Halloween gives us the chance to cast off the conventions of traditional design, and indulge in something a bit more macabre. However, for those who purchase professionally made halloween decorations, the reality is that this kind of spooky-yet-festive atmosphere doesn’t come cheap.
That is, unless you take the DIY route. DIY Halloween decoration ideas are generally much less expensive than purchasing new decorations from party- and home-supply stores, and they have the added bonus of presenting a fun activity (perfect for families who might want to get the kids involved). DIY decorations for Halloween can take many forms, but we’ve compiled a list of a few of our favorites to help get you started. Enjoy these DIY ideas for Halloween decorations that are sure to have the neighborhood kids quaking in their costumes. But remember, the best DIY Halloween decorations are the ones that you invent on your own, so don’t be afraid to think outside the coffin and mix and match these suggestions to come up with something completely unique.
General Decorations
The thing to remember about decorating for Halloween is that it’s all about defying convention. Go for disorderly. Go for asymmetric. Go for clashing colors. Once November rolls around, you can get everything back under control, but until then, chaos is the order of the day. Does that mean that you should completely ruin the overall look of your apartment? Of course not. But it does mean that you should be willing to take a chance (as long as it doesn’t violate your rental contract). Here are some off-the-wall possibilities for those looking for DIY ideas for Halloween.
Light up floating witches’ hats. Witches’ hats are fun additions to any Halloween theme, and these eerily floating, glowing witches’ hats are even more entertaining. You’ll need some costume witches’ hats (the less expensive the better), a needle, some thin thread or fishing wire, safety pins, and lightweight LED light sticks or glowsticks. String about 1–2’ of thread or fishing wire through your needle, and press the needle through the very top of the hat. Without pulling the line down into the hat, remove the needle and tie the small portion of line that was attached to it to a small safety pin. Hook the safety pin to the LED light stick or glowstick. Now, tie the other end of the fishing line to a ceiling hook, rafter, ceiling light fixture, or any other spot that will support the weight of the hat. Turn on the light stick, and you’ve got a floating, glowing hat sure to impress scare-seeking guests.
Tiny ghost town. Christmas and the other winter holidays see their fair share of small holiday village-scene decorations, so why not give Halloween a chance too? You can easily make a tiny ghost town to spooky-up your mantel.
Just purchase some small wooden bird houses, and cover them with grey or black mat-finish spray paint. Add a few creepy rubber spiders or small skeletons, and you’ve got yourself a ghost town.
Scarecrow greeter. Give trick-or-treaters a chill by positioning a creepy scarecrow next to your door. Just get some old boots, a pair of jeans, a pair of work gloves, and a long sleeve button-up shirt. Tuck the shirt into the jeans, and fill them both with old newspapers, straw, or even other old clothes. Tuck the legs of the jeans into the boots and the arms of the shirt into the gloves, and use a stapler to secure everything together. Feed a broomstick-sized PVC pipe down through the neck and down through one of the pant-legs so that only a small amount of pipe is sticking out through the neck hole. Top it off with a scary rubber mask or a creepy carved pumpkin. Lean the scarecrow against a nearby wall, or use ropes to secure it in an upright position.
Mummy door. For a fun way to get your door into the spirit of Halloween, just get a few rolls of gauze and some spooky-looking cardboard cutouts of eyes. Tape the eyes to the front of your door, and then (with the door open), partially wrap the door in the gauze. The end result should be a front door that looks like a mummy come back to life!
Halloween tree. Steal one of Christmas’ most recognizable decorations by making a nasty-looking Halloween tree. Just purchase a small (or large, if you really like the idea) artificial tree. With some spray paint, paint the entire thing black (you’ll have some sections that the paint doesn’t get to, but that’s OK). Hollow out a pumpkin and use it as a treestand. Finally, decorate your Halloween tree with various plastic spiders, skeletons, ravens, and any other small halloween party-favors you can find. Finish up by wrapping your tree in a liberal helping of stretchable fake spider web.
Decorations On a Budget
The beautiful thing about Halloween decorations, is that often the cheaper they are, the more charming they get. So, even if all you have is some construction paper and a pair of scissors, you can still make some fun and festive decorations to add a bit of excitement to the season. Here are a several cheap DIY Halloween decoration ideas that have a magic all their own:
Zombie hands. If you live in an apartment complex, you probably won’t get much of a chance to try out many DIY Halloween decoration ideas outside. So, why not instead bring some outside decorations inside? With some latex gloves, a set of permanent markers, and some dirt, you can turn your apartment into an undead nightmare. Place the gloves on your hands, and use the markers to draw on fingernails, scars, bruises, etc. Next, fill the gloves with enough dirt so that all of the fingers stand up on their own. Finally, partially bury the gloves, fingers up, around your balcony garden, in window planters, or even in potted house plants. It will look as though zombies are trying to dig their way out of the ground!
Cardboard tombstones. There are few places as inherently spooky as graveyards. So, it only makes sense that you’d want to turn your living space into one for halloween. All you need is some paint, some carboards, and a pair of scissors. Lay out a large, flat piece of cardboard (flattened shipping boxes—or even inside-out cereal boxes—work very well for this). Cut the cardboard into a traditional headstone shape (rounded at the top and flat along the bottom), and the paint it grey. Use black paint to add a creepy epitaph. Place the gravestone on a wall, in your window, or simply prop it up in your apartment. DIY Halloween decorations for the indoors that mimic the look and feel of yard decorations are great for bringing the excitement of Halloween into your apartment.
Milk jug ghosts. Give the appearance of spectral visitors by turning used milk jugs into glowing apparitions. You’ll need plastic milk jugs, black construction paper, glue, and some small LED tealights. Thoroughly wash out any residual milk from the jugs. Cut a small hole in the bottom of each jug, large enough to fit around an LED tealight. Cut mouths and eyes out of the black construction paper, and glue the face parts to the jugs. Turn on the tealights, and place the jugs on top of them. You’ll have a collection of grinning, glowing ghouls that can be placed all around your apartment.
Soup can luminaries. Old soup cans can be upcycled into stylish luminaries with the help of a hammer, a nail, some black paint, and a permanent marker. Use the marker to draw directly onto the outside of the can whatever design or words you want on your luminary (you can go as simple or complex as you like, but simple images and words will make your project much easier). Next, line up the nail along the lines of you image, and gently tap it with the hammer until it makes a hole. Continue to use the nail to puncture holes along your design until you are finished. Paint the entire can with black paint, and let it dry. Place a candle inside, and enjoy the effect of having your design shine through the can.
Fluttering bats. It’s nice to know that some of the simplest decorations are also the most fun. Make a swarm of bats by folding black construction paper in half, and then cutting out one half of a bat shape (so that when you unfold the construction paper, you have a completed bat with identical wings).
Use tape or a spot of glue to attach the cutout bats to a short length fishing wire or twine, then tape the other end of the wire to the ceiling. Do this several times so that you have an entire swarm of bats flapping above your head. If you can place these near the front door, they’ll greet every new guest with a flurry of fluttering. See? Cheap halloween DIY decorations can still be loads of fun.
Party Decorations
Halloween parties are the perfect way to spend time with friends and revel in some good-natured mischief. And, if you’re the host, there’s no better time to show off your Halloween decorating abilities. We’ve located some amazing Halloween decoration ideas for the party-monster in you. And, best of all, most of these Halloween party decoration ideas are for adults as well as kids. Hey, Halloween isn’t just for children, you know?
Blood Fondue. Chocolate fondue has been a favorite of party goers for years, so why not see how creepy we can make it? By melting 12 ounces of white chocolate chips, 1 cup of heavy cream, and four tablespoons of butter together in a large bowl, and then adding a liberal amount of red food coloring (keep adding drops until it reaches the right color), you’ll be left with a delicious treat that looks absolutely horrific. Dip sliced fruit, pretzels, spongecake, etc. into your ‘blood fondue,’ and if you have access to a fondue fountain, this is the time to use it.
Poppable pumpkin wall. Kids DIY Halloween decorations are the perfect way to create a Halloween party directed towards younger family members. But this game is just as fun for adults during a party. Create a fun decoration that doubles as a fun family game, with this poppable pumpkin wall. All you need is a poster board, some green construction paper, a bag of orange balloons, some darts, and a selection of small candies and party favors. Cut the construction paper into the shape of a large pumpkin stem and glue it to the top of the poster board. Place a single candy or party favor in each balloon. Inflate the balloons and use tape to secure them to the poster. Arrange the balloons so that they make a pumpkin shape. Have an adult supervise while children take turns throwing darts at the board. Popped balloons will drop fun prizes for the children to collect!
Pumpkin punch bowl. One of the easiest (and most fun) DIY Halloween party decorations is the pumpkin punch bowl. Just find a large, round pumpkin. Cut the pumpkin in half horizontally, and scrape out it’s interior (you’ll need to be very thorough when you clean it out; any leftover pumpkin innards could ruin the intended effect).
Once the pumpkin has been totally cleaned, fill it with your choice of cider, punch, or other favorite beverage. For added effect, replace standard ice cubes with small cubes of food-grade dry ice. This will create a spooky fog that hovers over the punchbowl and spills down onto the floor (only handle the dry ice with tongs so as not to harm your skin, make sure that your punch bowl is kept in a well-ventilated area, warn guests to be careful not to swallow any of the dry ice cubes,aq and never let children near the dry ice—it can be very dangerous if mishandled).
Bug soap. Party guests who use the restroom are sure to be in for a surprise when they see the bug-filled liquid hand soap you’ve got sitting next to your sink.
All you’ll need to achieve this effect is a regular bottle of hand soap (in a clear container with a pump, with the label removed) and some small plastic bugs. Open the soap container, and stick two or three bugs down inside, so that the soap completely surrounds them. Arrange the bugs so that they are easy to see (the soap should help keep them in position), and then screw the cap back on the container. ‘Bugging’ you guests has never been so much fun!
What did we miss? Share your own Halloween decoration DIY ideas in our comments-section!