LIFE AT CONTENT: Halloween 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!

This year, I decided to re purpose my Halloween decor, 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 decor! 

WITCH'S KITCHEN

The first was the kitchen mantel which I styled to look like a witches kitchen. Her menu board, ingredients and fuzzy friends all paired with my everyday kitchen items made for a creepy scene.

FORTUNE TELLER

The next was the dining room which I transformed into a seance with a fortune teller and crystal ball.

(Scroll down for my Amazon shopping list to help recreate this look)

The fortune teller 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...) 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.

I added a wig and some beaded necklaces, and topped her off with a scarf.

I can't stress how easy this crystal ball was to make. All it took was a glass ball (this was a plant hanger I found at Marshall's on clearance) filled with clear cellophane, and a strand of those tiny fairy lights with a battery pack. I placed the whole ball setup on a brass pot I got from Good Will. So simple, and such a cool effect!

I topped the dining room table with angled fabrics (scarves, throw blanket) to create a layering, bohemian effect and around her, I added books on insects and a few spooky details.

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 Dollar Store moss which I found in the floral section, a few skulls and 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.

OTHER GREAT ROOM DETAILS

In the Great Room, I also added "family photos" of witches to the mantels, and bouquets of dried and black flowers.

HAPPY HAUNTING!