Plan a theme
One way to make your decorations stand out from the pack is to create a cohesive theme. So instead of a half-hearted ghost in the tree, and a lone jack ‘o lantern on the porch, your decorations will make sense. One fun idea is to do an Edgar Allen Poe theme—cover the entryway to your house (extra points if that includes a wrought iron gate) with fake ravens. It’s definitely quite eerie, and you can even make your own ravens. Hey, and an abundance of birds will also tie in very nicely with an Alfred Hitchcock theme—add in a “Bates Motel” sign and you’re good to go. Another fun theme? Spiders. Carve them into your jack ‘o lanterns, create a spidery welcome mat, hang them from the trees, decorate your hedges with bountiful spiderwebs—go all out and create a whole infestation; it’s sure to make your trick or treaters’ skin absolutely crawl!
Get creative
Halloween is a time to have some fun, so instead of just hanging your skeleton from the tree like half the other people on the block, why not put it in some poses? You can get a group of skeletons and pose them as if they’re about to raid your house. Or you can have them crawling up your roof, you can dress them up with bow ties and top hats, and make them a dead barbershop quartet—the options are endless. Just secure them with a little transparent fishing line and you’re good to go. Another fun way to subvert the norm in terms of Halloween decorations, is to repurpose decorations from other holidays—you can make a wreath to hang on your door, but instead of festive pine needles and red velvet bows, you can cover it with eyeballs or spiders—or make a zombie turkey and Santa Claus!
Go trendy
Another fun option is to take cues from pop culture. Love American Horror Story? We hear this season is even scarier than last season—so why not dress your front yard up AHS style? Same goes for other horror hits like Walking Dead. Or, go with standards like The Nightmare Before Christmas or Beetlejuice. One especially fun aspect here is that you can even coordinate your costumes to match your decorations—dress up like ragdoll Sally, or go as a grisly Gus Fring-inspired zombie. Matching your costumes to your decorations will make the effect even more fun. Plus, if you do your zombie makeup convincingly enough, you might really get a good scare out of your trick or treaters. Do whatever tickles your fancy—whether you decide to give your house the look of a dilapidated zombie-infested dwelling, or cover it from eaves to foundation, it’s the thought that counts when it comes to creating the scariest house on the block!
Marcela de Vivo is a freelance writer from Southern California. She’s looking forward to decorating and celebrating Halloween with her family. To read more of her writing, visit the Soothing Walls blog.