Halloween Homes: How to create spook-tacular décor just in time for fright night

October 31 is less than a week away, and Gabrielle Fagan is getting organised by dipping into a witch’s brew of interiors tricks and treats

Halloween - when we celebrate all things spooky - doesn’t mean you have to embrace frightful style.

It’s perfectly possible to take a walk on the dark side with sophisticated and playful decor touches that create drama, conjure a bewitching setting and last way beyond October 31.

Be brave and take on the twilight trend...

Embrace dark but dreamy decor

If you love living on the dark side year-round, make a statement with a Halloween mural depicting a haunted night sky. Alternatively, a haunted house mural could be fun for an occasion like a party. Simply add candles and skulls for a spellbinding effect.

Pimp your pumpkin

It’s the traditional symbol of the festival, but if you’d rather avoid the chore of carving your own Jack O’ Lantern (and want to preserve your fingers), there are plenty of alternatives around.

Invest in our feathered friends

Ravens, witches’ familiars in fairy stories, and flocks of crows are essential elements of a gothic setting, whether safely caged or flying free...

Celebrate the Day of the Dead

If the setting’s too gloomy for your taste, bring in colour with vibrant items evoking the spirit of the Day of the Dead, the annual celebration in Mexico.

Design a ghostly banquet

Transform a table with a creative setting. Simply lower the lights and make the table a focal point by decorating with a string of pumpkin lights, as well as individually lit pumpkins, and ramp up the eeriness with skull-decorated plates and accessories.

Light up a twilight zone

Flickering candlelight will cast magical shadows (though artificial candles are a better bet if children are around).