Go Frankenstein On A Budget
by Kassadee Marie, HSM team writer
In Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus, the creature was built — or “born” — in a laboratory by Victor Frankenstein using chemistry and alchemy. However, as depicted in many movies, the monster was brought to life by use of lightning in the tower of a privately-owned castle. Now, for the incredibly low price of $1.99 you can purchase the Wizard’s Den, and with the right ornaments and furniture items added to it, you can make it into your own mad scientist lab! This circular two-story tower is about as close to a match with this theme as is possible on Home at this time.
While the downstairs seems to be a cross between witches (cauldron) and swords and sorcery (dragons), the upstairs has the perfect room to turn into a laboratory. The first floor can be styled as your own weird living space with items such as the free Visari plant and container and the free tall Visari chair, both found in the Home Originals store. In addition, check this store for inexpensive items like the Playground couch in orange, green or brown for only $.49 each, to add to your decor. There are five wall spots for picture frames or wall hangings, two of which are found in the upstairs room, and the right pictures can add to the look of your laboratory.
There are a lot of furniture choices that fit this theme, some more closely than others. One “must-have” is the Sony Home Originals’ “Tesla Coil” for $1.49. The “Mad Scientist Starter Kit” from LOOT for $1.99 includes the Ghostbuster’s Computer Consoles 1 and 2, and is another great choice. It also comes with Grogak’s blinking wall and floor panels. A wall panel or two would look outstanding, but the Sodium Grated Floor Panel for $.49 might be a better choice for your laboratory floor. Abstergo Laboratory has a chair and table that would fit in great. They are reward items from the viewing games found in the secret room. You might also consider the Midway 3 Scattershot prizes number 5 (preserved alien) and 8 (alien autopsy table), which do not strictly fit the theme, but are weird-science looking. You are only limited by your imagination, and by what Sony has to offer in Home.
To finish decorating and fill out your space, I recommend that you choose several of these items from LOOT, for only $.49 each: Ghostbuster’s filing cabinet or 80s green screen television, or Stage2 receiver or the Stage2 Fridge (for keeping those brains cool), or the heavy duty shipping case (for body transporting), or even a lava lamp. I suggest you place the smaller items on the white Harbor studio table, which has a rather sterile or laboratory look. Be sure to pick up the outdoor lamps from the Luxury Weekend House to highlight various items in your lab, but get them individually for a total of $.79, as the bundle is priced at $.99 for all three lamps. As always, look through your reward items for suitable free items.
If you want to be Dr. Frankenstein, there are lab coats for the guys available at Siren’s Ward of Despair for free in one of the completed game scenarios and for $.99 in Costumes Home Originals, under the Crazy Scientist Suit. Females will have to be a little more creative, though. Perhaps something could be done with the karate top or Lili jacket from Tekken 6, also in Costumes Home Originals. But if instead, you want to be the monster itself, the Undead Bride or Undead Groom costumes found in this store may actually be the way for you to go. Considering the price of individual items of clothing, (sometimes as much as $1.49 for a top or $1.99 for a bottom) these costumes may be a bargain at $2.99 each. Not everyone likes a full body costume, but these are two of the best purchases for a dead-then-sewn-and-electrocuted-back-to-life look at this time. These are not the traditional “Frankenstein’s monster” or “Bride of Frankenstein” look. The male costume is more reminiscent of “Edward Scissorhands” and the female costume of Sally, the rag doll woman in The Nightmare Before Christmas. But both costumes have sew lines, as any good Frankenstein’s monster should. These will do until October, when one of the Halloween stores may offer Frankenstein’s monster and bride costumes, as they have previously.
Long ago (in Home time), nDreams made two nearly perfect pet companions for this style. These are Benji, the zombie bunny, and Nipper, the zombie kitten for $2.99 each. They both have interesting and different animations. Although they are both called zombies, again sew lines make for a Frankenstein’s monster look. However, the price cannot really be called a bargain. Inexpensive companions are rare items on Home, and you may want to forgo one in this case, to save for other items. I recommend that you gather and purchase your other items first and then check your budget. (Wouldn’t a little Igor make a perfect companion for this?)
For your musical accompaniment, I suggest the Novus Prime stereo for both its look and sounds, or possibly the Phantom 5000 Beat Machine for the same reasons. Both are available for $1.99 each in the Music store. Once LOOT brings out portable RadioIO this summer (and depending on the price), it’s likely that will be all I recommend for your musical needs.
Once you’re all set up, don’t wait for Halloween; invite eleven friends over and have a monster mash. Although there may not be any directly themed games for this idea, I suggest you always put out at least one game for your guests. I picture them all there now: the Mummy, the Invisible Man (or woman), Godzilla (monster lizard), a skeleton (flaming or not), a Yeti, a demon, and orc. Have fun showing off your creature style, turn up the music and enjoy yourself with your fellow or sister monsters.
July 7th, 2012 by Kassadee Marie | 2 comments
Home is endlessly entertaining to this California girl. Kassadee has been in Home for about four years, and loves almost everything about it (with a few notable exceptions). She spends way too much money there, and perhaps too much time... Someday she will travel the world and write about the people she meets and the places she sees.
LOL I knew there was something slightly twisted about you! Great Read
Kass I really love this article -everyone is so big on vampires and zombies… for me it was always Frankenstein. The story was written largely in a laudanum induced hedonistic weekend with Lord Byron, his cousin, Percy Bissey Shelley and Mary. They were all talking about the idea of Prometheus… for those who do not know Prometheus was a Titan that faced eternal punishment for giving the gift of “fire” to mankind.
When you think in term of Frankenstein being the Period’s equivalent to a Rick Decker from Bladerunner then you begin to see the significance of the novel. The aspects of Civil Rights and discrimination that was faced at the time it was written for women and for races and social classes.
It is in fact the question… what makes a human being a human being. Are we monsters? But then the monster becomes something more in its ability to show compassion… All the deep philosophical questions.
All in all who would not want to to be a creator of our own reflection
and who would not want to be a compassionate monster? Esp. when you can do it on a budget 