NORTH BEND, Wash. — A North Bend family has spent more than two decades perfecting a terrifying, teeny tiny town that comes to life each October inside their home.
Inside the spare bedroom of Hobbin Joost's home is "Hobbin's Haunt," a Halloween-themed model town that started back in 1998 when Joost's mom purchased a model house called 'Grimsley Manor.'
"I put this up every year and then I take it down every year," said Joost. "We started in 1998 with the first building, and my whole family has been purchasing and collecting these figurines ever since then."
The display has been growing for more than 20 years and now consists of 100-plus buildings and figurines. Joost said the entire display takes up about 120 square feet.
"It took four of us 100 hours to put the whole thing up and it will take the four of us about three days to take it down," said Joost.
North Bend woman creates most epic model of a Halloween-themed town
Joost works for the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and said curing cancer is her passion, but creating the Halloween town every year is her creative outlet.
"I really like the detailed nature of it, it's my art," said Joost.
Joost said, as one might expect, Halloween is a big part of her annual budget and she likes the fact that the haunt vanishes by Thanksgiving.
"Yeah, I don't do a Christmas village, only Halloween," joked Joost.