[kaelyne]

Hi everyone,

I am fairly new here and am in need of some of the wonderful creativity I have seen so far. After much cajoling I have finally gotten my very reluctant husband to agree to having a halloween party this year. The only caveat that I had to agree to is that I can only use the cottony spiderwebs outdoors or in the basement and I can't do anything permanent to decorate inside (i.e. holes in the walls, etc.). The only halloween party I've ever done involved all of those things en mass and we were picking up spiderwebs and painting over holes for months - which is why he is so hesitant to have anotehr party at all.

So, I am in desperate need of ideas of ways to create a great haunt without these things and without spending an absolute fortune on store-bought decorations so I can 1) make it a great party and 2) convince him we could make it an annual event

Any help any of you might be willing to share would be <greatly> appreciated!!!

Thanks!

 

[HallowSusieBoo]

You've come to the right place!!

Hallow and Welcome to the Forum. I was new to this site a mere 6 weeks ago, and I found that the only thing you need to get your spooky juices flowing is to read read read all the wonderful "threads" on Halloween Forum!

There is enough creativity here to make your first party a COMPLETE success!!!

Needs invitations? You'll find ideas here.
Need food ideas? Yep - stay here!
Need inexpensive decorating ideas? Look no further!

Just follow the Forum brick road and you will arrive at the Emerald City of creativity!

Invite your friends - tell hubby to relax -- he will love whatever you do and then

just dive in and go for it! BOO!

 

[Si-cotik]

Ditto to HallowSusieBoo's post! That is all I can say is read!

Welcome to the forum! And congratulations on convincing your husband on having a party!

 

[shadowgirl]

You can decorate an entire room for under $25.00 & not put one whole in the wall. The have these wonderful "wall scenes" they sell now. You can get crazy (which is what I am doing) or you could just get the brick wall. You can go to Party City & for $14.99 get 50' of it. It changes a room immediately. You would want to get Sticky Putty to put it up with. Don't cheap out. The other brands don't work. It is 4'x50'.

 

[tree45]

if your decorations are laminated you could also use removable window caulk. You need to hold it for a few minutes to dry, but it comes off easy with no marks.

 

[dippedstix]

You can decorate an entire room for under $25.00 & not put one whole in the wall. The have these wonderful "wall scenes" they sell now. You can get crazy (which is what I am doing) or you could just get the brick wall. You can go to Party City & for $14.99 get 50' of it. It changes a room immediately. You would want to get Sticky Putty to put it up with. Don't cheap out. The other brands don't work. It is 4'x50'.

Shadowgirl- is this the sticky putty you are referring to or did you use another kind?

All Purpose Sticky Putty - Party Supplies & Decorations @ Ziggos.com

 

[Witch Hazel]

I agree bout the forum. TONS of info. on here. Just search for what you need & read. I also agree on the scene setters. You can totally change a room using those. I'd highly recommend lots of candles and pumpkins as well. We change out all of our light bulbs with the red ones, gives a nice glow. Good luck with everything!

 

[Frankie's Girl]

Cheesecloth can be shredded and hung off of curtain rods, door frames, over light fixtures... and it's pretty easy to take down with no messy webby stuff stuck all over.

The search function is your best friend on here - the button up on the right. Try doing searches for different decor ideas, or just page through the forum.

 

[kaelyne]

Wow! Thanks for the tip Shadowgirl! So sticking those wall scenes on won't pull off the paint or anything when you take them off?

kaelyne

You can decorate an entire room for under $25.00 & not put one whole in the wall. The have these wonderful "wall scenes" they sell now. You can get crazy (which is what I am doing) or you could just get the brick wall. You can go to Party City & for $14.99 get 50' of it. It changes a room immediately. You would want to get Sticky Putty to put it up with. Don't cheap out. The other brands don't work. It is 4'x50'.

 

[jadewik]

I think you should tease him and put holes in the wall anyway....

Bust (fake) holes in your walls!

 

[serpensphile]

LOL Jadewik! I love the way you think!!!!

 

[senorita]

I like to use black cut outs, they are easy and cheap to make, and easy to put up with a 'little' tape! I agree with the scene setters as well, they really make a big impact without spending too much! I got a package of Martha Stewart's spider cardboard cutouts and then copied them and made some more of my own and they turned out great! With some red or blue lighting and lots of candles it really sets the mood!

 

[HallowSusieBoo]

Don't forget the floor...!

Here's a decorating idea that has been a big hit at my house. In the dining area - where the desserts get placed, I have an Autumn theme. I take a hay bale - one of the small ones from Michael's or Hobby Lobby, and break it apart, spreading the hay all over the floor in the dining room! I put a a small hay bale on the floor in one corner with little pumpkins and mums stacked about. A friend carved a real pumpkin for the centerpiece, and I used artificial leaves spread around the tablecloth. The pumpkin was sitting elevated on a mixing bowl I turned upside down and covered with a large cloth napkin. Bonus -- with straw on the (hardwood - but carpet would be fine too) floor guests can relax about accidental food spills!

The next day, everything gets swept up - first with a broom. (hubby should like that). Then a quick once over with the vacuum, and I take the mums outside. I recycle everything around my little front porch. Now the front door is ready for November!

The Fall theme seems to work great. I do have a few vintage movie posters that I put up with sticky wax on the walls and over the regular framed art that hangs over the buffet. Still - No holes! This the one area of the house that is a bit less "spooky" and gives folks a rest from all the other creepy rooms. Besides - the desserts that guests bring are so creative (it's a pot luck), I want the lights to be a bit brighter than the other darker parts of the house.

Can't wait to see YOUR pics when you get done decorating! Good luck and above all - have FUN!! BOO!

 

[Elza]

Here's some things you can do:
1. Create your own creatures out of pole lamps - I take old costumes and make a witch or ghoul (cheap and no mess)
2. Cover the floor with the cheap plastic painters tarp..then HollowSusieBoo's idea of straw or leaves will be an easy clean up and the crinkling sound as you walk is a bonus
3. There's another thread where someone is planing to take tree branches and tie together, paint black and put in the cauldron pots with rocks to hold in place. Add colored string lights
4. White sheets to cover everything and black lites..(lots of threads about those.) If you bundle the sheets in a plastic bag for a week with some moth balls you'll get that musty old house smell.
5. I covered doors with tape and brown butcher paper...I decorated the paper (before hanging in case of bleed through) as an out house door for the bathroom, a dungeon door, etc. Use a packing tape that doesn't leave a residue.
5. As Frankie's Girl said Cheese cloth - there are so many uses
6. Take down regular pictures you have hung and hang some spooky substitutes (no new holes)
7. Change out lamp lights with orange, blue or green - your preference. Or use lots of candles. Just depends your preference.
8. Back to the cheese cloth...you could use the sticky putty to hang some on the walls as well as the scene setter ideas
9. Dust table tops with baby powder to simulate dust (or just don't dust all of October LOL)

I can go on and on....but hopefully you'll get some ideas.

 

[kaelyne]

OMG! I LOVE that idea! Thanks

 

[mysterymaiden]

You can decorate an entire room for under $25.00 & not put one whole in the wall. The have these wonderful "wall scenes" they sell now. You can get crazy (which is what I am doing) or you could just get the brick wall. You can go to Party City & for $14.99 get 50' of it. It changes a room immediately. You would want to get Sticky Putty to put it up with. Don't cheap out. The other brands don't work. It is 4'x50'.

Similarily, I got some wall banners from Michaels with Halloween scenes, and they are removeable and repositionable, and not pricey!

 

[xkwisit]

I know you said no holes but I put up spider webs in all my doorways using clear thumb tacks into the top & side of the wooden frame. The holes are so small no one can see them afterwards. I then stretch the webbing from tack to tack & some from doorframe to across the room to another. I load the house with spider webs. I also utilize the same thumbtacks to hang the orange & purple (xmas) lights all over the place~thats our lighting for the party. I use the spiderwebbing as table cloths too.

Cheesecloth as previously stated is wonderful & inexpensive. Just stain it in tea or coffee for that old look.

I also stop at the farmer up the road & buy a load of mini pumpkins & have my husband drill holes in them big enough to fit taper candles~instant candle holders~and very inexpensive.

This year I went to Amvets & Goodwill & bought some cheap jars. I am making them into witches potions. I've created labels for them, glued them on & will stuff them with various stuff to put on a table with lots of candles.

This site is great for tons of ideas.

 

[Ecula]

Haha. Holes in the wall. Does not come to mind first, when
starting to think of Halloween decorations

And yes, reading and watching pics is a very good way
of getting ideas. You can start here and then move to
google. I have spent, to be honest, all together days
searching through the net and enjoyed every second.

If you go to see my photo albums you can see how
I have done. I have for example bought black cardstock
and cut silhouettes out of it.

Good luck anyway with your request!

***

 

[Anji4062]

Also, if you're wanting to put webs up in the house, Spirit has something called a Webcaster. It kinda looks like a hot glue gun, but it has a little adapter on it if you have a air compressor, that will make pretty nifty looking webs without having to put holes into anything. It's a little expensive however $50, at least for the gun itself, but the refills are fairly cheapat $3-$4. I really want to buy one, but I don't have a compressor and need to talk my father into letting me borrow his before I invest in the machine. lol Good luck on your party this year!!!!

 

[Anji4062]

Hey I just bought the Webcaster from Party Supplies, Party Supplies Decorations and they have it for $29.99. They also have a code at the top for "Free shipping and 10% off order if you spend $50" But I typed the code in anyway and it gave me both discounts. So I'm getting my webcaster for $26.99! You might want to order the refills too while you're at it to get the discount for them as well. Now it wont ship till the 15th of Oct, but it should be here in plenty of time for Halloween!