Breakin' the wall, breakin' the wall...

Danielle on the Halloween-L email list was cruel enough to post her Grim just a few days before I started setup in 2007. I HAD to have one, so out to the garage I went.

Materials:
PVC - 3/4" - Amount will depend on how big you make yours, but a 10' length will leave you plenty left over
PVC 3/4" 90 degree connectors - 4
PVC 3/4" "T" connectors - 4
Bucky Skull from Anatomical Chart Company - 1
Bucky Hand from Anatomical Chart Company - 1
Joint Compound - 5 gallons (You will have a LOT left over, but that's how it comes) (something like the bucket in this picture)
Black (or whatever color you want) paint - 1 gallon (Note: Get the cheapest stuff they can make black, or look for the darkest 'Oops' paint they have. Indoor, outdoor, doesn't matter)
Chicken wire (I use the green plastic coated stuff because it doesn't tear my hands up as bad as the bare wire)
Burlap
Heat Gun
Assorted drywall screws
Zip ties
Flat piece of plastic (dropcloth type)
Great Stuff Triple Expanding Foam

Framework's pretty simple... basically a rectangle with a T on top and one on the side. Ignore the T on the bottom... it doesn't do anything. I just reused a framework I had for something else.	For the hand, I cut a channel in the end of the PVC, heated it with the heat gun, flattened it out a bit, and then secured it with hot glue. Screws would also work.
	To make the bracket for the head, I took a T, cut it in half, and then flattened it out by blasting it with the heat gun and putting weights on it until it cools.
After that, I just started cutting pieces of chicken wire and securing it to the framework with zip ties.
Next we mix the Monster Mud. Tip: Remove about a gallon of the joint compound and set it aside... otherwise you'll have a heck of a time keeping it from overflowing. Unfortunately the voice of experience. In theory, you can mix this stuff by hand, but I wouldn't try it. Get yourself a Joint Compound mixer. This is the one I use:
Next, I cut the burlap into the shapes I wanted, and then just dipped it in the Monster Mud mixture, made sure it was saturated, and then squeezed out the excess. Getting the Monster Mud up to your elbows is half the fun... don't worry, it washes off. Of you at least. Not so much your clothes.
	Waves and folds are critical to making your Monster Mud critter look lifelike.
	Tip: when you are joining two pieces of burlap together, you can just smooth the seams over with a little extra monster mud, and the seam dissapears.
	Next, the Great Stuff. USE GLOVES. No, really. If you don't you will regret it. I just went around in a circle a few times, and then laid out the "tentacles". Notice that this is done on the plastic so it should just peel off.
	Finally, paint. Spray paint won't eat Great Stuff like it does extruded polyfoam, so you can just spray it directly. I didn't do a great job, but I had fun.

And that's pretty much it... I did the great stuff late at night, and then lifted it off first thing in the morning. If I had it to do again, I'd probably wait a bit longer, it kinda deformed as it continued to dry.