36 Stylish and Spooky Halloween Decorating Ideas

Houzz user Donna Collins loves to change the look of her front porch from season to season, so making sure that things stay on a budget is important. "I try to keep my decor clean and simple, with a homemade feel."

The black frame, polka dot pillow, and orange throw are all fun and flexible accents that Collins found at IKEA. She made the burlap Halloween banner with a bolt of burlap fabric and a letter stencil.

To make each wreath, Collins (who uses her crafty skills at her party planning business) started with a styrofoam wreath from Joann's. She hot-glued strips of orange fabric to the wreath as she wrapped the fabric around. The rosettes were made by twisting 1 1/2 inch strips of fabric and hot-gluing them together. The spiders were purchased from Pier 1.

Houzz user Traci Watson gives her Halloween decor an antique twist. "I love the idea of mixing vintage nostalgia with natural elements," she says. "There's something so unpretentiously charming about it."

Watson twisted vines from her yard into a wreath, painted "Boo!" on scrap wood, and added a vintage photo and other accessories. "The old photo makes me think of the past — a distant relative or a boy that still haunts your memory," she says. "I wouldn't use a well known family member though — a stranger is more mysterious."

For something more low-maintenance to last throughout the season, stick with simple decor in warm autumn hues. This porch plays off of faux pumpkins and bright fall leaves.

Karen of Strictly Simple Style stacked pumpkins from her local pumpkin farm to create similar pumpkin topiaries.

Jess of Frugal with a Flourish created this metallic-toned fall wreath and pumpkin topiaries using a minimal budget. While she had most of the items around her home, pretty much everything can be found at your local craft store at a very low price. Faux leaves were given a shimmer of metallic spray paint and applied to a wreath base, and mini faux pumpkins were given the same treatment for the small pumpkin topiaries.

Torie Jayne loves to change out the objects in her vintage-style curio cabinet. This year she is going with a theme of black, white, silver and pink. Bottles of beads and sequins, flashy skull charms, and funky pink-and-black ribbon spools give this cute display a pop of Halloween glam.

Houzz user Jacqueline Arroyo transformed her front entryway into a graveyard with styrofoam tombstones and a gauzy canopied entrance.

Arroyo littered her front porch with just about everything to do with Halloween, including giant fake bugs on top a piece of broken pottery. "The nice thing about Halloween is that even broken, dirty, or unusable pieces work in the decor," she says. "It all adds to the spookiness factor."

This little black and white entryway display gives Halloween a classic twist. Katrina Giles of Seaside Interiors loves "to change things up with the seasons with simple and inexpensive little touches," she says. "I find it gives my home a fresh and welcoming feel throughout the year."

A little ribbon trim and a chipboard spider (applied with a swab of double-stick tape) dress up this mason jar for Halloween festivities in Giles' house. Best of all, everything can be easily removed to put the jar back to kitchen duty after the holiday.

Here, Giles used an old frame, a little scrapbook paper, and some letter decals to make a cheerful sign to welcome Halloween visitors.

Giles applied a letter decal set from her local craft store to a simple black vase for her living room mantel. It's a simple piece that can be used each year, and can be accented with different florals and ribbons.

Sarah from Thrifty Decor Chick used removable silhouettes of mice and mouse holes from Martha Stewart on her newly finished stairwell. These are perfect for Halloween when paired with mini pumpkins and glowing votive candles.

We've talked about Houzz user Mel Mac's fantastic photo wall before, but we had no idea that she changed out the decor for holidays.

"I wanted to add some Halloween to my house without going the traditional route of pumpkins and leaves and such," she says. "The frames were already there with other items, so it was a no-brainer to switch them out and add silhouettes."

By using Sure Cuts A Lot software and her super handy Cricut, Mel Mac made these nifty cutouts from black scrapbook paper and a few fun images online. The bold black and white contrasts perfectly with her gray walls (Benjamin Moore's Asphalt).

If you're super excited for the October 31, try going for something a little more glam and dress up a few skulls with black paint and glitter and put your candelabras over a runner of ripped gauze.

Of course, your Halloween decor can veer more towards simple and understated as well. AB Chao just put out a simple arrangement of white miniature pumpkins in a kettle-shaped copper bowl. It's elegant and chic and still feels like Halloween.

This designer piled pumpkins in gray/green and white on a countertop for a elegant display.

If you're looking for something even simpler, put an assortment of gourds from your farmer's market into a rustic vase and call it a day.

The same effect was used on this larger pumpkin pumpkin display. This adult version of a jack-o'-lantern is simple, but makes a bold statement when lit up.

Criste wrapped creepy black fabric around her chandelier and window. Every other piece she either had on hand or bought on sale.

For Shelley Smith of The House of Smiths, Halloween decor is meant to be fun and cheeky — easy, cute, and free of any blood and guts.

She made almost everything in this display on her own (all of which can be purchased via her store), and everything else was snagged from thrift shops and dollar stores.

The plates were all simple white plates with handmade vinyl decals, and the Halloween "subway" art is another of her own designs.

The cute candy tray was a great excuse for her children to get involved — Smith's 4-year-old twins had a blast coming up with silly names for this Halloween candy display.

Smith made labels by printing out text in a funky font, pasting it onto brown scrap paper, and burning the edges for an antique touch.

Believe it or not, this adorably decorated space is actually a miniature room designed and created by Melissa Cabral of Super Junk.

A lover of all things miniature, Cabral creates miniature rooms and scenes with incredible precision and detail — including this perfectly retro room.

Your turn! Show us what you're doing this Halloween to glam up or spookify your space in the Comments below.

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