Haunting for Redwood City home

The elaborate decorations are inspired by the “Nightmare Before Christmas” movie and Disneyland’s Haunted Mansion ride — which combine imagery from both Halloween and Christmas — and they’re all handmade by Steven Foster, who grew up in the home. He no longer lives there, but logs many hours decorating the place each year for the holidays.

“I’m trying to make something special for the holidays and I want people to engage with it when they walk by,” he said.

And they certainly do. Drivers often slow down to take it all in, passersby regularly snap photos of the action and for many Peninsula families, trick-or-treating there is tradition.

Several years ago he turned the garage into a haunted house with five separate scenes, and 700 people turned out to experience it. His work has also garnered media attention over the years.

“People will pull up and kids yell out the window ‘oh my god it’s just like Disneyland” and that’s special to hear,” he said. “There’s all this magic around Disneyland and how they pull it off and I try to make my things polished to that standard.”

Foster, 29, spends much of his time at hardware and arts and crafts stores throughout the year, gathering materials for his creations.

The pumpkins are made from foam he purchases at Michael’s. He’ll carve about three of them a night leading up to Halloween, and some have been in rotation for over a decade. Each pumpkin has an electronic candle that flickers in a unique way so it appears to be actual fire.

The pumpkins also have their own independent colored light program and blink to music in the week leading up to Halloween. He’ll continue adding new elements to the setup, including fog machines, as the 31st approaches.

“I never stop adding,” he said.

The ‘man-eating wreath’ is the crown jewel of this year’s display, and it took him three months to complete it. Weighing in at 45 pounds, the wreath is equipped with motors that move the teeth up and down and the claws attached to its garland arms also move. The blinking eyes were animated by a friend of Foster’s in such a way that it appears the wreath is watching people as they pass by.

Foster said he puts a lot of love and passion into his work, and assembling these decorations isn’t cheap either. Theft and vandalism, unfortunately, is not uncommon and he’s been forced to install his display up high and out of reach. Security cameras are also rolling at all times.

Foster has been decorating as long as he can remember. As a kid, his bedroom looked much like the house does during the holidays, he said.

The day after Halloween, the decorations come down and Foster begins preparing for Christmas. His decorations for that holiday are even more elaborate.

And it’s not just homes he decorates.

“I do nine Christmas trees for people every year, it’s what I do,” he said. “People know me as the person who, wherever I go, I decorate it.”

You can see his work at 411 Topaz St. in Redwood City or at facebook.com/fostersholidays and on Instagram @fostersholidays. He’d appreciate it if all photos of his work posted to social media were tagged #fostersholidays, and feedback is always welcome.

zachary@smdailyjournal.com

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