Looking for some really fun decorating, food, and Halloween party ideas? Let me take you on a tour of our 2017 Halloween bash to give you some great ideas. We hosted a Halloween carnival and had amazing desserts and dinner food for all to enjoy.
Halloween Party Decorations
We took a break from hosting our party last year so we went all out this Halloween. Unlike other years where we've had one main theme throughout the entire house for our Halloween party, we decided to change things up a bit.
I wanted to showcase our very best decorations so each room in the house had a different theme.
Day of the Dead Dining Room
Our dining room was decked out for the Day of the Dead. A few years ago we had the whole house decked out for a Day of the Dead party. Be sure to check that out too.
My dining room is already black and white so it lends itself to any type of Halloween decorations. I used real sugar skulls, paper mache sugar skull masks, painted felt sugar skulls, and sugar skull lights to add pops of color to the room.
I dressed up two skeletons for the affair and sat them at the table as if they were party guests for a small dinner party that I hosted a few weeks ago. Being we needed every available space for our party guests to eat, during the big party, I snuggled the two skeleton's together in the corner.
Wicked Witch Shelf
The shelf in our entry hallway was filled with potion bottles and witch-themed decor.
My favorite decoration is the witch in the rocking chair. She's motion-activated and is creepy but funny at the same time.
Dead Man's Diner Halloween Party Food
One of my favorite party themes has been the Dead Man's Diner. I was so excited to recreate it again this year.
We served Hand-Burgers (hamburgers), Severed Fingers (hot dogs with fingernails and knuckles), Canibal's Chili, Pizza Skulls, and Shredded Ribs (pulled pork served on skull-shaped buns). We also had French fries, onion rings, macaroni and cheese, and various appetizers including a creepy cheese ball served in a skull.
Our guests could also get a Dead Man's Float (a root beer float made with ice cream brains and skeletons) and dozens of other desserts.
Bloody Butchers and Waitresses
The food table didn't look quite as exciting as it has in years past but the diner staff made the experience over the top.
My friends, Jessie, Vickie, Brandy, and Sean served up food to all of our guests. They really played up the Dead Man's Diner theme and made everyone feel like they were in a real zombie diner. It was so much fun.
I can't thank them enough for making this party the best we've ever had.
Creepy Halloween Desserts
As usual, I went all out on our desserts. I used some of the recipes we served at our Zombie Themed Party and added even more delicious treats.
My guests enjoyed S'mores Coffins, Nutter Butter Skulls, Chocolate Mousse served as graveyards, Skeleton Bark, Peeping Pretzels, Lemon Mousse, Rice Krispie Treat Cats, Peanut Butter Mousse, Severed Finger Pretzels, Cheesecake Eyes, Cherry Brownies, Zombie Candy Cups, Peanut Butter Fudge Filled Skulls, Peanut Butter Fudge Feet, and more.
Catecomb Cinemas
One of my absolute favorite rooms was our basement movie theater which we named the Catacomb Cinemas.
We created a concession stand, added spiders everywhere, and had skeletons and creepy animated props everywhere.
Our guests were welcomed by Zombie Ticket Takers. Click the link to see how you can make them for your own party.
Fun Halloween Carnival
The most exciting place in the house was actually in the garage. We put together a Halloween carnival. The kids and adults loved it.
Everyone got to play and win prizes. They got to play 11 games.
- Ring Toss - We set up plastic flasks and they had to throw rings over the tops of the flasks.
- Ping Pong Toss - Each participant had to try to throw eyeball ping pong balls into mini cauldrons.
- Ring a Witch Hat - Throw a plastic ring around witch hats.
- Brain Toss - Throw toy brains into Frankenstein's Head.
- Day of the Dead Bean Bag Toss - I purchased this game board that you through bean bags through holes.
- Ring a Toy - If the kids got a ring all the way around a Beanie Baby or other toy, they won the toy. This was a crowd favorite although it was a very challenging game.
- Lollipop Pull - Ee painted dots on the bottom of some of the lollipops and kids won a prize if they got a dot.
- Guess the Candy - We filled a jar with M&M's and they had to guess how many were inside.
- Spin and Win - We used a spinner from a LIFE game. The kids picked a number and if they spun that number they won.
- Grab and Win - Ee filled plastic eyeball eggs and pumpkins with candy, toys, and gold coins.
Prizes
When the kids won a game they got gold coins. For every game, we also had small consolation prizes. At the end of the night, every kid won one big prize. The kid with the most gold coins got to choose their prize first then on down the line until all the kids chose a prize. That worked out great!
We also bought two 10 by 20 foot EZ-Up tents to set up this year being we usually have over 100 guests. This year our crowd was much smaller (only 60 guests) and it was really cold, but the tents still came in handy. We felt that they were a good investment being they cost ⅓ of what it would have cost to rent a tent for the party. I'm sure we'll put them to good use for future parties too.
Years ago, we hosted a Carnival of the Creepy Crawlers and created games that had bug, rat, and snake themes. Check out the game ideas if you plan to host a carnival. All the games were easy to make and fun to play.
As I said, our entire house was decorated. We even decorate the bathrooms.
We do go a bit crazy but it's fun.
What did you do for Halloween? I'd love to hear how you decorate and what you serve to your party guests.
- Mini Peanut Butter Cheesecakes - June 20, 2023
- Homemade Chocolate Easter Bunnies - April 3, 2023
- Mini Basketball Cheeseburgers - February 15, 2023
The Partiologist
You DO know how to throw a party...truly more than a party, it's an event! All of your decorations and food/desserts were to "DIE" for!
Beth
Thanks! It was so much fun.
Jo and Sue
So so so amazing. My mind is completely blown. Your Halloween parties are always so fabulous!
Beth
Thank you! This party was so much fun.
Jessica Coleman
We had such a great time being the Dead Man's Diner crew!
You always have an amazing party. Thank you for always letting us participate. We love you!
Beth
You were the BEST diner crew I could have ever asked for!!! You guys are amazing. Thanks for all your help.
lisa@hooplapalooza
HOLY HALLOWEEN BATMAN!!! now THAT'S a party!!! i had one too and decorated my entire front yard and house but it looked minuscule compared to yours. what i wouldn't do to be neighbors Beth! BRAVO to you and your family and friends-and to the complete exhaustion after the party when everything has to be put away-blah! (that's where i'm at now lol)
Beth
It would be SO much fun to have you as a neighbor. I love having party guests that really enjoy all the effort we put into our event. The clean up is never fun and I've only made a tiny dent in removing the decorations. I enjoy having the house decorated so I'm never in a big hurry to take them down.