Every haunt needs some rotten ghouls.  The price of these props can be overwhelming, this is why the $7 plastic "Blucky" skeletons are so popular.  The trick is to make these look like expensive rotting corpses.  I took a lot of ideas and came up with this process.  Feel free to try it yourself.

Once you finish applying a latex coating you need to let it sit for a couple of days to dry.  I then painted the whole thing with a "bone" colored spray paint.  Add accents with wood stain and other colors of red and burnt umber with a paint brush to look like bloody flesh
You will need the following:
  • A Blucky or Blucky parts
  • Toilet tissue tore into 2" squares
  • Cotton balls
  • Can of Latex Floor Adhesive
  • Box knife
  • 1/4" Aluminum or copper tubing
  • Sponge brushes for applying the Latex
  • tape
  • Spray glue
  • Bone colored spray paint and accent colors of brush paint
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  • We need to make the skulls more realistic looking

  • Cut out the flat eyes to form new sockets

  • Use the tape to form eye sockets

  • When cutting out the mouth leave a few teeth

  • Spray the skull with spray glue and apply the tissue squares. Overlap the pieces

  • Use the sponge to apply the latex

  • You will need to apply at least two coats
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Anyone who knows anything about a skeleton know that the arms and legs have two bones on the leg and arm sections so we need to transform these to be more realistic. This shows the three steps of the original, cutting the bones, and taping the bones.

  • Cut out a generous amount of the plastic on each side of the plastic bones

  • Use the tape to "close" the pieces together.  Tape the sections together to form two separate bones.

  • Spray the bones with glue and apply the tissue squares. Overlap the pieces

  • Use the sponge to apply the latex

  • You will need to apply at least two coats

  • The picture on the left shows the bones after applying the latex
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Call me crazy but I think ribs are all separated and not one piece. When separating the ribs you have to cut a "pie section" out.  This will give a gab between the ribs.

  • Cut out a generous amount of the plastic on each side of the plastic bone

  • Spray the bones with glue and apply the tissue squares. Overlap the pieces

  • Unravel a cotton ball. Starting at the top shoulder blade I string the cotton down to body.  When finished this will look like dripping flesh or skin.  Be generous, it will down play after applying the latex.

  • Use the sponge to apply the latex. Brush the latex from the top to the bottom.  This helps with the dripping flesh look.

  • You will need to apply at least two coats

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The hands and feet that come with the Blucky are just pathetic.  There isn't much to save.  I used the ankle section of the foot but I threw all of the hands away

Hands:

  • Cut various lengths of tubing for the fingers
  • Crimp the tubing where they would normally be a knuckle. This gives it character by the fingers bending abnormally.
  • Space the fingers and tape them together.
  • I put a piece of foam in the palm to give the hand bulk
  • Use strips of cotton to form knuckles
  • Use the sponge to apply the latex
  • You will need to apply at least two coats

Feet:

  • Cut various lengths of tubing for the toes
  • Crimp the tubing where they would normally be a knuckle. This gives it character by the toes bending abnormally.
  • Put the tubing into the plastic ankle and fill in the gaps with cotton balls and tape.
  • Use strips of cotton to form knuckles
  • Use the sponge to apply the latex
  • You will need to apply at least two coats

 

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