As the leaves drop and the autumn air cools, it’s time to transform your home into a spooky, eerie wonderland for little ghouls and goblins. Outdoor Halloween decorating is a fun tradition that lets you showcase your creativity while allowing your inner child to shine. To create your spine-tingling scene, consider these few ideas to keep decorating easy and affordable this year. Whether you prefer whimsy and friendly or downright terrifying, nailing down one key theme will dictate the overall look and feel of your outdoor décor. And for those DIY projects, be sure to get the kids involved!
Go for Humour
A popular decorating trend is to place life-size skeletons around your yard to look like they are performing daily household tasks like washing windows, mowing the lawn, or planting flowers. For extra fun, rearrange them every few days to give your neighbours something to discuss! Another classic theme sure to get a few laughs – a witch training camp displaying crashed broomsticks and witches pinned to trees or walls and a sign that reads Flight School.
Put on a Show
To create a spooktacular scene, set up a white sheet inside a large front window and use a projection system to project moving shadows of ghosts, skeletons or creepy characters so they appear to be walking around your home. You can find Halloween projectors online for less than $100, and they often include up to 12 movies. Add a recording of creepy sounds, and you’ll surely stir up some neighbourhood terror.
Ghostly Lighting
For a DIY ghostly effect, take tomato cages and turn them upside-down. Attach a beach ball or large Styrofoam ball to make a head, and add a string of white lights around the cage. Cover with a white sheet and create a ghost face cut out of black felt. Tape or glue to the sheet. Build several ghosts and place them around your front porch for a ghostly glow. For additional lighting, buy a string of white lights and cover in small white squares of material, tying around the light (head) to create a tiny ghost. Use a sharpie to draw eyes and a mouth, and hang the string of ghosts across your entranceway.
Super-sized Spiders
A giant spider theme is an inexpensive way to jazz up your front décor. Purchase packages of spider webs at a dollar store or buy twine and follow a YouTube video to create a giant web for your front porch. Make giant homemade spiders by cutting two different-sized Styrofoam balls in half, gluing the smaller half to the large half (for the head and body), and covering them with faux fur. Attach wire for the legs and wrap the wire with foam tubes to create the illusion of giant spider legs. These are very lightweight and easy to hang around the yard.
Eyes Everywhere
Keep a watchful eye on your trick-or-treaters with DIY glowing eyes hidden in trees or bushes. Grab some empty toilet paper rolls and cut out evil-shaped eyes. Paint the tubes black and tape a glow stick inside each one. Hide them in trees, bushes or shrubs around your front entrance. To add giant bloodshot glowing eyes, purchase a few closet push-lights from the dollar store and draw a giant eyeball on each one using a sharpie. Add red bloodshot squiggles for full effect. Once dark, turn them on and place them along your walkway.
With a bit of imagination and Pinterest or YouTube by your side, you can create some fabulous homemade decorations this year without breaking the bank.
BY JULIE ACHTERMEIER
