Jonathan Chambers knew he wanted to make a splash for Halloween and Christmas with a big attraction of sorts people could visit, and his 7-year-old daughter Avery came up with the perfect idea: a replica of Diagon Alley from Harry Potter. Chambers was inspired and pulled some Dumbledore level magic to build Diagon Alley in his Seattle neighborhood driveway. And when I say build, I don’t mean he put up a few cardboard storefront facades and called it a day. He pushed his sickles all in and spent 17 days recreating the first magical location Harry ever saw.
That is not a movie set. It’s in a driveway. I am impressed.
As reported by Mashable, Chambers pre-planned and put pencil to paper to complete drawn sketches of his vision. He made six storefronts, including Flourish and Blotts and Ollivanders, using donated materials and his own money. By the time he opened Diagon Alley on Halloween, the hype was real. Approximately 2,000 people have already visited. Two thousand.
Look at the early stages of the project:
@jk_rowling dear JK. If you are in Seattle on Halloween, a friend is building Diagon Alley in his driveway. pic.twitter.com/blAwcDUndy
— Cyndy Eng-Dinsel (@iheartagile) October 26, 2017
And the finished product:
Y’ALL I WENT TO ACTUAL DIAGON ALLEY!! pic.twitter.com/uRYrE1A4XW
— Anne Bean (@AnneBeanTweets) October 31, 2017
Thank you, @dummaloop for opening your home & for sharing #diagonalleyproject w/the #Seattle community! #HarryPotter #HappyHalloween pic.twitter.com/VOjoZm5JVx
— Amy Neuberger (@AmycusBrief) November 1, 2017
https://twitter.com/SaucyTashy/status/927314842536386560
@SeattleFire showed up at #diagonalleyproject and I thought I was being shut down. No, they just came to geek out. Photos by @iheartagile pic.twitter.com/ilKGRrXk4T
— Jonathan Chambers (@dummaloop) November 3, 2017
It’s like a mini Wizarding World! In a world filled with trying news, it’s wonderful to see a community come together for a joyful escape.
If you’re near the Ballard neighborhood area of Seattle and want to visit Diagon Alley, you have until Christmas. You can get details at the Project Diagon Alley website and learn about how they’re using the project to raise funds for pancreatic cancer research.
Are you feeling inspired to recreate a Harry Potter set in your driveway? Which one would you choose? Flick and swish to leave your thoughts in the comments!
Featured Image: Jonathan Chambers/Mashable
Use your wand to summon more Harry Potter stories!
- 9,000 Harry Potter fans took over a small Canadian town.
- This animal shelter sorted its dogs into Hogwarts houses.
- The Hogwarts Express rescued a family IRL.
