LIFE AT CONTENT: Halloween Decor 2016
Halloween is one of those commercial holidays that you either love or hate.
I happen to love Halloween! It's silly and innocent, and makes people smile. It's also a great excuse to eat copious amounts of mini candy bars that don't make you feel as guilty as eating a full sized bar. Win!
✅ If you’re short on time, you can jump to our favorite Halloween décor materials and products. Check out the full list here.
This year, I decided to re purpose my Halloween décor, and not buy anything new. Don't get me wrong, with almost 10 years of Halloween party hosting on my resume, I had plenty to work with.
Also, I'm not a kitschy Halloween decorator, and prefer to use common household items in creative ways to suggest spook. I also love the Dollar Store, so my displays usually max out at $5.
Here's a quick rundown of this year's Halloween décor!
WITCH'S KITCHEN
The first area I tackled was the kitchen mantel which I styled to look like a witch’s kitchen. Her menu board ingredients, jars of insects and fuzzy friends all paired with my everyday kitchen items made for a creepy scene.
This same scene could easily be recreated on a counter or kitchen island.
🎃Here’s our favorite Halloween decor products to help you recreate this “Witch’s Kitchen” look and many more in your home!
FORTUNE TELLER
The next was the dining room which I transformed into a séance with a fortune teller and crystal ball.
🎃Here’s our favorite Halloween décor products to help you recreate this “Fortune Teller” look and many more in your home!
The fortune teller scene is made out of a dress of mine stuffed with shipping cardboard paper, and a head stand that I got from a wig order a few years ago. (I save everything...)
The most important element is the angle of the fortune tellers head. I angled the head facing down, and attached it to a medium Priority shipping box from the post office, because it was the perfect shoulder width and torso size.
In a darkened room, you can’t see the face of the fortune teller, just the figure in a recognizable position.
I added a wig and some beaded necklaces, and topped her off with a scarf.
CRYSTAL BALL
I can't stress how easy this crystal ball is to make.
All it took was a glass ball (this was a succulent plant hanger I found at Marshall's on clearance) filled with clear cellophane, and a strand of tiny fairy lights with a battery pack.
I placed the whole ball setup on top of a brass pot I got from Good Will. So simple, and such a cool effect!
If you don’t have time to source the elements individually, here’s all the elements on Amazon.
To add further complexity and depth, I topped the dining room table with mismatched fabrics (scarves, throw blanket) and a tarot reading cloth to create a layering, bohemian effect.
And around her, I added books on insects, tarot cards and a few spooky details like a palm reading guide.
CREATE THE FORTUNE TELLER SCENE
FRUIT BASKET OF SKULLS
The funniest part of this centerpiece, is that it was inspired by necessity.
This fruit basket, which normally sits on our kitchen island, was just too large to stash. So I used it by adding brightly colored moss for texture, a few skulls and fuzzy spider.
BRANCH CHANDELIER
My favorite detail this year in the Great Room is the chandelier I spook-ified with dead branches I picked up from my neighbor's curbside brush pile.
Simply by placing them on the chandelier (I didn't even bind or attached them to anything), all facing as if they were growing from the center, I created a really cool structure.
The daytime images don't really do it justice. In the evening, the single light casts a very creepy, tree-like shadow in the room. I added a few black birds inspired by Stephen King.
This look could also be achieved with artificial branches.
OTHER GREAT ROOM DETAILS
In the Great Room, I also added "family photos" of witches to the mantels, black babies breath and black roses.
