Holidays with the Family

There are several decorations that are always held in common at all great Halloween parties. If you choose to add some extra scary details to your festivities, however, you will really be able to scare and surprise your guests. By applying some of the following suggestions, you might even manage to get a few especially jumpy people to scream in terror!

You will no doubt be planning plenty of carved pumpkin jack-o-lanterns lit with candles placed around your party room, their ghoulish faces gleaming in the subdued lighting. Luminous images of ghosts and ghouls of all description can be bought and hung to glow in the low lighting around the walls of the room. Gossamer cloth or commercial imitation spider web quickly creates a haunted house atmosphere.

Other decorations can be hung from the ceiling right at eye level with your guests. They are sure to be scared when they accidentally walk into witches, bats, ghosts, skeletons, and spiders. Similarly, spreading small plastic bugs and spiders in the room and on plates will be sure to frighten just about anyone at your party. In a candlelit setting, your party guests will constantly be on the look out for the next frightening surprise that awaits them.

If you hang a number of thin threads from the ceiling in different parts of the room they will not be noticed in the subdued lighting, but will be felt unexpectedly as your guests move around. This can be a surprising sensation, and suggests a ghostly presence that will often get a shrieking reaction from your guests.

The unexpected is often quite scary. Set up some frightening pictures and other decorations that are placed in front of timed lights. When these scary scenes are suddenly illuminated, or better yet, combined with loud, frightening sound effects, everybody will be surprised enough to jump out of their seat. If you invite a more adult crowd, your lights could reveal a headless corpse hanging in the darkness.

Combining good lighting effects with a fog machine can really make things creepy. To make the effect authentic, hide the fog machine behind some cleverly placed tombstones or other decorations.

Another great touch can be a horror movie. Just put on an especially scary film on a big screen TV and let it play quietly in the background. It will add a chilling touch to your party.

Music plays a large part in creating the atmosphere. At least for the early part of the party, Halloween sound effects and music like the classic Monster Mash will heighten the sense of tension in the room. With the party in full swing later on, your guests will expect to hear their favorite dance music tracks. A compilation interspersing Halloween sound effects would help to maintain the atmosphere.

Tags: festival