When Should You Decorate For Halloween?
Many homeowners get just as excited for Halloween as they do for Thanksgiving and Christmas. There are countless opportunities to decorate the inside and outside of your home to celebrate the season. So, when should you decorate for Halloween?
Most homeowners wait to decorate for Halloween until mid- to late-September when fall begins. Your neighbors are unlikely to complain unless you decorate for Halloween in the summer, especially in an HOA community. Ideally, you should take down your Halloween decorations within the first week of November. This gives you plenty of time to decorate for Thanksgiving.
Many of the best Halloween decorations are things you can find at home, like sheets for fake ghosts. You can also find budget Halloween decorations at dollar stores and on Facebook Marketplace. Follow along as we explore when you should decorate for Halloween.
How Soon Is Too Soon To Decorate For Halloween?
Most homeowners consider summer too soon to decorate for Halloween. However, it’s quite common to decorate for Halloween as soon as summer ends. Summer ends on the autumnal equinox, which is typically September 22 or 23.
That said, some homeowners start decorating for Halloween as soon as September begins. You aren’t likely to annoy your neighbors if you decorate for Halloween as early as mid-September.
Can You Decorate For Halloween If You Live In An HOA Community?
You can decorate for Halloween if you live in an HOA community, but there are regulations. For example, HOA neighborhoods often put stipulations on how long you can leave your Halloween decorations up. The board of the HOA may also regulate how soon you can decorate for holidays like Halloween and Christmas.
There may also be limitations about the type of Halloween decorations you can put on and around your home. You may not be able to get away with decorating your home with overly scary and intense decorations. It’s a safe bet to stick with innocent, family-friendly decorations that are unlikely to scare children.
Traditional, classic decorations like pumpkins and cartoonish inflatable skeletons are considered acceptable. However, you shouldn’t be surprised if you get reprimanded for decorations that depict violence and gross imagery. It’s also a good idea to avoid decorations that would agitate your neighbors, such as loud animatronics with sound effects.
How To Decorate For Halloween On A Budget
1. Take Inventory
The best way to decorate for Halloween on a budget is to take inventory of what you have at home. Many homeowners have household items that make it easy to cheaply decorate for Halloween. For example, you can use a simple white sheet to create a family-friendly ghost.
Other household items, like candles, string lights, and toilet paper rolls also have plenty of spooky potential. You can easily craft some fun fake bats out of toilet paper rolls and colored paper. Colored string lights make it easy to create a fun, ambient environment in your yard.
Do you have any spare cardboard and Styrofoam lying around the house? If so, you can create some fake tombstones with a little bit of paint and some creativity. You can even dip cotton balls in pink dye, put them in a mason jar, and make them look like brain matter.
2. Fill Your Lawn With Characters
Pumpkins, spider webs, and tombstones are Halloween staples, but many people associate the holiday with characters. Luckily, you can create some fun and spooky characters at home without spending a fortune. For example, you can build a scarecrow with some old clothes, wood planks, and hay.
You can even take it a step further and place a Jack-o-lantern on your scarecrow’s head. It’s also quite easy to create a ghost for your lawn using wire hangers and sheets. The same method works with fake spiders, although you’d be better off using black fabric atop a wire frame.
Cheesecloth is another simple material you can use to make ghosts, goblins, ghouls, and spiders. It’s easy to dye cheesecloth, so you aren’t limited by what type of creature you want to create. Simply build a wire hanger armature to go beneath the cheesecloth and position it however you want. Otherwise, you can buy a cheap Halloween mask to put on top of an armature to save yourself some trouble.
3. Create A Path
A big part of why people go all out decorating for Halloween is that they want to make an impression on trick-or-treaters. The best way to do this is to adorn the path to the candy with some fun visual cues. For example, you can decorate the walkway with Jack-o-lanterns and cobwebs.
Luckily, you can find bundles of fake cobwebs for under $3 from many dollar stores. Make sure you don’t obstruct the path, and instead create a fun environment around it. For example, you can fill Jack-o-lanterns with LED candles and place them along the path.
Decorate your lamp posts with fake cobwebs, but make sure you don’t cover the bulb with them. That may be a fire hazard depending on what the cobwebs are made of. Finally, you can make use of dramatic, colorful lighting to illuminate the candy at the end of the path.
4. Visit A Garage Sale
Garage sales are treasure troves that often hold many items that you never knew you wanted or needed. Depending on the homeowner, garage sales typically feature many decorations, outfits, and pieces of furniture. You can easily get creative and take this opportunity to buy vintage clothes and decorations that will work for Halloween.
For example, vintage signs and paintings work well if you want to emulate a spooky haunted house aesthetic. Old clothing can also adorn your scarecrows, fake ghosts, and even yourself if you plan to wear a costume. You may even be able to find old lamps and light fixtures and outfit them with colored bulbs.
The combination of a colored bulb with a vintage light can make your home feel like a family-friendly haunted house. You can also find some great hand-me-down decorations and costumes at thrift stores, such as Goodwill and local businesses. Antique stores also have great decorations, but they are often pricier than thrift stores.
5. Look Online
Online stores like Etsy are full of cheap Halloween decorations that often outshine what you find in stores. These items are typically made by independent creators who can afford to charge less than major retailers, like Lowe’s. Even better, many creators on Etsy can customize Halloween decorations for you based on your requests.
It’s also worth it to look at websites like Facebook Marketplace, especially if you want to avoid shipping costs. You can often find great local pickup options for Halloween decorations and costumes on Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist.
When Should You Take Down Your Halloween Decorations?
Most homeowners take down their Halloween decorations within the first or second week of November. You may be required to remove your Halloween decorations a few days after Halloween if you live in a strict HOA community. Otherwise, it’s still a great idea to take your Halloween decorations down shortly after Halloween.
Temperatures continue to drop throughout November, and there’s always a possibility of snow. The last thing you want is for your Halloween decorations to suffer elemental damage. It’s also fun to take down your Halloween decorations and replace them with Thanksgiving decorations.
Summing It Up
Ideally, you should wait to decorate for Halloween until late September, but mid-September is appropriate. Make sure to follow the rules about what type of decorations you can put up if you live in an HOA neighborhood. You can save money on Halloween decorations if you use household items like sheets, cardboard, foam, and toilet paper rolls to make tombstones and ghosts.
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Nick Durante is a professional writer with a primary focus on home improvement. When he is not writing about home improvement or taking on projects around the house, he likes to read and create art. He is always looking towards the newest trends in home improvement.
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