This knife was designed and made as a prop for a local Halloween production. Haunted Trails is a kind of "haunted house" for adults that raises money for charity.

In the finale of the production a humanoid alien was preparing to skin and disect a living human. The director wanted a knife that looked scary and wrong, but also appropriate to the tasks. It was actually used to "cut" the victim, with the aid of some fake blood hidden in the alien's hand, so the edges had to be rounded off for safety.

I designed the knife to be functional…from an alien perspective. I also tried to make it practical for the production environment in which it was used. The finger-hole grip is secure even when slick with fake blood. I hollow-ground and satin-finished the blades to make them stand out, despite their rounded edges. The high polish that I originally put on the rest of the knife didn't look good in low light, so I mottled it to add a little visual texture.