Mini haunted village tutorial Part 1

This project’s tutorial is kind of long so I have decided to break it up into 2 parts. Today I’m going to show you, step-by-step, how to prep everything so that in part 2 I can show you how to finish everything.

Let’s get started with the supplies you’re gonna need today:

Supplies:

1×6″ wood board (measuring at least 18″ in length)
12×12″ sheet of aluminum (Home Depot)
pencil
tape measure
miter saw
jig saw
safety glasses
tin snips
belt sander (optional)
haunted house stencil (cut file at the end of the post)

Step 1: Cut the blocks for your mini haunted village houses

Use the tape measure and pencil to measure and mark 4″ from the end of your board. Now from that mark, measure out 4.25″ and mark it.

Cut your board, with a straight cut, at these marks. You now have 2 blocks cut for 2 of your houses.

This next block of wood we are going to cut will be made with a 25* angle cut. Measure from the edge of your wood, 5.5″ and mark it. Next, you are going to cut the wood with a 25* angle. One side will measure approx 5.5″ and the other side will measure appox. 3″. Go ahead and cut this piece of wood.

Step 2: Cut the roof top of your mini haunted village houses

Lay out your vinyl stencil and kind of trace the line that the stencil shows you for the roof. Do this for both of the smaller houses.

Use your jig saw to cut the lines you just traced.

Step 3: Cut your tin roofs

Measure out and draw your roof tops on your sheet metal. I used a sharpie.
2 measuring 1×6″
1 measuring 1.5×6″

Use your tin snips like scissors, and cut along the lines you just drew.

***TIP*** clean off the excess sharpie with rubbing alcohol and a cotton ball.

After the roofs are cut and cleaned, you will want to sand the edges of the metal and the corners. I did mine on a belt sander, because I have it and can use it, but you can scrape it on the concrete sidewalk or driveway and pretty much get the same results. This step just makes them look a little more weathered and worn. If you do not like that look, skip this step!

Because, I wanted my roofs to look really old I used a hammer and just hit them everywhere. There is NO right way to do this, just hit it! …and enjoy it!

Now that you have the main part of the houses ready, lets finish them up! Follow along with me as I show you how to finishe the Mini Haunted Village in the tutorial Part 2. (coming soon!)