Our favorite time of the year is here! I am such a sucker for Halloween. I want all the decor. I want pumpkins coming out of my ears. And skeletons and ghosts hanging from the trees. Growing up, my mother always made sure our home was decorated appropriately for each season or upcoming holiday. And that love was passed on to me so now I do my best to make sure we’ve got decorations in every corner of the house. With the arrival of Mara last year, and the whirlwind that was her for months after, I was unable to really deck the halls and house with all the spooky. So this year, I made sure we put it all up and put it all up early. I thought it would be fun to share a sneak peek of the halloween decor we used around the house today, so here ya go! A little tour of a few of my fave spots in our place.
In true Lexy-fashion, I’m always editing the spaces. Adding twinkle-lights. Removing candles. Switching up garlands for ones I like better. We had a big Halloween-themed shoot here last month for Party City (you can see that here!), so after that was all said and done, I put up some of my faves from my own collection of Halloween goods and this was the end result. (For now. wink wink.) By the way, the barbed wire and black and white pillar candles are available from Party City and are my new favorite thing.  So here’s the thing about real pumpkins. I absolutely love them. And always decorated my porch with about a zillion of them each year. But the javelinas in this damned Arizona desert, you guys. They eat my pumpkins. So I’ve had to move towards the faux pumpkins. At first, I resisted. But as the years have gone on, and I’ve been able to use funds from my typical “Pumpkin Budget” for something else, I’m a total convert! 
Some of these items are things I’ve had for years. That “Ready To Spook” frame was something I picked up at Home Goods about 8 years ago. However, the moon frame is new! Picked it up from Joann’s and it’s currently on mega sale for $7.99!   The felt ball garland was a steal found at Michaels and the skull garland was another Home Goods find. I could live in that place.
Am I alone in confessing that I wake up at the crack of dawn the day after major holidays and head to Target to experience the mega-clearance sale that goes on? This black skull was picked up last year from Target for two dollars. Heck yes. I’ve kind of got my eye on this cream open-weave skull this year. Fingers crossed it’s there!
To fill in the gaps, I just added some black gauze, mini pumpkins, and black branches and/or twigs. Some were store-bought and some were foraged and painted.  More black gauze on the art around the house and some wall decals (link to this BOO! one) because I just can’t quit.  I’m a big believer in wreaths and door decor. This year, I opted for mismatched wreaths on the doors and I don’t hate it.  Out of all the decor, our driveway and front shrubs might be my favorite. I hung witch hats at various heights throughout the trees. The best part? There’s a bouquet of glow sticks inside the hats. When night falls, I just snap a stick inside each hat and they seem to glow and float and it’s pure magic. 
Our front yard is currently prepping for some grass treatment. NOrmally, I’d be embarrassed by all the dirt. Luckily, it just adds to the haunted/deserted charm. Don’t ya think? (By the way, those metal skulls are from Michaels and can be found here!) I really can’t wait for October 31st. Our neighborhood is kind of THE NEIGHBORHOOD when it comes to Halloween in Tucson. Which was part of the appeal when we decided to move here. We’ve been trick-or-treating here for the last three years so I know what to expect. And I’m currently contemplating selling my children to be able to afford the candy needing to be purchased for the trick-or-treaters… I kid. I kid.

photography \\ all photos by Lexy Ward