The Necromancer's Staff

With barely a day to spare, the latest MHC Masquerade Ball accessory piece has been completed! Just a quick teaser photo of The Necromancer's Staff, a nearly 7-foot-tall walking staff complete with a lit lantern, rusted chime bells, antler fragments and a rotted skull...

This piece was created as a prop accessory for this year's Midwest Haunters Convention Masquerade Ball. I was planning on reusing an old costume, but had wanted to add something with a bit of flash, as the Ball tends to bring out some truly amazing work. The idea of an illuminated staff came to mind, so I ran with it.

The staff itself is a branch that had fallen out of a tree in my neighborhood right after a storm. I found it laying in the street as I was on a bike ride with my son. I liked the shape and size, so I ended up dragging it back home! I sanded it down a bit and then added the arm section which was a piece of old, dried out wood that I had in a kindling pile. I used 2 screws and then glued and wrapped the entire joint, detailing it with burlap strips, jute rope, Spanish moss and strands of Creepy Cloth. 

The lantern was an old IKEA Rotera outdoor lantern that I had used in a previous costume accessory. I simply tied it to the arm piece, again detailing it with Spanish moss and Creepy Cloth. I lit the lantern with a battery-operated pair of LED lights that I had won on an episode of Haunters Hangout earlier in the year, and then covered it with a patch of Spanish moss inside the lantern.

I also got two pieces of deer antler from my aunt and uncle, who are both avid outdoorsmen. They were the perfect size, so I just tied them to either side, letting both pieces dangle freely.

The skull was one of my cast foam skulls that was sitting around unused. I simply drilled down through the top of it and slid the skull down the top of the staff.

And then finally, I knew that I wanted to have some sort of sound when the staff moved, so I ended up getting two packages of "jingle bells" from Michael's. I spray painted each to look rusted, then attached 13 of them throughout the top of the staff. It sounds a bit like Santa, but I'm still happy with the way it sounds and I'm really happy with the way this thing looks!

Come take a look at The Necromancer's Staff (as well as the rest of my costume!) in person this Saturday night at the Midwest Haunters Convention Masquerade Ball in Columbus, Ohio. I'll be jingling all about, so come dance, buy me a drink or simply say hello!