Haunt at Great Oak

This is a brief explanation of how we created our bride, and how you could create your own. Please keep in mind that this is a stationary build and does not have any effects other than the glow, if a black light is used.

Materials
Electrical wire, or similar for the frame and shape - Required
Styrofoam wig head - Required
Sheer fabric - Required
Fake flowers - Optional
Hot glue gun - Optional, but highly recommended
Temporary face tattoos - Optional
Black light - Optional
Smart plugs - Optional

You can either build a base for the ghost from wire, make a different type of base completely or buy one. You will just need to make sure you check your measurements to ensure that the base will not be visible from the outside.

Next you will need to build an outline of a wedding dress while envisioning where the seams and/or boning for the dress might be located. This includes adding on the sleeves, which you will need to use four points to have it appear properly. You will also need to add loops around the sleeves at different points in order to help give the sheer fabric a more circular shape, elbows and wrists are definite places.

Once you are happy with the overall framework of the bride, cut some pieces of the sheer fabric to hang from the inner part of the frame to give the ghost more depth. Next, you will need to attach more sheer fabric to the frame, starting with the torso and working your way to the arms and down to the wrists. You will want excess fabric for the arms/sleeves to simulate the hands of the ghost. We used a hot glue gun at the connection points for added stability to the frame too.

If you are attaching a bouquet, then you will want to add a couple of wires through the fabric where you would like the bouquet to appear to float, between the ghostly hands.

Give the styrofoam head whatever type of face you would like it to have, temporary face tattoos are a quick and easy method, while keeping in mind what type of lighting you will be using for it. If a black light will be in use, then you might want to go to a dark location and use the black light while working on it to understand what your end result will look like. If you are using temporary face tattoos, you should cut out each section individually show they can be applied in smaller parts.

I would recommend adding a piece of wire that is sticking up from the neck area to push the styrofoam head onto, in order to prevent it from accidentally falling off, if it gets bumped.

If you are making a bride, then you might want to add the wreath to the top of the head prior to adding the veil. The veil is just a piece of sheer fabric that is draped over the front of her and really only needs to go a few inches below the shoulders.

Placing a black light in the room with the bride can make her glow at night. If you are able to place the black light in the window sill then that will give the most direct light to your bride.

Home automation for your bride. If you are using a black light, you might want the black light to come on only at certain hours of the day. You can plug the black light into a smart plug and the magic happens daily with minimal intervention.