Ghosts

When I showed friends the picture of a ghost that appears on the homepage of this site and asked them to guess how I did

it, nobody came close. This is a truly amazing effect that is low in cost, but takes some time, skill, and perseverance. So what is the ghost made of? Chicken wire. Really. There are many sites on the web that discuss how to do this and show some amazing examples. I've included those I made use of at the end of this post. If you decide to attempt a chicken wire ghost, leave yourself plenty of time (it took me a full day to create this ghost, and, while I'm no artist, I've taken some sculpting classes). If you don't wear gloves, you will likely cut yourself at some point. The ends of cut chicken wire are very sharp, and you will have a lot of them. Definitely wear eye protection, especially when you are cutting the wire, but best if you wear it all the time. The wire will swing and twist as you sculpt it, sometimes in unpredictable directions. You will need plenty of room to allow the sculpture to take on the filmy illusion rather than being recognizable as wire. The illusion will not work in a small yard. That said, I love my ghost and I am planning to make more.

Pros: Amazing illusion, fully custom

Cons: Takes time and patience, looks best during the day (I haven't figured out the best way to make the illusion visible at night, but I have some ideas. I will update this post if I find anything I like.) Also, chicken wire sculptures are difficult to keep standing up. I ultimately tied mine to a tree, but I think staking it to the ground might also work.

Websites:

http://www.wackyarchives.com/offbeat/easy-do-it-yourself-ghost.html

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/AUNYI0WQQz7Msb_Bi5HZ7YGdixuS5SbITDwdp5EWhc6H-Hl-68ijXec/

http://www.duskyswondersite.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/wire-art-cow.jpg (For a haunted farm!! - Hecate)