Halloween decor: Part 1

I kinda love Edgar Allan Poe, even though I've taught "The Raven" and "The Tell-Tale Heart" for seven years straight now. And even though he was more than a bit of a weirdo. (Whenever I teach about him, one of my students will inevitably shriek, "He married his cousin?!" followed by a chorus of "ewwws" and inappropriate "Was he from West Virginia?" jokes that last for at least ten minutes. It's hilarious.)

Anyway, reading his stories every October gets me in the Halloween spirit. I decided this year to have an Edgar Allan Poe meets Hitchcock theme for my house decor, with plenty of ravens, black accents, and macabre accessories:

I've had so much fun slowly putting the decorations together! And playing with my camera's settings for extra mood. Here is my mantle in "day" lighting:

And now with the "candlelight" setting:

Spooky, huh?

I started by swapping out our lovey-dovey wedding pictures over the mantle for some sinister (free) art by printing out these three pictures from Hitchcock's The Birds and popping them in the frames.

The one with the bird shadows really freaks me out!

Then, I gussied up the mantle...

On the left side, I put a $2 plate from Target, a magnifying glass (for a "mad scientist" feel), and a bottle of wine with a "poison" sticker slapped on the front.

Thirsty? :)

On the other side, I put my alarm clock, a couple candles, and a raven:

I usually pull this guy out when I teach "The Raven", but I decided he would be more at home on my mantle with a handful of dried leaves:

In the middle of the mantle, I plopped down my chalkboard pumpkin I DIYed the other day:

I love orange pumpkins, but this going-through-a-goth-phase look gives me a kick too!

Finally, I finished off the living room by "mouse-ifying" my stairs, like I did last year:

Eeek!

Moving on to the foyer, I didn't do much here besides hang the photo of Central Park that Dan bought the day after he proposed to me there. I never looked at this picture as "spooky" per se, but the trees' spindly branches seemed to fit in with the decor.

I figure that I'll set up our jack o' lanterns and candy under this on a little table later on to greet friends and any trick or treaters that swing by.

In the dining room, I carried on the foreboding theme with my crazy raven silhouettes. (I just popped them into the frames that usually showcase black and white photography. Read specifics from last year here.)

Yep, these bad-ass birds are back...

swooping off ledges:

Staring ominously from frames:

And even trying to peck their friends free...

This is also the room where I set up a Halloween tree that I picked up this year

with hanging boxes (leftover from my dinner party last year) filled with our favorite candy:

Side note: If you haven't tried these pumpkin Hershey kisses, you need to. You'll thank me later.

This tree is a little cheesy, but it definitely helps me tap into my inner kid! (Any excuse to gorge on above candy...)


I'll show off my dining room table once I finish one little thing! Oh, and if you have any seasonal decor pics you want to share, feel free to include a link in your comment! :)

Hope you enjoyed the creepy tour!

I'm participating in the CSI challenge:

P.S. - If you haven't already, feel free to enter my giveaway!

(Picture credits: Hershey kisses, Hitchcock picture 1, 2, and 3)