Happy Halloween! Despite working 2 jobs I finished the Dulcimer of the Dead in time to serenade the Trick-or-treaters this evening while tossing candy...

Death's Head began as a thin 2mm plywood mask (see twin nearby) $1 worth of cut and glued pine paint sticks, a few square pine dowels(leaving the middle one 2 inches long on both ends gave me a great peg joint for the neck and a front volute for the headstock) and some doorskin. for the back. Nut is a bit of bone, and the 'mustache' bridge was taken from a broken kids guitar, as were the friction tuners. Strings are 40, 30 and 20 lbs fishing line set to a robust B-C-b, and the soundboard has three coats of clear lacquer over magic marker-the rest of the body and neck have a coat of amber shellac and a clear lacquer topcoat.

I'm not keeping this one-giving it to a friend in time for Nov 2 (Day of the Dead).