Celebrate Halloween With To-Die-For Holiday Décor

October 10, 2021 | Elaine Raffel | | Designer's Corner

Eighty-two percent of homeowners decorate for Halloween, according to a Google study.

Other than a free rein to binge on Reese’s peanut butter cups, did you ever stop to think why we love Halloween so much? Blame your psyche. It’s all driven by the psychology of fear and the unknown.

“The idea that we can redirect our fear into excitement and joy is incredibly powerful,” writes Megan McClintock on Medium.com. “It transforms the things that we dread the most into a celebration where we can embrace the things we don’t understand.”

In fact, we love the holiday so much that consumer spending on Halloween-related items is expected to reach an all-time high of $10.14 billion this year—up from just over $8 billion in 2020. Utah tops the list of celebratory states, with Illinois, New Jersey, New Mexico, and Texas rounding out the top five.

Glitterville Pop!—a three-month pop-up shop presented by Swoozies—is your go-to destination for everything holiday.(William Neal)

Locally, Halloween aficionados have a new haunt to stock up on innovative holiday wares. Swoozies in the Pavillon on Lovers Lane is hosting a new three-month pop-up shop of Glitterville Pop!, a literal fantasy land of whimsy and sparkle, glitter and glitz.

“The world today is full of scary and frightening things, so why not make your Halloween a little more fun?” asks brand Creative Director Stephen Brown. The pop-up shop is brimming with an irresistible array of innovative merch—think rainbow pumpkins, “kooky spooky” party hats, sugary spider cotton candy, even “Marie Bone-Toinette” makes an appearance.

Add some pink to your traditional black and orange, recommends Glitterville Creative Director Stephen Brown. (William Neal)

Other Halloween enthusiasts take a “go big or go home” approach.

These are the people who go through the time, trouble, and creative effort to convert their yards or streets into Jack-o’-Lantern jungles, or zombie zoos, or spook spectacles, all for the joy of entertaining others, according to Stacker.com.

The owner of this Rhode Island home created what he calls the “epicenter of creepy Halloween displays.” (Daniels’ Halloween House of Warwick)

This Halloween spectacular, located in Kenova, WV, is part of the town’s Autumn Festival. (Frank Pierson/Flickr)

Here, more frightfully fun decorating ideas—no matter what your Halloween style.

HEIRLOOM PUMPKINS

For traditionalists, a Martha Stewart-worthy pumpkin display fits the bill. Mix and match all shapes and sizes, including heirloom varieties like peachy Porcelain Doll and blood-orange Cinderella Rouge.

CHEESECLOTH SPIRITS

The decorating diva herself shows you how to create these spooky floating spirits using Styrofoam mannequin heads and cheesecloth.

GIANT SPIDER

This massive spider web will stop your neighbors dead in their tracks—exactly the goal of Halloween decorating.

BLOODY SHOWER CURTAIN

Okay, it’s a little creepy. But you gotta love the “Psycho”-like vibe of this bloody shower curtain.

DRIPPING BLOOD ADDRESS

Staying with the blood theme, who knew colored hot glue sticks could create this uber-cool effect?

GIANT GHOST

Let your inner phantom fly with this 14-foot-tall hanging ghost complete with LED light-up eyes.

SCARY DOORBELL

Delight in the fright! Press the button and a green eye pops out of this doorbell to give Halloween visitors the once-over—scary sounds included.

PINK PUMPKIN WREATH

Back to Glitterville, this gold-leafed papier-mâché wreath epitomizes the brand. “Add a little pop of pink to your Spooktacular spectrum of orange and black,” suggests Brown.

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