Crunchy leaves, black scented candles and pumpkin spiced cider can only mean one thing: the spooky season is finally upon us. First of all, I need to admit—my favorite season of the year is definitely Halloween. There’s a certain soft spot in my heart for this holiday. I love it more than Christmas, more than Valentine’s Day, more than my birthday (and I am definitely the birthday queen that goes ALL OUT for their birthday) but in all seriousness, there’s an exciting sense of community that comes with finding a costume for Halloween and going with your best friends to a spooky Halloween themed party. If you follow me on Instagram, you know I have an obsession with makeup and one of the best times for crazy makeup is definitely Halloween! It’s never too early to start decorating your personal space to make it amazing! I find myself drawn to stylish and non-traditional twists on the trick-or-treat season. Instead of the typical jack ‘o lanterns, friendly Casper ghost posters or creepy spider cobwebs, I like my space to feel moody, dramatic, venomous and luxurious.
- Black butterflies
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Move over bats and creepy crawlies because we are officially announcing that Black Is The New Orange–black butterflies are the new hallmark of the Halloween season. Butterflies are not usually described as scary, but fill a home with 10,000 of them in all black, you’re bound to feel a little frightened. To create this elegant spooky mood, use 3D silhouettes of black butterflies against your walls. This creates the most graceful swarm of butterflies—two words I never thought I’d use them next to each other. It seems as if Dracula and Marie Antoinette came together and agreed on decorating a room. This dark decor adds a bit of eeriness without making it feel like your home/space is wearing a cheap costume. This idea was inspired by a blog post from Lydia Geisel “The Last-Minute Halloween Decoration Idea We’ve Been Saving Since Salone” which you should definitely read to see more on black butterfly decor!
Tips: It’s definitely easy to make your own butterflies by purchasing black card stock and using the technique of folding the page in half and cutting out one side of a butterfly so it opens as a 3D butterfly! If you’re not up to creating your own, you can purchase on Amazon a pack of twelve for $6!
- Thistle, amaranthus and scabiosa pods
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An easy way to decorate your space throughout the year is definitely placing flowers in vases. During the spooky season, naturally bizarre elements definitely add a sense of mystery and eeriness to your space. Getting rid of the pretty roses and sunflowers and replacing them with flowers like thistle, amaranthus and scabiosa pods (even the name sounds bizarre and weird) around your space in glass vases. Along with the flower decor, get all your black decorative accessories like candlesticks, books and frightening touches as skulls—suddenly your place will look like a haunted mansion. This arrangement can be seen HERE from Pinterest which really sparked my love for these unique flowers.
- Halloween pumpkins
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It will not feel like Fall or Halloween without the typical pumpkin. Definitely go for it and purchase different sized pumpkins—but choose a more edgy version by either choosing black pumpkins or simply painting them yourself! It’s a modern spooky take on a timeless Fall tradition. Halloween is definitely a season that expresses creativity without perfection. We’ve always known to clean up the cobwebs and tidy our homes—but Halloween is a time to embrace the messiness, creepiness and its imperfections. It’s a time for you to try new crafts because it’s meant to look messy! An idea for crafting your Halloween pumpkins can be seen HERE from Pinterest! Painting your pumpkins black and then adding contrast detail on top is definitely the way to go when decorating unique pumpkins this season.
Halloween is an opportunity to play around with your creativity and inner desires–waiting at least once a year to transform yourself into anything you want to be! It’s definitely a holiday that gives anyone the permission to try something new without the fear of perfection. As I mentioned before I absolutely love the spooky season and dressing up for it—keep an eye out for my Halloween Makeup on my Instagram @itskellywebb!