These columns can be used inside or outside your haunted house. They're perfect for displaying pumpkins, Halloween decor, or even a simple potted plant.
For the top of the column, we used an old torilla container and simply cut off the mangoes. The column is a cardboard sonotube that is normally used as a way to pour concrete supports. You can find them at home improvement stores.
Attach the top of the column to the cardboard sonotube form and secure with Gorilla Glue.
Open one side of the pool noodle and slide it into the bottom of the sonotube. Add some gorilla glue to make sure it sticks. Let dry.
Place the sonotube with the pool noodles on a square Styrofoam base. Center the sonotube and then trace its position with a permanent marker. Remove the tube. At the base of the Stryofoam, insert toothpicks a half inch into the traced pattern (image, below).
Coat toothpicks with Gorilla Glue and slide pool noodles over toothpicks. The combination of Gorilla Glue and toothpicks will keep the pool noodles in the Styrofoam base. Let dry.
Cover the entire column with 1/4-inch-thick or smooth Monster mud material. (The Monster Mud contains latex paint which will help make the surface waterproof.) Leave overlapping stripes for texture around the sides of the column, as shown below. Be sure to cover the bottom lid of the tortilla with enough material to hide the printed designs. Let dry.
Get instructions to make Monster Mud.
If your column started out white, apply a base coat of gray paint to the entire piece. You can use a mix of black and white craft paint. If you used the premixed Monster Mud recipe, you may not need a base coat color. Apply random shadows from dark to light over the base layer. (Think of the surface of a multi-colored marble.)
Use a sponge or heaped cheesecloth to gently apply at least two colors to the surface of the column. Some of the base colors still need to show. Use white and brown to create a pale marble color.
Finally, using a brush with a small tip (1/2 or smaller), drag the same colors (white and brown) in random diagonals starting from the top and going down. This will create the long stripes in the faux marble. Let dry.
For an extra layer of detail, use a brush to add drops of diluted brown craft paint. Let the paint run into the large cracks and the sides of the column to add another bit of wear. Faux Moss can also be applied.
Get instructions on how to make faux moss from dryer lint.
