Lovin' Halloween Decorations 2015

Halloween is over for yet another year. I am so happy Aussie's are starting to really embrace the art of Halloween and trick-o-treating. It really is a lot of fun to have an excuse to dress up and walk around your neighbourhood and get to know people while asking for candy/lollies!! Here is what my house looked like this year.

The paint was purchased because it was "glow in the dark" though it didn't really deliver a good glow, well not as I was hoping it would. I think if I had charged it with a torch directly onto each letter, it could have given a better affect. Most people loved the giant spider. The garbage bag at the front is supposed to be a body bag. From a certain angle, it was close to looking like it should. Not sure if anyone picked up on it, they were too nice and didn't ask!! 

The glow in the dark paint not having an affect at night time:(

I painted the skeletons in the glow in the dark paint too. The eyes show the paint slightly working. The teeth have been doused in glow stick fluid! I got annoyed that things weren't glowing, so resorted to the glow stick fluid to say something glowed!!!

It started to rain a little so Charlie came under the porch to greet the evening trick or treaters. The best compliment of the night was a young couple who sat their baby on the seat so they could get some pictures, and I didn't charge them!!;p

This is our foyer entrance table decorations. 

This was my attempt at a venus fly trap. I saw something on Pinterest that looked awesomer than this. I had such high hopes, but I ran out of time as I got the flu and ran out of patience. Maybe next year! So I guess this is my #PinterestFail.  The cockroaches are fake! Come back in the middle of summer and they won't be!!! 

What did you do this Halloween?

Tis the Season to be Spooky! Halloween 2015

Tis that time of year again that I get all excited and bring out the Halloween decorations. It has been a long time coming that Australians embrace the fun of Halloween. I have been embracing Halloween now for about 7 years, but I started seriously decorating my house about 2 years ago.  Last year's decorations looked a little like this.

 You might be able to see just slightly on the right hand side of this picture something glowing in the background. This was my attempt at a packing tape ghost.  These are quite easy to make and not costly, but not as easy in my opinion to set up for its best affect. A bit more planning was needed from my end, and a place to hang them up would have been helpful. Our front yard at the time was under construction as well, so I really couldn't set anything up, like this.

You can kind of see on either side of the window some masks which I had glowing mini torches in, to give them their spooky look. I purchased the masks from the Hot Dollar store and purchased the mini torches online in bulk. The bats and hands are cut out from black cardboard and stuck on the window. You can get free templates online.  The bobbled string is actually knitting wool.

These are solar lights and I scored them from Bunnings on clearance for about $2 a box. They look good and I am using them again this year.

We have two skeletons and both were purchased from Costco. This year, the skeletons were more expensive so I didn't bother getting another, though I do think two skeletons will work just fine this year. To get the glow in the dark liquid affect like this, I just used a liquid glow stick. The chunkier one is best as it's easy to pop the cap and pour on. Be careful when you do this. As you can see the affect is amazing but you need to reapply throughout the night as the glow doesn't last very long.

I picked up these pumpkins from Big W last year for $30. I try not to spend too much on my decorations. If I do spend, it has to be on something that can be reused year after year. This decoration has an adaptor so it inflates and lights up.

This year, I have a few other tricks up my sleeve. We are attempting a paper mache sculpture which we hope will be fun. I will post pics soon. I also made a rather large purchase that I am hoping will have a great affect. I am also attempting a mini haunted house.

The best thing about celebrating Halloween like this in Australia, is not too many houses do. The neighbourhood families love that they know they can send their kids to my house and check out the decorations and get a treat. It also encourages the other neighbours to get into the spirit of family fun and have treats ready for the kids as they come around. We had so many families with children come by our house last year and cars would drive by just to see the decorations. It was a lot of fun and that is why I will keep doing it!

Do you celebrate Halloween?