Bat Cage Prop


What witch, warlock, wizard or weirdo like me wouldn't want to have a wee bat as a pet? Since the local animal shelter doesn't have any to adopt, I decided to make my own.


I was inspired to make this prop by the great Disney artist Marc Davis, based on his unused concept sketch for the Haunted Mansion.


My version doesn't come close to having the personality Davis' has, but it was really easy to make with cheap materials and took no time at all. Here's how mine came together.

First, I prepped the bat for hanging around. The one I used was a better than average plastic toy found at Michaels. His outstretched wings wouldn't fit inside the cage (plus they didn't have a relaxed look), so I folded them over and super glued. A couple of binder clips held them in place until the glue set up.


I made the bat's perch out of a cut pencil and some wire, then painted black. Once dry, the bat was super glued to the perch.



The bones inside the cage were made out of Crayola Model Magic. Not anatomically accurate, but they sell the idea. Once dry I gave them a wash of dark brown acrylic.


The cage itself was found at Home Goods last year, and already had a great Gothic look. I filled the base with some moss and added the bones. An "S" hook was hot glued inside the top dome of the cage to easily hang the perched bat from.



15 comments:

  1. Outstanding! Nice to see more "How-To" from you. I know the job keeps you busy, but any plans yet for Halloween?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lots of plans, but my life has changed, and my haunt will be moving to a new location this year. Details pending.

      Delete
  2. Awesome!!! Thanks for sharing the how-to's :0)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Nicely done Oh Master! I did my own version a few years back after I stumbled across a neat gothic-looking black birdcage at Target. Fun stuff!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Birdcages seem to be very popular these days. Happy to find almost everywhere.

      Delete
  4. So simple, and yet so brilliant. You are indeed the master of this artform.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Very cool idea, turned out great! Been following along for a couple years, love the blog. Hope everything is well with you and in this case change is good!

    ReplyDelete
  6. This is awesome! Would love to make this but haven't seen any kind of cage like that at the local stores. Did find some stuff at Home Depot called steel lath that can be cut & formed (maybe with a quick coat of paint too) into this shape and maybe top with a finial? I might give it a go - it's cheap material (27" x 8 feet for under $9) so worth a shot for this fantastic display. I'm prepping for a goth apothecary / curiosity shop type Halloween party. Thanks for sharing - just found your blog & could spend days here! :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. LOVE this!!! Can't wait to make my own version and see what the grandma's think! As always, thank you! :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. I love this! It would be perfect for my indoor theme this year. I'm having difficulty finding a good looking bat though. Where at Michael's did you find yours? I've looked but no luck.

    ReplyDelete