This tutorial is on how to make a DIY Haunted House for Halloween. This is only an example of what I made for Halloween. Although, I will give you the steps, it is completely up to you how you decorate it and design it. This will give you tips and advice and hopefully you will manage to create your own DIY Haunted House. Enjoy!

Step 1: Collect Materials

Of course, you mostly need props - which are entirely up to you, but here are some ideas for props (more on props in "Making your props") alongside some other things you will need.

Some common props:

- gravestones

- skeletons

- ghosts

- body parts

- spiders

- pumpkins

Other things you will need:

- lights (red, black, orange, strobe - you can choose them)

- fog machine/ dry ice

- fake blood

- cobwebs

- hanging cloth/rubbish bags

Most of this optional, but these are some things you might want to include.

Step 2: Set Your Location and Time

It's up to you where you do your haunted house - whether it is in your garage, upstairs, your yard or even the whole house. I did mine upstairs in my house, since I don't have a garage and I share my yard with my neighbours. These things can also cause you to be limited on space. Make sure that everyone else is alright with your location.

You also have to set your time. The best time would be after sunset, since it will be genuinely dark and will add to the tension. My times were from 6:45 pm until 8:30 pm.

Step 3: Making Your Props

This is just as much as I had. You can see that I had a gravestone, paper, mice, a dead man, a bloody sink with a knife and some glow in the dark "hang-ups" with a goblet. These were taken in the daytime and look creepier when it is dark.

This tutorial is not about the actual process of making props, this how to make the whole haunted house. So I won't explain you how to make props - I will only give you ideas on what to make.

You can find instructions on how to make props on the same Instructables or elswhere. But here is a descriptive list of perhaps the most common and easiest props.

- A dead man (I have a picture up there, which can give you ideas)

- Gravestones (I also have a picture of a gravestone. Make sure that you add details to it, so that it looks realistic)

- Creepy pictures (You can buy these from vintage stores or even print them out. If you have any tattered family photos that you aren't fussy about using - then that would be a great prop)

- Mice ( Perhaps, the easiest thing on this list. You can buy mice at your local dollar store or print them out like I did)

- Cobweb (You can also buy that or there are some great tutorials on how to make it yourself)

- Severed heads (You can buy a mannequin head for a few bucks and then paint it how you want it)

- Other body parts (You can cast them or better buy them for a few bucks and then add some other details like more blood, or paint it to make it look more rotten)

- Hanging cloth/rubbish bags (Another easy one, you an make it from cutting up cloth or black plastic bags)

- Bloody bathroom (One I had and it's easy to make - just add fake blood to the bathtub and to a cheap shower curtain which you can buy)

...and there is so much more. You can also invest into expensive animated props, but if you want to stick to cheap items, you don't need to buy expensive props, since even simple things can be scary only if you work on it. Also here's a tip: don't make your props to cute, since there might be some "lions" among your guests. Just make sure to have gore but not too "gory" because you don't want it to be disturbing to people.

Now you can lay out your props and head on to doing some other things.

Step 4: Creating an Eerie Atmosphere

This can be done by adjusting your lightning, adding fog machines and others things to create the tension.

The number one rule is - it must be dark. Don't make it too dark, but just have it not too bright and have it so the guests can see their way.

Next work on your lights. You can replace your white lights with red, orange or black. You can also buy strobe lights for about $15-$30. This lights flicker and and change so it adds "motion" to some props.

You also can have a fog machine or dry ice. Be careful with the latter since it can cause severe injuries. Better buy a fog machine which is safer and easier to find and to operate.

Another idea is hang cloth or any other items that feel like tentacles. Have this hung over a doorway so the guests can pass through it and feel its effect.

Step 5: Add Some Creepy Music

You will also need sounds and music. You can have a monitor hid somewhere playing the music. If you are having many actors you can have them make sounds and noises.

Here are the most typical sounds and noises:

- chainsaw

- screaming

- ghost sounds

- evil laugh