KIM COOK
Associated Press
For some people, the scarier the better when it comes to Halloween decorations. A zombie girl with glowing eyes who rips the head off her teddy bear? OK. A 6-foot-tall, chainsaw-wielding hulk who emits bloodcurdling screams and buzzing? Trick or treat!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Decorating with scary stuff can be part of the fun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But other people, including those with little kids, find the aesthetic disturbing, and prefer their Halloween without the gore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI want to preserve my little ones\u2019 innocence as long as possible, and the creepy, mischievous, evil side of Halloween brings up topics I don\u2019t want my child to know about until they\u2019re old enough to understand it\u2019s fake,\u201d says Jamie Morrissey, who has three children under 3 in suburban New York.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For those after a more dialed-down but still spooky and dramatic look, there are plenty of decorations and themes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some play off of old science and wizardry, with celestial illustrations and apothecary elements. Some take a playfully gothic turn. There\u2019s the traditional orange-and-black color scheme, but no reason to stick only to that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Note: As for fake cobwebs and dangling lights, wildlife experts urge people not to put them up. Animals can get tangled and trapped in them, leading to injury or death.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
BASIC BLACK. OR A HALLOWEEN RAINBOW
Jessica Dodell-Feder, HGTV Magazine\u2019s executive editor, bleeds the color from her decorations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI love keeping everything black and white, then using natural elements that have a little bit of a creepy factor like bats, snakes, bugs or Venus fly traps,\u201d she says. \u201cThink black-painted branches sticking out of an urn; framed faux moth specimens; black-painted faux snakes \u2018crawling\u2019 across the center of a table like a runner.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At the other end of the spectrum, if you want to take your Halloween a little bit \u201890s, a little bit Barbiecore, then professional crafter Kara Whitten of Austin, Texas, has some zingy, rainbow-hued, Halloween-themed ideas at her site, akailochiclife. She offers garlands of multicolored pumpkins or phrases, like \u201cHocus Pocus\u201d or \u201cI Put a Spell on You.\u201d She has instructions for spatter-painting faux pumpkins in day-glo colors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Another craft idea that kids and adults can do together:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Submerge a few white tapers in warm water until they\u2019re soft enough to bend into curvy shapes. Then with a permanent marker add facial features. Once they\u2019ve cooled and hardened again, you\u2019ve got some candle ghosts for the table. There\u2019s a DIY video on Whitten\u2019s blog.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Betsy Cribb Watson, Southern Living\u2019s senior homes and features editor, favors fall colors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019m not huge on Halloween, so I love leaning into the season\u2019s abundance of natural colors instead: sage greens, burnt oranges, golden yellows and chocolate browns,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cPlus, when you skip the zombies in favor of fall color, you can enjoy your decorations from the start of the season through Thanksgiving.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
GHOSTS, JACK-O’-LANTERNS AND OTHER STALWARTS
But Watson acknowledges it\u2019s no fun to be a Halloween Scrooge, either.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She finds the handmade ghosts from Mollie Jenkins Pottery \u201cjust the right mix of sweet and spooky.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jenkins is a Columbus, Georgia, ceramic artist who found herself with a little extra white clay one fall semester while pursuing her B.F.A. at Auburn University.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMy mom\u2019s always loved decorating for the holidays, and growing up we had spooky Halloween candlesticks along with big terracotta jack-o’-lanterns. I took a spin off of those, creating my whimsical ghost,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Her little specters have developed a following, and sell out every year on her site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
DECORATING FOR A PARTY
Inviting some friends over for a spooky soiree?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For a Hogwarts feel, hang some of Balsam Hill\u2019s battery-operated \u201cfloating candles\u201d over a party table or entry. The retailer also has stacked black pumpkin lights with cat faces, and glittery black twig trees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Crate & Barrel\u2019s got a twiggy, matte-black wreath for a mantel or door. Or create a modern Halloween village with a few of their matte-black haunted houses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lauren McIntosh, an artist in Berkeley, California, has created a collection of glassware and napkins for Anthropologie with illustrations including a fortune-teller\u2019s palm, ravens, night-blooming flowers, and mystical moon and star patterns. Also for Anthropologie, London ceramicist Francesca Kaye has an endearing array of bats, cats, owls and ravens on trays, mugs, lanterns and a candelabra.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dodell-Felder shares a party idea connected to the movie \u201cBeetlejuice,\u201d which gets a new installment as early as next year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019m a huge fan of Tim Burton, and recently ended up purely by accident at a Beetlejuice-themed bar. It had black-and-white striped d\u00e9cor with neon green elements. The drinks were served on dry ice, and they had old-timey portraits on the walls. You couldn\u2019t look away!\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For \u201can elevated Halloween party,\u201d The Spruce\u2019s editorial and strategy director, Caroline Utz, suggests setting up a tablescape with luxe textures like velvet, and adding orange, purple and green candlesticks in different shapes and sizes. Sculptured Greek or Roman busts might add a \u201cNight at the Museum\u201d vibe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
CREATIVE BUT GENTLE
In San Francisco, Emily Reaman works in interior design, and she\u2019s also got a preschooler. While he loves some \u201cspooky\u201d things, she\u2019s careful about her decorating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI don\u2019t have cobwebs or skeletons hanging by my front door,\u201d she says. \u201cBut I do add lights to the trees, and my son and I decorate gourds with paint and glitter that we keep out during Halloween, then use on the Thanksgiving table.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
New York-based writer Kim Cook covers design and decor topics regularly for The Associated Press. Follow her on Instagram at @kimcookhome.com.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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