DIY Halloween Reaper

We made a new guy to creep our front yard.  He turned out pretty cool.  A stone-like Grimm Reaper to haunt our cemetery at night. Below you'll find instructions to make your own.  It was pretty straight forward to make, but make sure you have two people to help drape the fabric.

Supplies:

For the body:

One foam head (from craft store)

About 12' of 1" - 1 1/2" PVC pipe (Habitat for Humanity Restore had plenty, for cheap!)

Either an umbrella stand, or 6 feet of PVC that is one size larger than used for the body

Two 90 degree PVC elbows ( shoulders) and one cross fitting for neck

Optional but recommended: Two 45 degree PVC elbows (gives a more realistic shape to arms)

PVC adhesive (to glue PVC pieces)

Hacksaw (to cut PVC)

Chicken Wire

Foam Pool Noodles or foam insulation from the plumbing section of hardware store

To make the coverings for the reaper:

5 yards of Gauze fabric or 1 Gray King Sheet for cloak 

Two yards of canvas fabric for shawl

To make monster mud (enough for 3-4 reapers:

 One five gallon bucket (mixing bucket)

1 gallon of Black paint

5 gallons All Purpose Joint Compound

Optional but recommended: Mixing bit (find it in the painting section)

Thompson's water seal for masonry (waterproofing)

Plastic Sheeting for ground to protect your surroundings

Build your prototype: 

We went very minimalistic with the body shape, just using 90 degree elbows for the shoulders. With the next reaper, we will also use 45 degree elbows for the...elbows. If you don't have pool noodles lying around, the plumbing section will have nice foam pieces to bulk up the arms.

After cutting and dry fitting the PVC, follow the instructions for PVC adhesive to glue the pieces together, posing as you want it (will it be holding a scythe? a Lantern? Just standing ominously?)

Use the chicken wire to provide a rough body shape. Pay special attention to the shoulders and clavicle area, as the PVC looks too blocky if you don't provide some curves.

Dry fit the clothes to get the look you want. We used lots of safety pins to get the shape right, it took a couple of tries. In the end we just cut a hole through the sheet and draped most of the sheet over the front, and pinned folds around the back to give a more streamlined look.

Prepare for some heavy lifting, as you prepare to apply the "monster mud", which is just a 5:1 mixture of all-purpose joint compound to the cheapest black or grey latex paint you can find. 6 gallons will be enough for at least three full sized reapers, or some other Halloween projects. Now is a good time to make sure that your PVC form is very stable; otherwise it'll tip right over when you lay the mud-soaked sheets on the body.

To prepare monster mud, pour about 2.5 gallons of the joint compound and 0.5 gallons of the paint into a new bucket.

Mix the joint compound and black paint in a large bucket and mix with mixer attachment on your drill.

Now you can dip your first sheet layer (the robe) into the monster mud. Dunking the entire sheet in the bucket won't work; instead dip piece by piece, then sandwich the pieces together to quickly and efficiently spread the monster mud. Remove as much as you can from the sheet to reduce the weight, but it will still be quite heavy.

Now lift up the sheet and carefully place it on the body form. Adjust the layout, and try not to tip it over. Then wait. Let it dry out overnight, then adjust the layers to give a more robe-like appearance, pinning up the ends around the back. Add folds and creases to give a more detailed appearance, and allow to dry for a few days.

After the first layer is mostly dry, repeat with the second layer (canvas or gauzy cloth). This will be lighter as it is smaller in area, and doesn't absorb nearly as much monster mud, but be sure that this won't tip over your reaper either! Then wait again.

After a few days, the monster mud should be dry, and it will feel like papier mache. Apply a nice layer of water seal over everything exposed, to protect against bad weather.

To mount on your lawn, you can either use an umbrella stand, or you can just drive a 6 foot piece of PVC pipe that is barely larger (internal diameter) than your reaper body (external diameter), about 2 feet into the ground. The reaper will slide right into the PVC piece and lean eerily.

Add filigree like a solar powered lamp, glowing eyes, a scythe, etc. 

When night fell, we think adding a little solar spot light will help illuminate him at night.  Can't wait to see if people think he's real on Halloween night. 

Happy Haunting!  🎃

xo
Cathleen