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How to decorate your front door for Halloween

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It’s time to welcome trick-or-treaters and other guests with these festive door-decorating ideas! Of all the autumn decor available, nothing is as welcoming to ghouls and goblins as Halloween decorations. And, a well-crafted Halloween door decoration embraces the fun and spooky spirit of the season and lets trick-or-treaters know that you’re open for business!

So whether you are a DIY novice or an all-out crafter, creating a Halloween-ready door can be easy, fun, and affordable! 

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Start with basic black

DIY Halloween door display Hayk_Shalunts / Shutterstock

If you want to keep things simple and affordable, you can create the door of your dreams (or your nightmares) using nothing more than craft paper, scissors, glue, and a little imagination. A roll of black wrapping paper makes the foundation for limitless possibilities. Start by wrapping your door in black and be sure to use paint-safe tape to protect the finish!

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Now that your door is a blank canvas of black, here are a few decorating ideas to try:

  • Fangs of doom: Using white construction paper, cut out large, pointy fangs of various shapes and lengths. Glue or tape a full set of fangs at the top of the door and another set at the bottom of the door. Enter if you dare!
  • Peek-a-boo mummy: Cover the front of the door with a crisscrossing of toilet paper, to resemble mummy wrap. Be sure to cover the entire door, leaving an area open near the top for a pair of gleaming eyes! Create spooky eyeballs with yellow construction paper and big black circles for pupils.
  • Pumpkin parade: Grab a pile of orange construction paper and cut out pumpkins of all shapes and sizes. Cut out jack-o-lantern faces with scissors and then glue pumpkins to the wrapping paper in an arching parade of pumpkins. Add 3D flair by surrounding your door and steps with a bevy of real pumpkins or jack-o-lanterns.
  • Just hanging around: For a simply ghoulish (and oh-so easy) Halloween door decoration, place a hanging skeleton, monster, or grim reaper on the door. Who will dare to knock? 

Pumpkin group decoratingA more sophisticated side of Halloween

As any adult will tell you, Halloween isn’t just for kids, and there are plenty of ways to get your home in the Halloween spirit and still keep your sophisticated sense of style. Stick with natural elements and more toned-down hues, and you’ll be sure to love the results.

  • Wreaths aren’t just for Christmas: It’s easy to make festive Halloween wreaths from materials purchased at your local craft store or garden center, but there are also many beautiful wreaths you can buy locally or online. Suspend a natural twig wreath from a sheer black ribbon, or place a solitary wreath of black and burgundy roses on your door for a bit of somber style.
  • Pumpkins and gourds and mums, oh my: Flank a doorway with an array of pumpkins, gourds, corn stalks, and flowering mums of golden yellow, orange, and cranberry. Nature is filled with beautiful autumnal offerings that are perfect for Halloween decorating.
  • Light it up: Twinkling white lights on leaf-bare trees are both spooky and sophisticated, while a solitary spotlight highlights a tastefully decorated doorway display. Line a walkway with glowing luminaries to light the way to your front door for trick-or-treaters.
  • Go monochromatic: Pumpkins come in colors other than orange, and nothing is more sophisticated than an array of white pumpkins and gourds artfully stacked around your doorway. A white-sprayed twig wreath against a black door adds the perfect finish to your monochromatic decor.

What if you’re not into Halloween this year?

If you won’t be home or aren’t planning on giving out treats this year, we have a few clever ideas that will let trick-or-treaters know to pass your house by, while still keeping in the spirit of the season. 

Pick up a roll of caution tape and block off the access to your doorway. Add a couple of handmade signs that make it clear you’re not up for visitors this year — a sign reading “ALL OUT OF CANDY” should do the trick! And, be sure to keep your porch light off and your door shut. 

A decorated front door is the very first hint that your house is in the spirit of Halloween!

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Kim Renta
Kim Renta
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Kim has written for Bloomingdales, Movado, and various e-commerce wine sites. When she's not writing about wine and…
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