This is our first Halloween in the new house and I knew I wanted to switch up my decorating style to be more Pottery Barn ‘gothic’ than the typical ‘cutesy’ or all out ‘gore’ you often see this time of year. I purged my decorations and sold quite a few items on the buy/sell pages to fund the purchase of new items. But I ended up only spending about $18 for this new look!

I started by pulling out anything in my décor stash that was black or white and tackled the mantel first. A couple of candle sticks topped with flameless candles, a doily wrapped pumpkin, some spooky artwork, a skull and my pretty raven make up a simple, but spooky arrangement.

The artwork was a free printable quote from Michal Jackson’s “Thriller” that I found here and an oversized numeric cut out I made with my Silhouette. Both frames were items I already had on hand, so I just repurposed them.  The skull lights up and was one of only two items I purchased this year. Originally priced $12.99 I got him on sale for 20% off, saving me a few dollars and the time I was planning to spend to create one that looked similar!

I wanted the entry way to feel like a witch’s potion brewing station, so on one side I filled a pedestal that I DIYed forever ago with several different size and style bottles holding various items you might expect to be in a spell recipe. I planned on creating vintage-looking labels for each, but ran out of time. So here’s what they are labeled in my head:

• Full moon dust (sugar)
• Goblin teeth (candy corns)
• Eye of newt (white pebbles)
• Black magic beans (navy beans)
• Spider venom (purple glitter)
• Toad tongues (split pea)

I added a little flameless votive in a small jar and a chalkboard sign to round out the vignette.  On the other side I used another free printable, found here, paired with a fun little jack-o-lantern votive and a cast iron frog under a cloche. The jack-o-lantern is part of a set with metal hook posts that are meant to be put along a walkway, but I always worry that they will get blown off by the wind and break so this is a much safer option.

I finished off the area with a pretty orange and black bunting from my photo props and my ‘welcome’ ghost sign on the opposite wall.

Out on the porch, I added a new welcome mat with an adorable ghost and some spooky pumpkins. Pay no mind to that empty pot on a pedestal in the corner by the door. I had plans to add some painted branches to it with lights and spider webs, but I never got that far and at this point it just ain’t worth the effort for one day! Those spider webs are the other item I bought and since I didn’t use them they will be in my tub and ready for use next year!

In the dining room I used two more jack-o-lantern votives from the same set I mentioned earlier and paired them with my cherished “Boo” Ghost lantern.

So that’s my Gothic Spooky Halloween décor. It’s not much this year, but it’s a good starting point for next year. So what do you think? Is the old fashioned gothic look better than the cutesy scary stuff or do you prefer a more “goriesh” style for Halloween decorations?