16 Scary and Mild DIY Outdoor Halloween Decorations

As Halloween is approaching, our brains start to scatter to figure out what we are going to be this year.

It needs to be creative, fun and possibly scary?

So, what are some possible options?

A cat? No, too original.

The Scream? No way. Too scary.

As you are balancing ideas, did you think about your home?

Yep, your home needs to dress up for the big night, too!

Halloween is the one night of the year you can dress up as a completely different person, and so can your house.

Traditionally, houses are decorated in anticipation of Trick-or-Treaters stopping by asking for candy.

Depending on your take on Halloween and how your guests will react, how will you decorate your home?

Luckily, you can participate in the decorating fun by either taking a mild or scary approach.

Don’t know which route to take? No problem!

We’ve come up with the best 16 scary and mild do it yourself outdoor Halloween decorations for this year!

1. Welcome to the pumpkin patch

If you want to keep your curb appeal simple and mild, you can’t go wrong with pumpkins.

But why stop there?

You can pile up several large and small orange pumpkins on your stoop, along with a few blocks of hay, corn stalks, festive flowers, a scarecrow or a fake black cat.

These options are simple and straightforward that do not require much effort. But, any of these decorations can be used to make your front door stand out.

2. Skeleton apocalypse

Looking to bring the dead to life?

Here’s a fun way:

Find life sized skeletons and strategically place them on the side of the house to make it look like they are rock climbing.

It will give off the vibe there is an apocalypse of skeletons invading the house. The more skeletons you use, the scarier it will look.

Will Trick-or-Treaters dare to come near a house that is being taken over by skeletons?

Find out who the brave ones are.

3. ‘Tis the season

Wreaths are not only meant for the Christmas season.

They are acceptable for the autumn season as well!

To make it Halloween themed, dress it up by covering the circular twig base with black roses, thorns and cobwebs.

If your outdoor foyer has a ceiling, hang a few black bats so they dangle over your guests’ heads as they knock on the door.

And lastly, have out a festive doormat that says “BOO!” or “Trick or Treat!” Any of these options will bring out the Halloween spirit.

4. Buried alive

If you do not mind getting down and dirty, this could be a possible option for you.

Dig a rectangular hole in your front lawn, about 2 feet deep and 4 feet wide.

Then, place a bright orange light inside and cover the hole with wooden planks and space them apart about an inch or so apart.

Next, get a pair of fake arms and stick the hands between the gaps of the boards to make it look like someone is trying to escape.

Wouldn’t it be creepy to walk by a house that looks like it is holding someone hostage underground?

5. Googly-eyes

Get googly-eyed over this crafty idea!

Grab your best scissors and start cutting out eyeballs of different sizes.

Make it fun and place the pupil (the black circular part of your eye) in a nontraditional spot so the eyes look cross-eyed or just plain crazy.

Then, place several sets of eyes either around your front door, in your shrubs, on the pumpkins, on the door, or even in the window.

This way, guests know you have their eyes set on whoever comes to your door next.

If you do not feel like cutting paper, you can substitute Styrofoam balls and they will work just as well!

6. Live from your screen

Are you a scary movie junkie?

Then this idea may appeal to you.

Place a realistic looking doll on your front lawn or near your front door.

To make it scarier, dress it up with a black wig or scary makeup.

If you want to replicate your favorite scary movie icon, try to duplicate it as best as you can.

The more you try to mirror the real deal, the scarier it will appear.

If visitors see Chuckie sitting by your front door, odds are, they will not come close.

7. To paint or to carve?

Instead of carving pumpkins, consider painting one.

You can easily paint on a black cat, ghost, lantern, candy corn or your favorite animated character.

If painting is not your style, you can always carve.

Do not forget to place a candle inside to light up your artwork! But, make sure you blow out the flame each night.

Either way, setting out pumpkins is a safe and appealing idea to decorate your front door.

If you do choose to follow the carving route, make sure to bake some yummy pumpkin seeds!

They are a tasty and crunchy snack, perfect for the autumn season.

8. Rat attack

You will not need any rat traps for this project because this rodent will be the main focus of this idea.

Get a fake corpse that is clearly deteriorated internally. Meaning, the guts are coming out of the intestines and there is no hope for survival.

Next, lay the body down in the front lawn where it is visible for all to see.

Then, place a handful of fake, large black rats on and around the body.

This will give off the impression the rats are eating the corpse’s flesh.

9. Leaf it up

Do not dispose of your leaves just yet!

Preserve the prettiest foliage by stringing leaves to make a fluttering mobile.

You can hang your masterpiece near your front door so everyone can see your artwork.

It is suggested to display leaves that still have deep reds, rustic yellows and pumpkin oranges.

Who says leaves are only good for jumping into piles of?

They can easily be used to make some unique decorations.

10. Itsy bitsy spider

Do you know someone that cringes when they see a spider?

Or pretends they don’t see it because they don’t have the courage to kill it?

Well, they may not like this idea then.

If you have trees in your front lawn, spice it up by wrapping fake cobwebs around it.

Spread it along the trunk and branches in several layers so it is more visible.

To make it even creepier, add a fake, large black spider crawling across the tree with smaller ones surrounding it.

If you are up to the challenge, hang a fake dead body from one of the branches.

Another option is to stick skeleton hands in the ground near the base of the tree to make it look like someone is coming from the dead.

11. Glitz and glam

Do not force yourself to impatiently wait for the winter holidays to hang your sparkly and glamorous decorations.

Because you know when once December 1st rolls around, the over the top, glittery and scented decorations will come out.

And not to mention, the nonstop playing of Christmas music. *cue Charlie Brown’s Christmas album*

If you live to hang these types of decorations around your house, you can use metallic colors to dress up your front door even for Halloween!

You can find shiny and rustic pumpkins, squashes, acorns, pears or branches to give your curb appeal a little more pop and a timeless look.

12. R.I.P.

Welcome to the classic graveyard idea.

You can make a cemetery by adding rows of tombstones that cover your front lawn.

This project is fun because you can get creative by customizing what each tombstone reads by saying who lies there.

For example, “Susan Deadlove – Died: February 14, 1920 – Haunts people who say love is dead”.

You can make this graveyard as scary or simple as you like, it all depends on how much effort you want to put into it.

13. Follow the trial

Trees are a great outdoor accessory to dress up.

Another fun way to creatively use your tree is to hammer homemade arrows pointing in different directions.

Again, you can be original and make up the destinations listed.

For example, one arrow could point one way and say: “Sleepy Hollow – 53 miles” and another in a different direction and read: “Haunted Forest – 17 miles”.

You can get as spooky or generic as you would like.

Place 5 to 6 more arrows, all pointing in different directions along the tree trunk and people won’t be able to decide which way to go.

14. Life size Jack

Although you knew it was coming, how freaked out did you get rolling the crank with the creepy piano music waiting for the clown to pop out of the box?

At least 9 times out of 10.

To make this classic toy even scarier, life size the Jack-in-the-Box.

You can get a large cardboard box and decorate it as you please.

Then, take the head of fake clown and stick it on the end of a slinky or coiled structure to make it appear as if it is popping out of the box.

If you have a voice recorder, you can add sound effects, like the cranking music and a creepy clown laugh to really scare your guests!

15. Bye, bye orange?

If you want to steer away from the traditional oranges, yellows and browns of Halloween, you can always go monochromatic with a nice shade of white.

A rustic, washed away white during the Autumn season gives a timeless and effortless look.

You can find white pumpkins, squashes, bushel baskets and flowers to decorate your front lawn.

The white nicely compliments the trees, leaves and steps up to your front door.

Not much effort is needed to achieve this bold look.

16. Ghost busters

Throughout time, there has always been speculation about the existence of ghosts.

There have been iconic stories told, recorded videos and strange paranormal activities that all relate back to these spirits.

Which explains why they are associated with Halloween.

They seek to spook, haunt and slowly float around their guarded territory.

Add these scary creatures to your front yard by placing tall sticks in the ground and hang dirty drop cloths over them.

Then, cut out eyes or position the drape so it looks like the Grime Reaper are you are done!

What to choose?

As you can see, there are many different scary and mild ways you can get in the Halloween spirit and decorate your home.

Although it is fun to figure out and design a costume, do not forget to dress up your home for the holiday, too!

The more your home is decorated, the more people will be intrigued to stop by.

With these great ideas, there’s no way your home will go unnoticed.

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