Temperatures drop, sweaters are on, and the ghouls come out to play. Yes, it’s spooky season yet again, which means it’s time to start planning for all the Halloween parties you’ll be hosting and attending!
Being the ‘hostess with the mostess’ isn’t an easy feat but we know that while it’s all fun and games, hosting the best gathering of your friends is a secret point of pride. So, to help you win this unofficial title, we’ve put together all the Halloween party ideas you’ll need to impress your friends, family, and any Trick or Treaters that come knocking.
Halloween Decorations
The best Halloween parties are undoubtedly the ones you remember for the amazing decor – if it’s not spooky, it’s not a Halloween party.
Depending on the guest list, you may want to make it gothic, fun and silly, hyper realistic (for the Halloween mega fans), or witchy and haunting. No matter what you choose, here are some great Halloween decor essentials to see you through the season.
‘Floating’ Candles
Who needs candlestick holders and chandeliers when you can just make them float? Obviously you can’t really make them float, but you can create the illusion by tying some transparent thread around the top of eclectic candles and attaching them to your ceiling. Extra Halloween points if you choose candles you can control with a flick of a wand!
Deadly Table Centrepiece
Don’t just serve hauntingly amazing food at your party, make sure you’re bringing every ounce of Halloween fear with an awe-inspiring centrepiece on your table.
Think about skulls as cups, dried roses, antique ‘potion’ bottles, and a healthy peppering of spider webs and bugs. As for the piece de resistance, make your main focus point a chocolate fountain, drinks tower, or even a cauldron full of candy.
Lanterns & Pumpkins
Let’s be real – Halloween isn’t Halloween without pumpkins and lanterns at every turn.
But don’t just go down the route of having the same old smiling pumpkins, you need to strike fear into the hearts of all men. Carve out the most frightful design you can think of (we have a pumpkin style guide for that) and place your pumpkins in the places they’d least expect – nothing like scaring your guests out of their wits!
Fear-Inducing Posters
Take your decor to a whole new level by having terrifying wall art – make sure every room is a bigger horror than the one before it.
Whether your guests will be chilled at the sight of Alien, reminded of their worst nightmares from horror classics like the The Ring, or made uneasy by seeing if they ‘Want to play a game?’ with Jigsaw, we have a host of amazing art to scare you half to death.
Halloween Food & Drinks
We all know that Halloween is a good excuse to have more candy than we should. But it’s not just the sweet treats, it also needs to be on brand for the season. So we’ve put together some ideas to elevate the fear-factor of your snack table.
Candy Charcuterie
We know that Halloween is all about the candy you get to indulge in. But don’t just put it all in a bowl for your guests to rummage through, instead take the time to create a Halloween themed charcuterie board. Arrange all your horrifying sweet treats into a delicate design and use it as the centrepiece of your food table.
Nacho ‘Brains’
A firm party favourite, give nachos a Halloween twist by adding extra red sauce for blood and serving it out of a carved pumpkin head for the illusion of brains. For an extra ghoulish effect, have guacamole dripping from the mouth.
Devilled Eggs
Tried and true, the devilled egg has been on our party platters for decades – and with good reason. These simple but delicious canapes can be adapted for any number of occasions and tastes, including Halloween. To make these more horrifying, soak your boiled eggs in food colouring for a few hours before cutting into halves.
Spooky Cocktails
An obvious choice for a Halloween drink is a Bloody Mary, but we think that’s a bit tired now. Instead, level up your game with wicked green drinks that use ingredients like Charteruse, such as Closing Argument (mezcal, green chartreuse, maraschino liquor, an lime juice).
And if that’s not up your street, elevate any cocktail of your choosing by using dry ice for that mystical smokey effect.
Frightening Ice Cubes
If you’re not much of a mixologist, worry not, as there are some sneaky ways you can still frighten your guests. Take your icecube tray, fill with water, and drop in a variety of fake critters such as spiders, flies and other bugs. Watch them squirm as they see them in their cup!
And if you really want to show off, take some rubber gloves , fill it with water and freeze. When fully frozen, cut off the gloves and put your ice hands into the punch bowl.
Halloween Music Playlists
Now music is very subjective based on taste. But when it comes to Halloween, the classics ring true. Hot on any Halloween playlist are themes from cult horror movies such as Ghostbusters, Beetlejuice, and any number of tracks from the Nightmare Before Christmas set.
For crowd pleasers, bring out the big guns with tracks like Monster Mash, Time Warp from The Rocky Horror Show, and Psycho Killer by Talking Heads.
Halloween TV or Movies
As your guests arrive and start to mingle, create the right atmosphere by having bone-chilling visuals playing on your television.
Top Halloween TV shows
For a crowd that likes a good jump-scare, you can’t go wrong with shows like The Walking Dead, and The Last of Us. For chilling paranormal frights, The Haunting of Hill House will certainly do the trick. And for more contemporary thrills, The Midnight Club and Stranger Things are sure to please.
Top Halloween Movies
When it comes to movies, think about the cult classics like The Shining and The Exorcist; for anything to build suspense and have you holding your breath, The Amityville Horror and Shutter are must-watch films; and if you like your horror with a dash of comedy, go with Hocus Pocus or any of the Scary Movie franchise.
Halloween Games to Play
What’s a party without party games? And since it’s spooky season, they of course have to be appropriately themed. So no matter what your party style, here are some ideas to get your guests into the Halloween spirit.
- Wink murder
- Famous horror movie quotes
- Carving competition
- Horror-theme charades
- Guess the number of candies in the jar
- Pin the knife on the body
So there you have it, everything you need to plan the most spectacular and terrifying event of the whole year!
For more ideas on all-things Halloween and horror, check out our entire collection of posters. And don’t forget to follow our blog to stay up to date with the latest ideas and inspiration on everything from gaming to movies!
