Our resident Halloween expert Justine Hand says: “I like to honor All Hallows’ Eve with a subtle, grown-up approach–something that is only vaguely sinister or decayed.” We couldn’t agree more. In the spirit of the indirectly eerie, here are 10 of our favorite Halloween setups of all time.
Above: The ingredients for re-creating Justine’s subtly spooky tablescape are simple: bone white china and floating black leaves overhead. For more, see Falling Leaves: Justine’s Spooky-Elegant DIY Table Setting.
Above: Justine created five Halloween-appropriate flower arrangements using only yard clippings and vases she had on hand. Here, Virginia creeper in an absinthe-colored antique vase. See the rest at 5 Favorites: Foraged Halloween Bouquets.
Above: Skip the face painting and paint the flowers instead: Gardenista used black acrylic paint on blue thistle stems for this kooky arrangement. For instructions, see DIY: A Black Thistle Bouquet for Halloween.
Above: When we asked Halloween hostess extraordinaire Claudia Schwartz for late-October decor ideas, she arranged dried green moss in antique French rose vases with vintage bone gaming pieces on top. For more tips (plus a party playlist), see Expert Advice: Halloween Decor Tips from a Master of the Dark Arts.
Above: Not one to be hindered by a small budget, Justine turned her house into a haunted hall for a total cost of $0. For this arrangement, she placed her wedding veil on a black rocking chair and set it in “that archetypal scary spot under the stairs.” See the rest of her ethereal setups in DIY: Justine’s Haunted Hall.
Above: At Remodelista, we use black taper candles year-round, but they’re an obvious choice for Halloween. Justine made these tapers herself for about $3 per pair. Read how she did it in DIY Project: Black Beeswax Tapers for the Holiday Table.
Above: This unruly bouquet combines wild grapevine and tillandsia with leucadendron and amsonia. Learn how to do it yourself in Bouquet of the Week: Celebrating Decay for Halloween on Gardenista.
Above: These creepy-cute kitties are truly simple to make–chances are good you have paper, scissors, and string lights at home. For details, see DIY: Instant Black Cat Halloween Lights.
Above: For readers who love saving time and celebrating holidays in equal measure, try this all-purpose holiday table arrangement that will last from Halloween through New Year’s with just a few tweaks along the way: see Steal This Look: A Versatile Holiday Table Arrangement.
Above: When Remodelista collaborated with Rue Magazine on a holiday table setting back in 2010, we applied the 100-mile rule: Everything from plates to persimmons were sourced from our neighborhood or our closets. See how we did it in Steal This Look: Remodelista’s Holiday Table for Rue Magazine.
Spend some time in the dark:
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