You will need: a tall, clear, glass or plastic container; Jell-0 gelatin mix, lemon flavor; fishing monofilament or leader; two sticks long enough to bridge the top of the container; a plastic replica of a human heart (or make and paint one yourself from Sculpey oven-bake clay). A light is optional; this is one from a small fish tank.
1. Buy or make the "human heart." Plastic models are fine--or make one from Sculpey clay, like this one, and paint it.
2. Select a container for the Heartthrob. Uncialle's, pictured above, is an octagonal vase (which causes the image to be rather weirdly refracted--how nice). A small fish tank works well, too--even a fish bowl.
3. Make a batch of lemon Jell-O, following the directions on the package. Pour it into a kitchen container and refrigerate until lukewarm. DO NOT pour the hot Jell-O into your vase or fish bowl--the vessel may crack or even shatter.
4. In the meantime, tie the two sticks together with the monofilament to make a large X. No sticks? Use dowels, pencils--even spoons--whatever is long enough to bridge the top of your container. Tie monofilament to the heart, and suspend it from the center of the crossed sticks. Adjust the monofilament so that the heart hangs straight down into the container without touching the sides. Adjust the length of the monofilament so that the heart is suspended in the middle (heightwise) of the container.
5. When the Jell-O mix has cooled, pour it into the heartthrob container. Continue making more batches of Jell-O until the container is filled to within an inch of its rim.
6. Then put the whole thing in the refrigerator overnight.
7. Then cut the monofilament at the surface of the Jell-O and remove the sticks. (This is why monofilament is used. It's strong but transparent, and "disappears" in the Jell-O.)
Note: using a little less water in the Jell-O than the recipe calls for, will result in really tough, dense Jell-O, that will support heavy objects for days at room temperature. Put a light on your finished heartthrob--or place it under a desk lamp.
Experiment with different colors of Jell-O and other objects, like orange Jell-O with black plastic spiders, or lime Jell-O with plastic eyeballs.
Coming next: Making the Grim Reaper!
Uncialle's Tips for Fast Haunting
Strange THINGS of the Universe
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