I GO: Harry Potter Leavesden Studio Tour

Warning: if you're not an avid Harry Potter friend, you might find this post slightly overwhelming. In late April, after a month full of traveling, I made one last journey out of London to the Warner Brothers Leavesden Studio. If the name doesn't sound familiar, you may know it instead as the studio where they filmed a sizable chunk of each and every beloved Harry Potter film. The tour was inspiring; cheesy, I know, but that's the only word I can come up with to attempt to describe the amount of effort involved in the creation of the sets, costumes, and countless props. Walking through the studio, you're able to appreciate the multitude of details incorporated by the crew, details that weren't discernable on-screen but contribute so much to the establishment of authenticity. I know I'm not the only Potter geek out there so I'll save you the gushy speech and instead move on to the pictures. I will however include captions so as to clue you guys in on some of my favorite parts of the day.

Enjoy the pictures after the jump!

The Great Hall's stone floor is made from actual stones! The fireplace on the left had a carved Hogwarts crest in it, even though  you can never see it through the fire in the movies.

Check those jug tops!

From the Yule Ball centerpiece. Imagine making hundreds of those little Pumpkin-topped drinks.

The chocolate feast!

Hermione's Yule Ball dress. One of my favorite dresses to this date.

All the books in Dumbledore's office are covered in real leather.

That's a lot of Fangs!

The animatronics studio was one of my favorite parts of the tour. Buckbeak and Voldemort as a half-human baby was there too!

Architect's studio filled with plans on how to create sets.

The amazing 8 meter tall Hogwarts model. Lighting was set to transition from "night" to "day" schemes. Real wood, stones, and other such materials were used in the creation of the model. There were hundreds of little lightbulbs installed inside the castle, each of which could be controlled individually. The owlery in the far background was filled with dozens of little owls, none of which are visible from the outside. 

Hundreds of these boxes were created and each label applied by hand. Many of the labels list the names of cast and crew members.