Hello and welcome to the Halloween Home Tour hosted by Tammy Of Pink Peppermint Design! I love decorating for Halloween and finding new ideas for Halloween decor, so I am so excited to be joining 6 talented blogging friends for the tour. If you are coming over from my sweet friend Laura at Decor To Adore, or if you just happened to stop by today I am so happy you are here. 

I am still in the process of transforming my home for Halloween and putting on a few finishing touches, so I will be sharing a full Halloween home tour next week. Today I am sharing how I decorate for Halloween with a touch of whimsy to delight trick-or-treaters, family and friends. *This post contains affiliate links.

 

We are lucky enough to live in an old fashioned neighborhood with several trick-or-treaters, so I always like to go over the top for the kids (and big kids). I also want to give kids a smile, not a scare, so most of the decor is whimsical or “icky” instead of macabre and gory.  As a music teacher, costumes, props, character plays, seasonal songs and games are part of life, so it is just natural that I enjoy making Halloween fun for kids. Geraldine the Witch and Ms. Beatrice Bones are always waiting to greet candy seekers in style.

 

 

Beatrice Bones loves gardening and chic fashion. In her former life she was a master gardener so you can usually find her around the flowers. For the past few years Mrs. Beatrice Bones has greeted trick-or-treaters on the front porch along with Geraldine the witch. I switch them around and style them doing different funny tasks on the porch or in the yard  all during the week leading up to Halloween. This really gives neighbors and passers-by a smile!

 

 

Geraldine the witch is not a bit embarrassed about the magical facial rejuvenation procedures she uses to keep herself looking eternally flawless. A few years ago she got a must-see Bewitching Makeover which proves the power of a little makeover, a new hair style and some bling.

 

Each year the gals get together on the porch to enjoy some of Geraldine’s hot brew in their latest Rae Dunn mugs and to make big plans for Halloween. Trick-or-treaters of all ages always look forward to seeing them on the big night.

 

If nothing else, I entertain myself at least! Beatrice bones is my favorite outdoor Halloween decoration. I actually really love decorating with skeletons and skulls for Halloween, probably because I love neutral decor most and I can easily work neutral accents into my decor and vignettes. I do love adding pops of Halloween seasonal color in the kitchen though.

 

As much as I love Halloween, as I have gotten older it has become all about easy transitioning in decorating.  I have found it is much simpler just to add a few fun Halloween accessories to my everyday decor instead of packing every single thing away and dragging it all back out again later. It is a fun challenge to see how I can change vignettes using what I have.

 

For example, this simple fall garden themed styled tray in the kitchen was easily changed into a “rotten garden treats” tray with the addition of some fun Halloween items.

 

A garden spider has spun a web among the herbs, and a stack of three vintage black and white transferware saucers holds a trio of yucky Halloween treats and a centipede and moss appetizer. My upcycled vintage Halloween witch’s broom whisk adds even more whimsy.

 

 

“She had one too many skeletons in her closet”

A vintage whisk broom becomes a fun Halloween decoration when embellished with a Dollar Tree skeleton, a vintage “missing time” watch face, vintage lace, fabric scraps, and a black crow feather. The whimsical witch hang tag was the perfect finishing touch.

 

 

“Twisted Treats” (black licorice), “Earth Worms” (gummy worms) and “Rotten Sweets” (chocolate eyeballs) might actually be considered sickly poison…my son and I made up these little repurposed spice bottles-turned Halloween treat decor about 8 years ago!

 

The easy and lighthearted, whimsical Halloween decor continues in the music room where Beethoven “the pirate” greets my music students all through October and any trick-or-treaters who might happen to venture inside. The music room is already full of my collection of vintage treasures, so it is easy to transform for the holiday.

 

 

The music room is next to the front porch, so with the window slightly cracked on Trick-or-Treat night you might hear the haunting melodies from the halls of Hogwarts or creepy sounding classical music coming from the vintage style Crosley radio in the room.

 

Faux cobwebs lightly “adorn” the antique mirror and vintage frames while two small vintage bust statues are ready for Halloween games with their masquerade blindfolds. A rubber spider web becomes a 1920’s style “fascinator” is one of my favorite little touches.

 

 

When displayed on a tall standing candleabra, my favorite indoor skeleton (Mr. Bones) seems to float in air once the sun goes down and the Halloween magic begins.

 

 

Like Ms. Beatrice Bones, Mr. Bones is often moved around in different vignettes during October. In my Welcome Fall Mantel post for the Fall Festival Blog Hop I shared how the addition of Mr. Bones to the mantel was a super quick and easy nod to Halloween for the early part of the month. I love traditional orange and black and even purple decor during the week of Halloween. As the holiday gets closer I go all out with decor in those colors, but I find it makes the house feel cluttered and chaotic if I have it out too long.

 

When I want a touch of Halloween before the real festivities start, Mr. Bones always seems to add just enough Halloween whimsy without being distracting.

 

Several years ago I stopped the Halloween decor hoarding insanity and downsized from about 14 totes to one large tote of indoor Halloween decor, and one large tote of outdoor Halloween decor. I have found that I can come up with some really fun vignettes for Halloween that don’t involve commercial, mass produced Halloween decor by using what I already have along with a little bit of imagination.

 

The antique shabby-farmhouse dresser by the staircase is so fun to style with Hauntingly Beautiful Vignettes. Since our 97 year-old home is decorated primarily with vintage, thrifted finds and antiques, it is super simple to shop my house for old items that work as Halloween decor.

 

All throughout the year I keep my eyes open for unique and interesting items I might be able to use as Halloween decorations. Last year I found this “hauntingly beautiful lady” at a yard sale for 10 cents! Someone had scratched out her eyes and then tried to paint back over them, which gave her an elegantly eerie look.  I knew she would be perfect for Halloween! No blood, no gore, but still a bit creepy.

 

For whimsy I gave her some silly foam stick on eyes.  During October the top of the dresser is decorated with several oddities and curiosities.

 

Several years ago I started using antique photographs and cabinet cards in my Halloween decor and I just love them. At first I thought it might be a disrespectful to someone’s ancestor, but I actually love all of the old photographs and now I just call them my “adopted ancestors!” It always amazes me to think that someone would ever let go of these old photos, but now at least I cherish them. I always choose photographs that seem interesting or that can easily be altered for Halloween without damaging the pictures.

 

Antique photographs of “happy sisters?” (I added the witch hats) and two very old circus performer cabinet cards are my favorites to date.

 

This year I have several new “pretty-creepy” (as I call them) antique photographs that I am incorporating into my Halloween decor. I was so excited to share them along with my Halloween mantel and some new living room Halloween decor for this tour, but it has rained and rained and then rained some more for days on end! #bloggerprobs! Every single day was extremely dark and gloomy so I wasn’t able to get enough photos of this year’s mantel and living room for today’s tour.

I do however have an extremely huge “sneak peak” I can share with you…

This year the hauntingly beautiful lady has floated from the antique dresser over to the mantel and is part of what is probably my favorite Halloween mantel design yet! Instead of googly eye stickers, she is using her new all-seeing eye to spy any strange happenings on trick-or-treat night. I just can’t wait to fully reveal this mantel!

 

This hauntingly beautiful antique photograph is one of several new ones I will be sharing next weekend.

 

This year I am using lots of green in my Halloween decorating, including various mosses, natural accents and creepy crawling things. Of course there will be plenty of skulls, bones and more skeletons to see.

 

As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, I really like to concentrate on creating a whimsical home for Trick-or- Treat. I really think some Halloween decor can indeed be “Hauntingly Beautiful.” More often than not the look is achieved when using items that aren’t Halloween related in new and creative ways. While this vintage style fly/bee? pillow isn’t a Halloween decoration, when I spotted it online I knew it would be perfect for the look I love to create for the holiday.

 

Every Trick-or-Treat several family members and friends come to our house to hang out on the porch and help with passing out candy. I always make two huge crock pots of homemade turkey chili, and everyone enjoys a safe and fun time! Our Halloween decorations always elicit smiles and laughs instead of tears and screams on Trick-or-Treat, and I it makes me so happy to hear that people love coming here.

 

 

 

It is supposed to clear up this week, so hopefully I will get some great photographs.  I am really excited to share my mantel and the rest of this year’s Halloween home tour!  I will be linking up and sharing at The Hauntingly Beautiful Decor Halloween Link Party. If you are a blogger and you have any beautiful, elegant, or whimsical Halloween decor or craft posts we would love for you to link up with us! If you are a blog reader, you are also welcome to join the fun by visiting all the fun posts full of Halloween inspiration. The party is live every Saturday-Wednesday in October. Hope to see you there!

 

 

Thank you so much for visiting today! I do hope you will stop back by next week to see more of my Halloween home. Don’t forget to check out all the other beautiful blogs on the Halloween Home Tours too. They are all so inspiring!

House by Hoff | Monica Wants It | Two Twenty One | Pink Peppermint Design | Decor to Adore | Follow the Yellow Brick Home | DIY Decor Mom

 

 

Have a safe and Happy Halloween!

Amber

 

The Weekend Saturday Sparks Flaunt It FridaysTuesdays At Our Home Reader Tip Tuesday Vintage Charm Wow Us Wednesdays The Scoop Make It Pretty Monday You’re The Star Happiness is Homemade Silver Pennies Sundays Feathered Nest Friday Friday Features Flaunt It Fridays Home Matters Best Of The Weekend Pink Saturday Saturday Sparks Create, Bake, Grow, Gather The Farmhouse Friday Link-Up The Charm Of Home Funtastic Fridays Fridays At The Fire Station Wonderful Wednesdays Waste Not Wednesday Creative Inspirations Keep In Touch Style Showcase  Thursday Favorite Things Share Your Cup Inspire Me Monday  Busy Monday Make Life Pretty Monday Project Inspired Link Party  Celebrate Your Story  Tuesdays at Our Home Reader Tip Tuesday   The Scoop A Stroll Thru Life  Amaze Me Monday   Dishing it Digging It Creative Inspiration Party Sundays At Home Pretty Pintastic Pin Party Friday Feature Creative Inspirations DIY Show Off Sundays At  Home Grace At HomeDagmar’s HomeParty In Your PJ’s