This project was built and designed by Chris from A Glimpse Inside.
Chris set out to create a towering, life-sized Sasquatch silhouette for his yard using plywood, a CNC machine, and a little creative paint and lighting work. What started as a fun Halloween-style prop turned into a surprisingly detailed build involving custom joinery, glowing eyes, and a sturdy outdoor mounting system. The result is an eerily convincing figure that looks right at home on his wooded, century-old property.
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Choosing the Right Material
Since the Bigfoot would be living outdoors permanently, Chris reached for an exterior-grade plywood designed to withstand years of weather exposure without delaminating or needing extra finish. He used his tractor to haul the large sheets from storage, swapping out the bucket attachment for forks to safely move the oversized panels.
Before any cutting began, he split the sheets down the middle to make them manageable for his CNC machine. This kind of prep work is a smart reminder for anyone tackling an oversized project with a smaller CNC setup—breaking materials into workable sections early on saves headaches later.
Designing and Cutting the Silhouette
Chris generated the Bigfoot outline using AI-assisted design software, then imported the vector into his CNC design program to prepare it for cutting. Because his CNC bed wasn’t large enough to cut the full figure in one piece, he split the design into two sections and added simple puzzle-style joinery to let the pieces interlock without glue.
This approach is a great technique for anyone working with size-limited CNC equipment. Instead of scaling a project down, breaking it into interlocking sections allows for much bigger builds than the machine could normally handle in one pass.
Once both halves were cut, Chris test-fit the pieces together and was struck by just how large the final silhouette actually was. The puzzle joints snapped together cleanly, proving that even without tight tolerances, a well-designed interlocking joint can hold its own.
Joinery, Eyes, and Surface Prep
To disguise the seam where the two halves met, Chris applied glue and sanded the joint smooth until it was undetectable by touch. He reasoned that if the seam couldn’t be felt, it likely wouldn’t show through paint either—and that turned out to be correct.
He also eased all the sharp edges around the figure to soften its profile, even though the final painted texture would still look rough and furry. Small details like this add believability to a project that’s meant to trick the eye from a distance.
For the glowing eyes, Chris used small waterproof LED modules designed for outdoor props. He drilled mounting holes at roughly eye height, wired in the battery pack, and secured everything with zip ties for a simple, serviceable setup.
Painting for a Lifelike Look
To give the figure its ominous, shadowy appearance, Chris applied several coats of a deep black exterior paint. He found that a foam roller handled the flat surfaces well, but switched to a foam brush to get into the carved texture meant to resemble fur.
Once dry, the paint flattened out nicely and helped blend the two CNC-cut halves into a single, seamless shape. The matte black finish also played a big role in making the silhouette look convincing both day and night.
For the eyes, Chris used a UV-curing resin to set the LEDs in place. The resin cured in just a couple of minutes under UV light, giving the eyes a glossy, lifelike shine that helps sell the illusion, especially after dark.
Mounting the Bigfoot Outdoors
To get the figure standing upright in the yard, Chris repurposed some old brackets and paired them with a driven post system typically used for fencing. After hitting a buried tree root on his first attempt, he simply shifted the post location slightly and drove it in without further issues.
Since the display was meant to be temporary rather than a permanent yard fixture, the fence-post mounting method offered just enough stability without overcomplicating the installation. It’s a practical approach for anyone building a seasonal prop that needs to come down eventually.
Once in place, the Bigfoot held up impressively well, standing tall and visible from the road both day and night. Chris noted that even in daylight, the glowing red eyes and dark silhouette were enough to catch the attention of passing neighbors.
A Fun, Eerie Addition to the Property
What began as a simple plywood cutout turned into a surprisingly convincing yard display, thanks to thoughtful joinery, lighting, and paint choices. The project shows how CNC techniques made for furniture or signage can be scaled up creatively for larger, more whimsical builds.
It’s a reminder that not every woodworking project needs a practical purpose—sometimes the goal is simply to have fun and spook the neighborhood a little.
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Matt’s Take
These are my personal thoughts and tips based on my own experience in the shop. This section is not written, reviewed, or endorsed by the original creator of this project.
Matt’s Take: Splitting oversized designs into interlocking sections is one of those techniques that’s worth keeping in your back pocket even outside of novelty builds like this one. I’ve used puzzle-style joints on jigs and templates before, and the key is giving yourself enough surface area on the interlocking tabs so they register solidly without needing glue. If you’re trying this yourself, cutting a test joint in scrap first is a good way to dial in the fit before committing to your good material.
Exterior plywood is the right call for anything living outside year-round, but it’s worth remembering that even exterior-rated ply benefits from sealing any exposed edges, especially end grain where water likes to creep in. A coat of exterior paint or sealant on those cut edges can add years to a piece like this before delamination becomes a concern.
On the lighting side, anytime you’re wiring battery packs or LEDs for an outdoor prop, double-check that your connections are fully sealed from moisture, not just the modules themselves. Shrink tubing or a dab of silicone at the joints goes a long way toward keeping things working season after season.
Finally, if you’re mounting something tall and flat like this, keep wind load in mind. A silhouette like Bigfoot acts like a sail, so a secure post system and maybe a ground anchor or two is smart insurance against a surprise gust knocking it over.