How to tastefully decorate your house for Halloween

You can capture the fun of Halloween in your decor without going over the top into the world of ticky-tacky spooky. These bloggers show how it’s done.

Although Halloween was once relegated as a holiday for kids, more and more adults are joining in on the fun and using the opportunity to decorate in celebration. But how can you do this and keep it tasteful? For starters, tasteful Halloween decor doesn’t have to be expensive. Bloggers in the know have some great ideas, starting with a more subdued palette than the traditional orange and black. Other ideas? Keep it small. Keep it focused. Keep it in line with your home’s everyday decor. But let your creative side loose, and have fun!

Photo credit: The House of Smiths

Shelley Smith, blogger at The House of Smiths, admits she is not a fan of the blood-and-gore school of Halloween decorating. Instead, she came up with the tableau above that she describes as “classy, affordable, spooky and just a little eerie.” Using lots of brown packaging paper, candy jars and plates from her local thrift store, and her own DIY subway art and garland, Smith creates an overall vibe that is festive and sophisticated, blending with her home’s everyday decor.

Photo credit: Lil’ Luna

Blogger Kristyn at Lil’ Luna favors black, white and silver in her Halloween decor. Her DIY pumpkin vase and decorated pumpkins are decked out with paint, scrapbook papers and Washi tape. “What’s great about these projects,” she says, “is that if you want to match your own decor, you can just change the colors of the papers and tape.”

Photo credit: Family Chic

Blogger Camilla Fabbri of Family Chic understands that little accents in decor can go a long way when it comes to Halloween. These DIY lace candles add just the right Gothic touch to a small space. “I love to rethink everyday items for a new twist in decorating,” says Fabbri. These require just a yard of two of black lace and some inexpensive votive candles. Fun, but classy.

Photo credit: Organize and Decorate Everything

When you don’t want to overwhelm your space with Halloween decorations, repurpose the focal point of the room, such as the mantel, as a Halloween display. The example above, says blogger Leana from Organize and Decorate Everything, is “almost elegant.” Colleen Pierre, owner/publisher at SaratogaMama, drops the term “almost” as she talks about this decor idea on her own blog. “This is one of my favorite ideas from the Halloween decorating blog posts out there,” she says.

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Not your orange and black Halloween