BOO! Okay, okay. We probably didn’t scare you, because this is a website and not real life. But at least we’re trying! The Halloween season is here and we couldn’t be more excited. Ghosts, goblins, vampires: that’s all fine, but also, candy. We love candy. Who doesn’t?
One awesome way to utilize your (newly-cleaned) home during the Halloween season is to spice it up with some exterior decorations. You don’t have to go full haunted house (though it’s awesome if you do) but a few things on the outside of your home can be a lot of fun for the whole family (even if the whole family is just you and your dog – we’re not judging, that sounds awesome).
Still, it can be kind of annoying to shop for a bunch of seasonal decorations year after year, so we’ve created a list of the best DIY and low budget ways to decorate not just the exterior, but the interior of your house so that you can stay spooky until Thanksgiving.
Ghosts, Ghosts, Ghosts
There’s a reason ghosts are maybe the most iconic Halloween costume ever, and it’s not just that they’re scary. It’s that they’re incredibly easy to replicate, using – as we all know – a sheet with some holes poked for the eyes.
For the Halloween season inside your home, you can turn everyday objects into ghosts using similar tactics. Simply grab some white cloth and place it on top of basically any spherical item in the house, or use baseballs, basketballs, or soccer balls.
One of the best parts is that you don’t even really need to cut holes in the fabric. Instead, cut circles out of black paper and tape them on so you can re-use the cloth! Win-win.
Scarecrows and Frankensteins
We know it’s Frankenstein’s monster but it just doesn’t flow as well. Anyway, you can build your very own scarecrows and Frankenstein monsters mostly using stuff from around the house. This is also something you can do with the kids which can be a lot of fun.
You will likely need to buy a few things for this one, mainly the elements that would make it easier for your monster to stand on its own, as well as the creature’s face. For a Frankenstein, you’ll probably just need to purchase a mask, sadly enough, unless you’re an expert at papier-mache. But for the scarecrow, simply buy a sack then paint the front of it.
Once you’ve got your creature’s structure formed, you can just throw some old clothes on it and you’re good to go, placing him on the front porch or even in the front window to freak out the neighbors.
Spooky Wreaths
Are we using the word “spooky” too much or not enough? Either way, a new trend has been emerging in the form of Halloween-themed wreaths, and you can make these yourself out of basically any Halloween item. There are candy wreaths, wreaths made from black and orange ribbon, and even wreaths made from old masks.
Whatever you have leftover from other Halloween activities can be turned into a good old spooky wreath. The only thing you might need for certain wreaths is something for it all to stick to, like wire or a tube, which you can find at a craft store. Bonus: if you find something you can reuse, you can make a new wreath every year!
Bat Branches
Courtesy of the In My Own Style blog, these batty branches are low cost, easy to make, and reusable. As we all know, Halloween often comes at the same time that many of your trees and bushes are becoming sparse and devoid of leaves.
That makes them perfect for these bat decorations. All you have to do is take small pieces of ribbon, tying them to the branches in a way so that their sides stick out like the wings of bats. This isn’t nearly as spooky as some of our other suggestions, but it is a nice way to dress up some of your more empty plants in the front yard, or even inside the house.
Candy Garland
We’ve all seen garland around Christmastime, sometimes with other items strung along. For Halloween, mix it up by creating garland made of candy. Just get a string, then string it through candy and hang it up wherever you want. We recommend around the fireplace.
It’s also a good idea to choose a polarizing candy, like candy corn, so that people aren’t too tempted to devour your carefully made garland.
Paint the Pumpkins
Jack-O-lanterns are a lot of fun! They are also a tremendous amount of work, and unlike the work cleaning your house, pumpkin carving is not a service we offer at this time (or probably any time in the future, sorry). However, there is a way to still decorate pumpkins while ignoring the mess.
Instead of carving every pumpkin, carve only a few, then paint the rest. This is a great activity for the whole family, as it doesn’t involve knives and tools like carving does. Plus, your house will look great with all the painted pumpkins all over the place.
For more tips on cleaning your home or to schedule a cleaning service to get ready for all this decorating, contact us today. We’ve also created a free guide to green cleaning in your home – download for free!
