National Gardening Association
"When You Garden, You Grow"
Decorating for Halloween
Turn that lovely dining room into a bewitching boneyard! Create this "spooktacular" table if you dare!
What you need:
- Black sheets, paper, or fabric
- One piece of foam core, posterboard, or cardboard for each chair
- Textured spray paint
- Black acrylic paint
- Paintbrush
- Brown burlap (enough to cover table)
- A large skeleton (ours was about 4 feet tall)
- Sheet moss
- Dried leaves
- Spider webbing
- Plastic spiders, bugs, and bats
- Black paper plates
- Fun/scary goblets or cups
- Black utensils
Start by cutting the burlap in wide strips. Layer them on the table. "De-bone" the skeleton. Then randomly scatter the bones throughout the center of the table, tucking bones into and under the burlap. Spread moss around the bones and scatter dead leaves. To achieve a sense of foreboding eeriness, stretch thin strands of spider webbing from the corner of the table up to the chandelier or hanging fixture. Encase the chairs with the webbing, too. Create creepiness by hanging spiders from the webbing, suspending bats in flight, and scattering bugs on the table.
Darken the Scene
Cover the windows with inexpensive black fabric or paper — the goal is to create a very dark room.
Tombstones Set the Theme
Using foam core, sturdy posterboard, or cardboard, trace the shape of a tombstone and cut it out with a serrated knife. Use textured spray paint to create a granite-like tombstone. Allow the paint to dry thoroughly. Then, use black acrylic paint to scratch in scary epitaphs, such as "R U Scared," "C.U. Soon!," and "U.B. Next!" Attach tombstones to the backs of the chairs using tape, or cut small holes in the sides of the tombstones and insert pipe cleaners through the holes and around the chair rails.
Set The Table
Black paper plates are the perfect match for this table, as are ghoulish goblets and black utensils. Dinner will never be the same!
