fortuneteller_scene2You Will Need:
Styrofoam
Fabric ties
Monster-mud
Craft paints
Serated Knife
Wood Burning Tool or
2x4 wood for stucture
Scrap flat wood for hidden, interier shelves
Wood Screws
Fabric & rope

Optional:
Small TV and DVD player
Pepper's Ghost video
Plexiglass with frame, to keep it staight when angled
or Props to place in the open area of the curtains

The Tomb of the Un-Fortunate Fortune Tellers Is a mid-size mausoleum structure that can either conceal a Pepper's Ghost FX (as we did) or to hold some sort of props in the open drape area at the top.

Made of Styrofoam, Monster-mud and paint for all the exterior parts and a wooden frame interior. The exterior 3 walls (front and sides) are created the same way as the tombstones. The Styrofoam is shaped, detailed with the hot tools, coated with Monster Mud, dried and then painted. The letters were filled with glow-in-the-dark paint so they would stand out in Blacklight. The top portion of the walls was left unpainted since they would be coved by the top curtain areas. Holes were cut for fabric ties so they could be attached to the inner wooden structure.

The curtain top was made by coating fabric with Monster Mud and laying it over the top wood frame and allowed to dry. Use Monster Mud coated rope to tie the 4 corner pieces. A hole in the fabric side is where the rope is passed through. The left and right sides are simply a draped solid panel of fabric. This will conceal the Plexiglass panel inside. Only the front, back and top are left open.
fortune_sideSide Panelfortune_frontFront PanelfortunetellertopTop Cover with Plexi-glassfortune_closeStyrofoam Panel DetailfortunetellerbacktvAdd a shelf in the bottom square frame to keep the DVD player up off the ground.fortunetellerinsideInside View 

The hidden, back area conceals a small TV that points up. A piece of framed, Plexiglass is set into the top portion at an angle to the TV. The TV's image is reflected into the glass. When viewed from the front, the image appears to float in the air. In this case, a crystal ball with moving figures is displayed in the curtained area. On the small shelf at the back, we've placed props (crystal ball stand, candles) that will also be seen from the front.

The structure is built in 3 parts. A square frame of 2x4s for the bottom. A 2nd stacked frame for the middle (holds TV and some foam to custion the TV at the base) is held in place from some flat brackets screwed to the top of the lower frame. The 3rd square frame is coved with the Monster Mud curtain. This piece is open at the top so the Plexiglass can be slid in and adjusted.