our bedroom away from our firstborn but with our room being a tight fit, we couldn't put a desk in there.  I made a desktop that could be clamped to her nightstand.  It created more space for her work laptop, mouse, and monitor.  This was the first time I got to use my router.  I also tried to do curves.  It remains to be stained and finished.  It may eventually turn into something else.

 Other things went unfinished or not even started.  We tiled the main living area of our condo several years ago but I still need to finish the molding in the kitchen and the room dividers.  We need to clear stuff out of the garage that got stored there when our first child was born (so we can get a vehicle in there during hurricanes or so I can use it as a shop the rest of the year).  Then there's the whole list of projects that I would like to do just for the fun of it or because I think they will make our home nicer.

So that being said, here is my list of projects that I am commiting to do in the year 2011.

1. Bookcases:  We've got a ton of books in boxes in the garage and in our bedroom to protect them from the kids.  I'd like to build some bookcases that have doors on at least the lower half.
2. Entertainment stand:  Again something with doors.  I love my DVD collection just as much as the books.  When our first child got old enough, she figured out how to take out the DVD and now we've got lots of scratched movies, not to mention the possibility that she may damage of the electronics.
3. Floor:  Finishing the molding and dividers first, then moving on to steam cleaning the carpets and refinishing the tile (to make it easier to care for).
4. Storage:  This is a multi-project statement.  Since we've moved here, I haven't been happy with various methods of storage that we have done for lack of better ideas/time.  The closets, pantry, garage, laundry room and cabinets (kitchen and bathroom) are all places that I get frustrated with.  I know there has to be a better solution that we can create for each room.  By the time we sell this condo in the future, it may be organized as well as a ship.

There are other projects, such as the cat litter, that I'd like to do but these will be the only ones I'll commit to.  During this coming year I've got a wife, two kids, pets and a home to take care of, along with the possibility that I may be starting my own business.  That's a lot on my plate but next year is the Year of the Rabbit!

Links In The Chain

Here's some links that can be used as great inspiration.  These are only a few that are out there but are some that I keep going back to.

Dave Lowe Design, the blog
Dave Lowe does his own illustrations on his other site, Paraabnormal, but his blog is a great inspiration for inexpensive props for Halloween.
Make Magazine blog
Based on a similar concept to their magazine, this blog is a collection of projects that are a little more technical in nature.  It covers a wide variety of topics, from clothing to electronics.
Propnomicon
The blog writer creates and highlights props built based on the H. P. Lovecraft mythos.  The props are always detailed and realistic, great inspiration even for things outside of Lovecraft's stories.

Candlesticks

I made these candlesticks probably a year ago, but only recently bought candles for them. I decided that using them for Halloween was as good a reason as any to buy cheap candles for them.

Their construction was simple. I bought two different sizes of furniture legs and a square piece of molding from Home Depot. I drilled a hole into the center of the molding to fit the screw that was on the end of the leg. I applied a small amount of glue to the leg and screwed the leg to the molding. After the glue dried, I drilled a series of holes in the end to accommodate the candle. I applied several coats of stain until I was satisfied with the color and put a coat of polyurethane on it to seal it and to keep the wax from sticking.

There were several things I learned from doing these.

1. The molding had a convex center. The drill bit kept slipping off center. I used a nail set to make a divot to then drill into. 
2. I don't have a drill bit or anything that could make a hole for the end of the candle. I drilled one deep (about an inch) pilot hole then went back and drilled multiple holes, starting with a shallow large hole and going smaller the deeper I went. 
3. As the candles started to near the bottom, it occurred to me that these are wood and there wasn't any guard to keep them from burning when the candle got to the bottom. This time, the candle wick fell over into the wax as it neared the end and put itself out. Also, I haven't tried to clean it out yet but the wax has filled the hole. This could be potentially hard to deal with. 
4. Cheap candles drip a lot when in a slight draft (just keep turning the candlestick to get drips on all sides). Really got the look that I wanted.

In the future I may explore other shapes.  I'd like to see if I could make a large floor candelabra but may have to hold off because of the kids.  Maybe I'll try a wall sconce.  In the future, some of these may be made as gifts for friends.

Poison Bottle

In every mad scientist's laboratory, you'll probably encounter dangerous chemicals. I wanted to have a bottle that would have only a poison logo on it. I also had to think about what I would put into it to give the impression that poison was in it.

I chose to start with an empty Tabasco bottle. I figured you would only need a small bottle of poison if it was really that dangerous. Next I had to decide what type of label to put on it. You can make a label to look antique by downloading something someone has already done (search the internet for potion bottle labels) or design one yourself, print it, then age it in several different ways. While I intended to do that for some of the other bottles, I decided to use Dave Lowe's tutorial on sculpting a relief onto the bottle. I used a couple of skull and crossbones images as reference as I designed and sculpted to logo onto the bottle using polymer clay. I baked the bottle at a much lower temperature than instructed by the clay's directions to prevent the bottle from breaking. I left the sculpt unpainted. I added twine to the neck of the bottle (inspired by Dead Spider). I wanted to sculpt something onto the top of the bottle or at least paint it a different color but ran short on time, so the bottle top stayed a classic red.

When I think of classic "movie" style poison, I think of something thick, viscous and black. Blackstrap molasses was the perfect choice. When filled, it looked perfect behind the white skull and crossbones.

Glowing liquids

I wanted to have a mad scientist bottle and jar display as part of my decorations this year. I also wanted to make use of my old black light if possible. There are many substances that glow in UV light. I tried three things this year.

My first and simplest was to combine liquid soap and water. Many sites recommend specific soaps/detergents but I had to find something that I already had to work with. I ended up using a little shampoo. Unlike the clothes detergent I have, it did not cloud or color the water plus it smelled nice ;). I then added a small amount of blue food coloring. In regular light it looked like a basic blue liquid but would then glow when the lights went out and the UV was turned on. My wife liked this one best.

The second I tried was from inspired by a scientific website. Take some fresh spinach, muddle the leaves and add enough rubbing alcohol to cover. Let steep for a few hours and then strain. The liquid should be a dark but clear green. (I did two batches to fill the bottle I chose without diluting the color with more alcohol or water.) Under a black light, the green changes to a deep, almost blood red. The effect was very cool but the way my lighting was set up, it was hard to see. After about two weeks, I noticed the green was slowly turning brown. I went ahead and dumped it out to try something else so I didn't get any photos but will try to get some later.

The last experiment I did was based on several recommendations found on the web using highlighters. I bought a four color pack at Wal-Mart because I wanted as many colors as I could get (if it worked). I took the highlighter apart and soaked the insert in cup of hot water (others have suggested alcohol). The blue and green didn't work as well as I hoped but the yellow was intense. It was so bright it overshadowed everything else that glowed. Next year, I'll have to dilute it down a little.

Once you decide on a liquid, you'll have to put it in an appropriate bottle. I've had several in my shop that I've had various other plans for, so I just pulled those out. Specifically, I used a mini sake bottle, a Chambord bottle, a Martinelli's apple bottle, and a Orangina bottle. All chosen for their shape and with their labels removed. If I had more time, I would've finished the bottles with faux antique scientific labels and maybe some other customization. I think I did well with the little time that I was able to put into them.

Halloween 2010

This Halloween was the first year that I really did something to decorate. Prior years we had gotten a small collection of odd and ends that we considered Halloween related. A few Halloween Barbies, a Zero and Jack that my wife's work produced, and some random miscellaneous things come out as our decorations in past years. This year I decided to spend a little and get a few more things. There were restrictions. I had to watch the budget (which I did spend a little more than originally intended), there could be no reference to anything referred to as evil in the Bible (e.g. witches, devils or similar things) and everything had to be kid friendly (no blood).

I got a little carried away. I've gotten inspired by a variety of blogs and sites describing how to make your own decorations. So I ended up spending a little more than the Mrs. would have preferred. You've got to start with something and while I have tools, I didn't have much in the way of supplies. So I bought some spider webbing, a bag of bugs/skeletons/bats, and a Blucky at Big Lots. At Michael's, I bought a giant spider, battery powered tea lights and some foam pumpkins. Later, I stopped into Party City and couldn't resist some squishy eyeballs and a plastic skeleton garland. I picked up some rubber worms (fishing lures), highlighters, candles and white Sculpy at Wal-Mart. More about how all these items were used in follow up posts. (Trying to take advantage of post Halloween sales, I also bought a Michael Myers mask, wighead, prop hands and a Midnight Syndicate cd). Total for Halloween (other than pumpkins for pie, Halloween themed drinks for the adults and candy) came to about $150. I try to be detailed on this list not to annoy the reader but more to remind me what I spent. My wife would have liked it if we spent less but she justified it saying that out of the ten years we've been married, we have spent very little on Halloween.

I have always had a do-it-yourself bug, though. Following Halloween, I have discovered sites like Stolloween that makes use of papier mache to make all of the decorations for very little money investment. So next year, my plans are to maybe pick up another Blucky or electrical/mechanical parts and everything else be made by yours truly.