42 Halloween décor ideas to bring your party (back) to life

Leaves are turning red, pumpkins are turning orange, and the days are getting shorter. Autumn is here, which also means Halloween is right around the corner. Time to start planning the best Halloween party ever.

But just because Halloween itself is scary, doesn’t mean preparing for your party should be. That’s why we put together this list of Halloween party décor ideas that will treat your guests and maybe trick them, too. From ghastly ghosts to spooky snacks, many of these festive décor ideas are items you can pick up right at Paperless Post Party Shop. 

And for the record, you can decorate for Halloween whenever the spirit moves you—anytime after Labor Day is fair game.

How to throw a witchy and wonderful Halloween party

When it comes to chic Halloween figures, it doesn’t get much cooler than witches. It takes style to pull off those hats. Add some witchy halloween decorations to create the perfect Halloween party honoring your favorite spooky character. 

1. Witchy party hats

Hand out witch party hats for little and big sorceresses alike. They make a great addition to a Halloween costume or act as a festive part of your table decorations and indoor Halloween decoration ideas.

2. Wicked dishes

Perfect for serving on-theme bites like Halloweenies in a blanket and devil’s food cake, these witch plates will surely put a spell on your guests.

3. Black tablecloth

Your snack table will instantly look 100% more ominous when you cover it with a paper linen black table cover. Top the tablecloth with a cauldron of treats or fill it with witch’s brew for some extra color.

4. Witch hat appetizer toppers

To add some black magic to cupcakes or cheese plates, use spooky scary mini toppers—a quaint but witchy last touch to your snack table.

5. Black wine cup

Is there a creepier way to drink your poison than in a black goblet? Serve your favorite Halloween cocktails in a black wine cup to instantly increase the witchiness of your party while adding some seriously scary Halloween decorations into the mix.

6. DIY wicked witch décor

Stuff a pair of witchy striped stockings and add pointy buckled heels, then slip the top under a doorway or hedge—Wicked Witch of the West style. Follow a full witch legs guide for more details.

How to have fun with pumpkins at your Halloween party

For a classic Halloween party, you can never, ever have too many pumpkins. Incorporate pumpkin décor into your party in classic or funny ways, using some of the ideas below. 

 

7. Pumpkin favors

For a kids’ pumpkin-patch-themed party, these pumpkin surprise balls offer fun prizes inside, including a joke and a friendship bracelet.

8. Sturdy pumpkin plates

You’ll use these reusable bamboo pumpkin plates year after year—they’re even dishwasher safe. Plus, they’re great for serving yummy Halloween treats, snacks, and entrees to kids and adults alike. 

9. Grown-up gourds

Love pumpkins but wish they fit your spooky party vibe a little more? Put these black dark night pumpkins in unexpected places, like on a bookshelf or in your china cabinet, to create a spookier vibe. 

10. Halloween beverage stirrers

The devil’s in the details, and with themed drink stirrers, your guests will know that no amount of attention has been spared. 

11. Sweet paper pumpkins

Light these honeycomb pumpkin string lights around the house or yard—they won’t get mushy or moldy, either. 

12. Etching party

Put a twist on the pumpkin carving party and etch your pumpkins instead. It will give them a sophisticated, longer-lasting jack-o’-lantern glow.

Throw a Halloween party with ghosts galore

Looking for a truly haunted Halloween party theme? You can’t go wrong with spooky, sneaky ghosts floating through your party décor. 

 

13. Tombstone place cards

Turn your dining table into a graveyard and your guests into ghosts with these die-cut place cards in black foil. Subtle and spooky, these place cards reveal diners’ final destinations—at least at the dinner table. Epitaphs optional.

14. Ghost tea lights

Ghosts don’t have to be big to give party guests a scare. Follow a tea light ghost DIY guide to play with clay and the supernatural at the same time.

15. Ghastly dinnerware

These reusable bamboo ghost plates will haunt you and your guests—in a good way!—for years to come. 

16. Edible haunted house

Create tiny edible haunted houses for guests to enjoy as Halloween treats, or make a station for them to create their own little ghost-house desserts.

17. Floating ghosts

To make some floating spooky specters of your own, collect cheesecloth, plaster of Paris, and duct tape, and follow instructions to craft some DIY hanging Halloween ghosts.

Throw a creepy, crawly Halloween party

Bats and spiders are about as creepy and crawly as it gets. Add these critters to your party decorations to add a little cringe. 

18. Spider and bat balloons

Decorate your party with giant spider balloons for a festive vibe that also adds a little fear. If you like bats better, try this Halloween balloon garland kit with funky hanging bats. 

19. Bats in the window

Let visitors know that spooky games are afoot with paper bats taped inside your windows, on walls, or hanging from your ceiling fan. If your party is for kids, have them help create the bats and decorate in real-time. 

20. Giant spider

It has eight enormous legs and countless eyes—all set on you. Create a DIY giant spider for indoor or outdoor use.

21. Felt garland

For a DIY look with less effort, hang up this Halloween felt garland. With a felt bat, moon, and other Halloween creatures, the banner is a crafty addition to any party vibe.

22. Twisted candle

For a spooky, spider-leg twist on the traditional dinner candle, light a black twist candle to illuminate the dark corners of your party. (If black isn’t your thing, it comes in orange, too.)

Make sure your Halloween party has good bones

Skulls and skeletons, bones and eyeballs. Body part decorations make for the spookiest Halloween parties of all.

 

23. A boney banner

String a dark skull banner above a doorway, on a wall, or under a tabletop. Then keep it around for a Dia de los Muertos celebration on November 1.

24. Smiling skellies

A little scary and a lot adorable, these giant Halloween-jointed skeletons are happy to attend kids’ Halloween parties and adult Halloween parties alike.

25. Dancing skeleton napkins

Inspire your guests to do the “Monster Mash” with dancing skeletons paper cocktail napkins. These cute Halloween decorations will fit right into your Halloween skeleton theme.

26. Skull centerpieces

Bring a little Hamlet to your Halloween with a DIY skull centerpiece project that makes your table décor come to life—or not.

27. Eyeball balloons

All eyes will be on your party when you decorate with an eyeball balloon garland—perfect for any Halloween party, from fanciful to frightening.

Outdoor Halloween decoration ideas to spook the neighbors

Don’t forget to decorate the outside of your home as well as the inside with some of these outdoor Halloween decoration ideas. 

 

28. Monster doors

Give trick-or-treaters a monster scare with a DIY monster door. Cover your door with butcher paper or fabric and add eyes, scars, horns, or anything else that screams “Boo!” 

29. Pumpkin lanterns

You don’t need much to DIY a path of glowing pumpkins—no carving involved. Just draw or cut jack-o’-lantern faces onto gift bags, then add a battery-powered candle inside. Place the pumpkins along your front walkway for an eerie welcome.

30. Glowing eyes

Ever think somebody’s watching you? Your guests will feel the same when they walk up to your door and see glowing eyeballs in the distance. Cut creepy eyes into toilet paper or gift wrap tubes, place a glow stick or flashlight inside, stash it in a nearby shrub, and wait until dark.

31. Pumpkin carving stations

Set up an outdoor carving station on a folding table, and give each person their own pumpkin placemat to carve a pumpkin on. Remind guests to cut a hole in the bottom of the pumpkin so it lasts longer!

32. Chic-and-eek outdoor dinner décor

If you live in a warmer climate and are hosting an outdoor Halloween dinner party, set the table with a spiderweb runner and hand candles for a sophisticated yet horrifying vibe. 

Halloween décor ideas for office parties

When it comes to a Halloween office party, decorations are key. Spice up the common area or conference room with some classy Halloween décor ideas to get every employee in on the festivities. 

 

33. Happy Halloween banner

Set the scene for your Halloween party—no matter the scare factor—with a Halloween fringe garland. It’s a great final touch to an entryway or serving table and wishes coworkers and executives the best for the spooky season.

34. Bloody candles

For that murder-mystery-haunted-house look, bleeding candles fit the bill. Just get a red candle and a white candle. Melt the red one down until it’s liquid wax. Then pour the red wax onto the white candle for a seriously sinister decoration.

35. Office stripes

For an elevated office vibe that has a dark, Beetlejuice twist, decorate the common room tables with black-and-white pinstripe tablecloths and starry night plates. 

36. Halloween balloon bouquet

Black cats—check. Orange and black—check. This Halloween balloon bouquet gives the conference room a little bit of fun as it floats like an ethereal ghost or hangs from the corner like lurking spiders—whatever your party needs most.

37. Stitched streamers

Both cute and creepy, this pastel Halloween stitched steamer will stretch across any office Halloween party for a classic, festive touch.

Serve up some spooky Halloween snacks

Mini Halloween candy bars are good, but you can do better. Try some unique snacks that will bring the holiday home for your guests—with a little less added sugar. 

 

38. Smokey pumpkin deviled eggs

So cute, we almost don’t want to eat them. Almost. Create deviled eggs that resemble a pumpkin to give your guests a little art with their protein. 

39. Candy corn cupcakes

Your guests will gobble them up—even if they aren’t candy corn people. These gluten-free cupcakes are sweet without the candy corn taste but with all of the festive candy’s appeal. 

40. Spiderweb nacho spread

A terrifying twist on a classic. Add a fake spider on top of your spiderweb nachos for added creep effect. 

41. Mummy hot dogs

These Halloween snacks tend to get a bad wrap, but they’re popular with kids and mummies alike. Get some toothpicks, cut up some hot dogs, and start making mummies that everyone will enjoy. 

42. Black magic margarita

A potion with the power to make any Halloween party unforgettable. Follow a quick recipe for this Halloween cocktail idea to get everyone in the spirit.

Send Halloween party invitations with spirit

 

Get your guests in a spooky mood by sending out online invitations that let them know what your party is all about. Paperless Post has tons of spooky and special Halloween party invitation ideas to choose from, but these are some of our favorites:

• “Perched Raven” by Meri Meri: Nevermore will you be able to find a more charming Halloween invitation. 
• “Spooky Protectors” by Hello!Lucky: Pumpkins, skulls, spiderwebs, ghosts—we love having all our spooks in one place. 
• “Skeleton with Drink” by John Derian: We promise your guests won’t look anything like this sad skeleton when they receive this invitation. 
• “Are You or Aren’t You?”: Invite guests to come as they aren’t with this costume party Halloween invitation idea. 
• “A Vampire’s Soiree” by Mr. Boddington’s Studio: Invite guests over for a “bite” to eat. This invitation works for Halloween dinner parties or cocktail affairs. 

Halloween and Paperless Post: A match so good it’s scary

 

Planning and hosting a Halloween party isn’t scary with Paperless Post. Choose your perfect Halloween invitations, customize them to your heart’s content, and send them out whichever way you choose—via email, text message, or shareable link. Choose a stationery-inspired design for a more classic look, or keep things casual with fun, animated Flyers.

Then, head to Paperless Post Party Shop and pick up some memorable supplies and décor to bring your Halloween party to life… again. No matter what vibe you’re going for, you’ll find something you and your guests will love at our Party Shop. There’s a reason we call our stuff “the goods that make a party great.”

 

Editor’s note: Party Shop shipping is only available in the continental US.

Hero image credit: Meri Meri.