Sustainable long-term Halloween decorations
Halloween gets bigger and bigger every year, and so do sustainable Halloween decorations! Some people even start planning months ahead of time to make sure that their homes are looking spooky, stylish, fun and creative. As a multi-million dollar industry, there is no shortage of products that you can buy to transform your home into a Transylvanian terror-house, but for many of us, sustainability has never been more important.
Rather than buying expensive and plastic-heavy decorations that you’re only going to be using once a year, you can make use of other elements that look stylish and can be adapted post-Halloween into more permanent fixtures to your home. Halloween can be sustainable, and here’s how you can do it!
Why do people love to decorate for Halloween?
Everyone has their reasons for decorating during the Spooky season, but what they all have in common is a sense of fun and creativity!
We love to impress – All of us like to take pride in our home and have guests compliment us on the setup. Halloween is one of the most decorative times of the year, so those of us who like to show off a little bit or go into friendly competition jump on the chance to deck up the house in an elaborate Halloween décor.
Embracing the macabre – It’s human nature to sometimes enjoy the darker things in life. Halloween lets us tap into our spooky side and indulge in fun motifs and symbols – not to mention the odd scary movie marathon with friends and family.
Creative freedom – Halloween is one of the few seasons where people can let their creativity flow. The moment you walk into an imaginative person’s house during Halloween you’ll be greeted by all manner of décor and props.
It’s inclusive – Halloween is one of those seasons that’s fun for both adults and children, meaning that everyone can get involved. Kids get to dress up and have fun and candy, while adults have the excuse to throw a party and blow off some steam.
It brings life to October – Sitting in between the end of Summer and Christmas, Halloween breathes life into what is usually a quiet, cold, and somewhat gloomy part of the year. Any excuse to liven things up!
Sustainable and long-term decorations
So, what options do we have for keeping things green and still having a festive front walk on the big night? Here are some ideas to help you out:
Don’t buy new – Head out to thrift stores and second-hand shops and you’ll be surprised at what you find. Objects like candles, ghost or scarecrow parts, lights and costume pieces will be relatively easy to come by.
Think ahead – instead of buying once-a-year decorations that require storage, choose things that can be repurposed for something else after the season is over. You can use ESCREO’s whiteboard paint for a wide range of decorations and it allows you to write on walls and on a wide range of surfaces.
Decorate naturally – Natural and rustic décor makes for a great Halloween and can also be used all-year-round as well. Think pumpkins, straw, corn stalks, gourds and garlands.
Eco-friendly products – If you do want to buy new items, look for eco-friendly choices such as soy candles, recycled content streamers, and items that will be either compostable or recyclable when the big night is over.
Candles and candleholders – Candles aren’t just for Halloween: they’ll give you a cozy feeling in your home all autumn and winter. So, once you’ve burned out the vampish black candles, go ahead and use your holders for more conventional ones.
LED strips and lights – Relatively cheap and with low energy usage, LED strips and lights can really bring your Halloween décor to life. And, once the spooky season is over for another year they can be used again for Christmas and any other parties or celebration.
Sort out your party plates – It’s all too tempting to give party guests paper cups and plates for the party before throwing it all away for an easy clean. Instead, get some affordable plastic ones that you can re-use for any such parties, in neutral colors. Even if you end up recycling paper ones, one dishwasher load for plastic cookware will have a much smaller environmental impact.
Bring the style with ESCREO
Writable walls are a fantastic and cost-effective way to decorate your walls for Halloween – and indeed any celebrations around the year. Not only will this help you cut down on ‘decoration waste’, but it will give you more control over what you display, which can lead to some rather stylish décor solutions.
For instance, you can get an artsy friend (if you’re not gifted) to hand-draw some classy gothic imagery in the right areas with our whiteboard paint, or use our magnetic whiteboard wall paint to pin up dried flowers, corn stalks and other rustic elements. You can write down poetry or quotes from famous gothic novels such as Mary Shelley’s ‘Frankenstein’ or Bram Stokers ‘Dracula’. The best part is, that you can erase whatever you write on your ESCREO wall and you can reuse it again and again throughout the entire year, making it the ultimate decorative element for both your wallet and the environment.