Badge: Halloween Décor Indoor

It’s not Halloween without a bit of decor around your house. As the area is smaller, it’s easier to make and store items that you have specifically for Halloween. Crafted items are more fun, but if you must purchase something, don’t feel bad about it.

NOTE: Be sure to check out videos online if you need help making items.

Steps

1. Simple.

The easiest way to start your decorating is adding small items to things already in your home. Fake web stretched over items you don’t want anyone to touch can serve as a decoration and deterrent. Turning down the lights or using candles can add to the air of mystery. Look around your home and start noting things you can turn from normal to spooky without much effort.

2. Theme.

If you have kids, you’re more likely to do a fun theme. This might just be your version of “cute” Halloween. Happy rosy cheeked witches and tasty treats might be your theme.

For young adults and older people, you may choose to go with a “scary” theme. You might want to focus on scenes in a movie, television show or book that you found startling.

Perhaps you’d like something between these two. Choose your theme so you can select elements that works together.

3. Think.

Ask yourself some simple questions before creating items or decorating. Since you’ll be in your home, focus on safety for you, your participants and your home. From making sure items that might be broken when bumped are removed to making sure there are no tripping hazards, you want to look at each piece of décor and if it is safe to have in your home. Make a list of the items you put out or do. If something gets a lot of comments, you’ll want to do it again. If someone jumps from your spouse jumping out of a closet and knocks down the punch, leave yourself a reminder to keep these two items apart.

You’ll probably add to the list each year as you learn about what to do and not to do.

Selecting the Pieces

4. Trickin’ treats.

Planning on handing out treats? Depending on who is attending, you can do anything from warm apple cider (with a bit of alcohol for adults) to preparing bags so eager hands aren’t spreading germs. You don’t have to stick to candy. Add spider rings, plastic insects, stickers or other creepy crawlies to make it more fun. Don’t forget you can also craft small items for treats.

Planning on having treats during an event that will be consumed on-site? Be sure to ask about food allergies or have recipes at hand. Watching someone have a reaction is NOT an acceptable Halloween activity. Make sure your treats are designed to reflect your holiday and theme. You can find slews of recipes online, so go and find a few to try.

5. Containers.

What’s in the box? This curiosity is a great idea to play up on Halloween. False bottoms, grotesque contents and other possibilities allow you to “break out of the box.” Explore sites to see ways these can be built and displayed.

6. Ghosts.

Ghosts can be large or small. You might want to tuck one in a quiet dark corner or have it pop up in the closet when people open the door to put their coats inside. Explore the ways ghosts are made and displayed.

7. Monsters.

You might want monster eyeballs in your punch, an arm coming out of the back of your toilet, monsters silhouettes looking into your home. That’s what happens when you don’t invite them. Monsters include undead, aliens and anything not considered “human”. As you look at monsters, keep track of those you’d like to incorporate into your theme and how you plan to do it.

8. Bats and cats.

Black creatures . . . such as bats and cats . . . can be added to your decor. Usually they are not enough for a theme. These creatures can be used for additional detail. Keep them in mind while you’re selecting your pieces.

9. Jack-o-lanterns.

Use of jack-o-lanterns can be for light, mood setting or just decoration. Experiment with different looks for your jack-o-lanterns that fit with your theme. If you plan on using candles inside, be sure they are out of the way of flying capes and the like.

10. Spiders.

Dropping spiders is great for a scream. Fishing line hung in pieces over a trail can grab like webs and add to the creep factor. Look at the ways you might incorporate these elements into your theme or even be your theme.

11. Recycled.

Using recycled materials to make props is a great idea . . . especially since you save money. Look through the list below and see if you can incorporate any of these into your decor.

Bottles and jars
Tin cans
Chicken wire
Bare, fallen branches, dead flowers, etc.
Candle stubs and wax drips
Animal bones, shells, feathers
Dolls
Costumes
Treat buckets
Statuary
Planters
Pallets
Boxes

12. Bits.

Spread around small pieces that grab someone’s attention. It adds detail and depth to your decor. It can also change items that you leave out to be included as part of your Halloween décor. Include things like fake hands, dead flowers, wigs, scratch marks, broken finger nails, bloody hand prints, fake webs or other things that help instill a feeling of unease.

13. Sounds.

From eerie sound effects to special holiday songs, there is always something to hear. Start by looking where you might hide small speakers such as Bluetooth to go with your phone. Then, explore your music collection. What can you use to add to your Halloween theme? If you can’t find anything good, what sounds can you create to create your own soundtrack.

14. Scents.

Scents can also add to the experience. Being indoors, you may not want strong scents as they may linger long after the holiday. The scent can be as simple as incense or burning sage. If you’re doing a haunted house with a female ghost, carry a perfume you wouldn’t normally use and occasionally spray it when others are not looking. Check out what you have available and brainstorm how you can add this sense to your decor.

15. Other props.

Indoor props tend to be smaller and more susceptible to the elements. List items you normally use indoors for props. Below is a list of some of the things my family does for the holiday.

Picture fun — additions to family photos such as a witch hat on someone’s head
Ghostly hand — ice for punch, frozen in glove
Small gourds — serve as pumpkins in table decorations
Skulls and spiders — scattered around to change normal decor into Halloween
Flat plastic canvas decor
Blood prints

From your list, write down the materials needed and a step-by-step instruction on how to create it. This will help each year to quickly identify what you have available, what you need and you can hand these off to others to help you with decorating.

Supplements

SUPP_Halloween Decor Indoor_2in_12up_larajla

Avery 2” round label printable, 12 up

SUPP_Halloween Decor Indoor_Checklist_larajla

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