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| Scarecrow paint went pretty much the same for The Grumble as it has for our corpses except he's a lot more orange. Or, he would become orange after the green "primer" coats were dry. Above are two pictures of his electrics access hatch. I cut a hole in the back of his head just big enough that I could replace a light bulb when needed. I then covered the hole with overlapping skin "flaps". They camouflage the hatch and provide protection from the elements. Just lift them up to reach inside. The lamp is fixed with wire to the PVC pipe running through the center of his head. I happened to have several feet of split loom tubing (flexible plastic tubing slit down one side) that I used to protect the lamp power cord. This I taped to his back and painted. It looked like just another vine coming out of his spine. If you wanted to do a better job of hiding the power cord, you could wire your scarecrow before the paper mache work begins. Then just run the wire out his....um....from the bottom of his torso. |
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How you paint your scarecrow is a matter of personal preference. I start with dark colors, usually dabbed on with a sponge or paper towel, then work up to lighter colors. Highlights can be brought out by dry-brushing the tops of ridges and bumps.
Dry-brushing is a very useful painting technique. Load your brush, then wipe most of the paint off. Now, lightly drag the brush across the surface. High areas will pick up paint while lower areas won't. This is a great way to make ridges and wrinkles stand out. Make sure that the darker-colored coat beneath is dry before you try this highlighting technique.
After painting was complete, I sprayed several layers of sealant. It is imperative that you seal your scarecrow if he will be spending much time outdoors. Mine was outside for four weeks. I use an acrylic floor sealer that does a great job of keeping moisture from saturating the skin. |
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| After a successful light test, I dressed the scarecrow in a black trench coat. It had been aged using scissors, sandpaper, and not a little effort. Aging clothes manually is kind of fun, but you have to put some real elbow grease into it. I don't remember it being this hard back when I was a kid. All my jeans just seemed to sprout holes in the knees. |
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