The Black & White (& Orange) Halloween Inspiration House of My Dreams!

If any of you have followed either of my blogs for even a small amount of time- you may have noticed (or heard me say!) that I have a love affair with the colors Black & White. The Artist/Designer in me goes nuts for that positive/negative imagery....add in pattern or texture and I am a goner!

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I tend to gravitate towards Black & White with the addition of one other color-usually red, or some version of it- like pink (or orange in the case of Halloween!)

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You all also probaby have gathered that I am always on the hunt for fresh ideas & inspiration (both for myself and to share!)

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Well my friends... last night while perusing my usual sources of fun & fancy...I came across a Black & White EXPLOSION OF INSPIRATION! -and I wanted to share. These photos and ideas came from the folks over at Good Houskeeping (with the exception of the above photo; which is from Better Homes & Gardens.) I hope that they inspire you and give you all some great ideas for decorating your own homes! (These are of course no where near the end of my Black & White Halloween Inspiration Ideas & Posts-but in the interest of keeping my posts a managable size(!)-I leave you with this.)
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Three Steps To An Evil Entrance

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1.Wicked

Wreath
Take your door from boring to boo-ring with a ghoulish grapevine wreath: Lay down old newspaper and spray-paint a 16-inch crafts store wreath with black spray paint. While the wreath dries, send your little boos & ghouls out to find small twigs from the yard.
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Using a glue gun, adhere a few twigs to the wreath and push a few extra twigs in between the grapevine, making sure they follow the same direction. Next, secure a mini pumpkin and small plastic spiders to the wreath with a glue gun. Finally, stretch out crafts store cobwebs across the wreath for a stark look.

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2. Pumpkin Pillars
Before you assemble your scary stacks, be sure to choose pumpkins that are the right size for your urns (the largest should fit right on top of the urn and the others should fit on top of each other. as shown in the photo).

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Cut off the tops of the pumpkins (discarding all but the smallest pumpkin top). Clean out seeds and pulp from inside the pumpkins and stack them as shown. After the pumpkins are hollow and stacked, use a black washable marker to test designs for your tree. Once you are ready for a permanent picture, go over your design with black enamel craft paint that will not run off in wet weather. When the paint is dry, carefully wipe away any washable marker line using a damp towel. To emulate stars, drill 1/4-inch holes into the pumpkins. For the three-tiered look, draw and carve out a crescent moon on the smallest pumpkin.
Last, place candles inside the pumpkins to bring the spooky scene to life.

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3. Jack-o'-Luminaries
Pick up a few small white gift bags from a crafts or party store. To make the black house as shown in the photo, draw or stencil the shape directly onto the bag using a pencil. Once you are happy with your design, fill in the drawing with a black magic marker. To light your path, place small candles into glasses or votives, then into the bags.

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Frightening Foyer
Give your guests the gift of spook as they enter your haunted house.
Batty Branches

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Choose a large pumpkin that is the right size for your entry table. Cut the stem flat across the top of the pumpkin. Carve out a small hole in the top that will hold one branch (or several branches) to create a treetop. For the bats on backyard branches, use patterned Halloween papers from a crafts or scrapbooking store to cut out bat shapes and hang from the branches. Tape a thin 1/8-inch ribbon from the back of each bat and tie the ribbon to secure bats the branches.

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Patterned Paper Votives

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Buy or reuse 4-inch to 8-inch straight-sided glass votives from the crafts store.
For each 8-inch votive you will need one sheet of patterned paper, one sheet of black paper, and one sheet of black tissue paper. First, cut a piece of patterned paper that will cover the outside of the votive. In the center of the paper on the backside, trace a bat shape with a pencil. Cut out the shape with small scissors. Place a small sheet of black tissue paper over the cutout and tape in place. Wrap the paper around the outside of the votive and tape in back along the seam. Make a border by cutting two strips of 1/2-inch black paper to wrap around the top and bottom edges, taping again in the back.

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Candy-Filled Cones
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For each candy-filled cone, you will need one sheet of orange tissue paper and one 12-inch black paper doily. Cut the orange tissue paper into a square shape large enough to cover the doily. Cut three evenly spaced slits into the center of the doily, leaving it intact. Form the doily into a cone shape in your hand and secure with tape or staples along the seams. Place the square of orange tissue paper inside the cone. Grab a heaping handful of tasty treats and fill the cone.

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Table of Treats
To set the scene, rip cheesecloth for a moth-munched look and drape over the table. Arrange snacks in servingware and on cake stands, then tuck in crafts store creepies and crawlies (spiders, skulls, mice, and crows).

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Create this fiendishly fun floral display by purchasing spider mums at the local florist. Lay down newspaper in a well-ventilated area to keep paint off furniture and floors. Spray-paint the flowers with black Krylon spray paint and put them in a slim vase. Nestle the smaller vase inside a larger vase lined with black-and-white patterned wrapping paper.

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Deathly Pale Desserts

If you don't have time to bake from scratch, buy a package of slice-and-bake sugar cookies from your local grocery store. Also buy a tube of Wilton's white royal icing and Wilton's black paste food coloring from a cake-decorating or crafts store. Bake the cookies as directed. After the cookies cool, cover them with white icing, mix up your black icing, and use the black icing for decoration.

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You can also make these cookies from scratch by using a simple recipe for sugar cookies and ornamental frosting.

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Mantel Magic Channel greetings from beyond the grave by finding three white pumpkins similar in size that will fit on the width of your mantel. If you cannot find white pumpkins for sale, you can spray-paint your pumpkins with white enamel spray paint. Once the paint is dry (about 30 minutes), use a washable marker to draw out the letters B-O-O on the pumpkins, as shown in the photo. Use a black permanent marker to finalize your design and wipe away any of the washable marker that shows with a damp towel. Adorn the mantel to your liking with mini pumpkins and gourds.

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Immortal Ivy
Use black spray paint to color artificial ivy from the craft store or real ivy from your garden. After ivy is completely dry, weave it through the pumpkins and drape over the mantel's eerie edge. You may need to use a small tack or tape to hold a piece or two in place.
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I hope you all found this Black & White Menaerie as inspiring as I have! Enjoy your day!

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~Danae <(:o) aka 'Crafty'