HOME KIDS TEACHERS COSTUMES PARTY DECORATE RECIPES SITE Decorating the Dinning Room Centerpiece: You can make a centerpiece with an inexpensive plastic witch's pot from a Halloween store and use that to place your flowers in. Or use a cardboard coffin from a party store that assemble's quickly. Place black & gray dried flowers inside. Add some small plastic pumpkins, than black ribbon tied around the flowers. You can make a simple centerpiece by just placing small pumpkins and guards in a bowl. You could also use some small plastic pumpkins, skeletons or ghosts and place them in a bowl. Paper plates: Halloween paper plates are found at party and department stores. They come in many different styles. Don't forget the matching napkins. Not only do these plates brighten up the table, but they make cleaning up a lot easier for you as you don't have to wash them. Place Mats: Halloween place mats are found at party stores. They come in many styles like Jack-o-lanterns and haunted houses. They look spooky and they protect the furniture too. Ghosts: Helium balloons covered with an old sheet or white trash bags make great ghosts. Paint or use magic marker to make scary faces on them. Anchor the balloon with a small bag of sand at the end of the string. The wind moves them and seems to give them life. Paining the ghosts together in small groups of looks even better. The faces can be drawn on with a marker if you don't find balloons with faces. Put up some plastic spiders on the curtain also. Glowing Table: This is one buffet that your guests are sure to give glowing reviews to. Wrap the edge of a table in orange rope lights, using low-tack tape to secure the lights to the table. For a beyond the grave table topper, use open-weave muslin, linen or old sheets that resemble mummy wrappings and lay them across the table. The linens disguise the light source and protect the table's surface. During the party, station a rotating fan under the table to blow the linens eerily. Jack-o-lantern: Why not decorate the rest room for quests? It could be as easy as placing a Jack-o-lantern with a scented candle. Notice the water theme to go with the bathroom. Or place some 3" pumpkins in the bathroom in a nice arrangement. Jars: This scary jar is simply last years Halloween mask placed in a jar of water with a few drops of food coloring. Try a plastic piranha fish in a jar with a rubber finger. Or how about a jar of rubber eyeballs? I placed a rubber brain in a jar. Rubber Mouse: Place a rubber mouse on the floor near the sink, where it is out of the way but can still be seen. If you have one, place the mouse in a real mouse trap. Snack Table: Have a snack table with Halloween treats for your quests. Chips, popcorn and party mix work well. Add Halloween decorations and you will have a great gathering. If your quests are invited to dinner you may want to set out a snack table so quests can snack while waiting for dinner. Visit the "Snack Recipes" for great Halloween recipes. Halloween Tree: First you will need to find a dry branch that has fallen to make your tree. Find a branch with a lot of smaller branches. Anchor the branch in a bucket of earth or floral foam. The plastic ghosts, bats and jack-o-lanterns were purchased from a party supply store. You could add any decorations you like of course. Decorate with antique photographs                   Water Jars: Turn plain jars into fancy decorations by drawing a face on the bottle with a marker and than adding a few drops of food coloring to a jar of water. Decorate with cloth to complete the jars. for a nice effect use small white lights behind the jars to illuminate them from behind. Window: Add Halloween spirit to the windows, try some spooky curtains. Use old material or sheets and wash them in gray dye. Rinse and wash them immediately until you are sure that there is no extra dye. Tatter the sheet edges to make them look old. Or decorate your windows with some pictures that you make yourself. Go to the "Coloring Pages" on this web site. Back