Clara has a soft spot for small creatures — seriously, she finds snakes and spiders adorable — and right now she’s obsessed with apples and pumpkins, which feels perfectly appropriate for fall. This year we decided to lean into a loose Halloween theme inspired by nature. That way we could include pumpkins, gourds, and apples along with creepier elements like spiders, black crows, and snakes.
I started by picking up some inexpensive decorations: a few plastic spiders for $1.99 and some wooden snake toys for $2–3 at Michael’s. The snakes were actually in the wood toy section and not specifically meant for Halloween, but they were perfect for what I had in mind.
To make the spiders look more realistic and a little scarier, I went over the orange bands on their legs with a black Sharpie so they’d be uniformly dark. For the wooden snakes, I imagined them painted flat white — there’s something haunting about matte white snakes that reads more ceramic or chalky than glossy, which felt more ghostly and appropriate for our décor. I gave them that matte white finish, and I love how they turned out.
One of our decorating traditions is styling the console table, so I started there. I brought out a few faux apples I had picked up on clearance from Pottery Barn some time ago to add a pop of color, and I dug out some spiderweb material from my Halloween storage tub. Yes, I have a dedicated Halloween tub, and yes, it’s labeled — proud dork over here.
Aside from the new snakes and a single black spider tucked into the vignette, I left most of the console items in place: my oversized vase from Z Gallerie, a faux tray from Target (the green “tray” is actually the box from a wedding photo album), an antler candlestick from West Elm, a glass greenhouse I scored at a yard sale, and the faux plant inside it from Ikea. The mix of familiar pieces with a few creepy additions makes the table feel seasonally updated without being over the top.
Miraculously, Clara can’t quite reach the console yet, so everything has remained undisturbed — though now that I’ve said that out loud, I’m sure I’ve jinxed it. We do hold her up to show her the spiders and snakes, and she’s already picked up a few cute phrases: “bye bye spider” and “hi apples!” Seeing the display from her viewpoint was adorable, so I snapped a picture from that angle.
The next spot I styled was the kitchen mantel. I didn’t get a straight-on shot, but it’s coming together with a similar mix of natural and spooky elements. I added green and white gourds and small pumpkins alongside a cluster of mismatched candlesticks for a collected, slightly eerie look. I also placed a few candles that I decorated to look like they’re dripping with blood to give the mantel a little theatrical gore.
I also pulled out a couple of books that I like to bring into the Halloween display each year: Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil and Everything Bad Is Good for You. A faux crow from Michael’s sits nearby, adding a classic Halloween silhouette and helping tie the whole mantel vignette together.
Don’t mind the slightly crooked candle in one of the photos — its imperfection makes the scene feel lived-in and a touch spooky, which is exactly the vibe I’m going for.
There are still a few other corners of the house I want to spook up before October 31st, but this is the current state of things. For fun I also pulled a handful of photos from past Halloweens to remind us how our decorations and costumes have evolved through the years; looking back at those memories always inspires a few new ideas for the current season.
How are you planning to celebrate October 31st this year? Any candy-corn-related mishaps yet, or are you holding steady?