"Oh Captain, I'm so Frightened"

That's a quote from the delicious Dame Maggie Smith as she boarded the sailboat of Charles Nelson Reilly for a sail around Marina del Rey! (I know!!)

Anyway... TheGayGardener is on the record as not being a big fan of the scarier aspects to a Halloween Celebration. This is not a moral judgement. It's just that tombstones & skeletons, and spiders & cobwebs seem like something we all should be FIGHTING against not celebrating. Though so many homes show such a creative spirit withe these "spookier" aspects to the Holiday!

Having stated my objection I will offer these hints: BamBOO!!! Not just a scary Halloween word...becasue of its particular "knot" quality when spray painted white, bamboo sticks make a very cool party favor or place setting/name card adornment. Simply spray & break into uneven pieces, tie with raffia or orange & black ribbon and VIOLA!!

As an alternative, if you've been lucky as TheGayGardener to travel around& see the world's most beautiful beaches, you've likely amassed a collection of coral! Much of which is "bone" shaped & can be arranged into a spooky & effective centerpiece

Or how about this? Pumpkins are like $1 ea & you can amass quite an impressive decorative collection for under $20. I love WHITE ones if only because they are so "deco" Try painting the natural indentations of the pumpkin with an orange (or black!) glitter paint Arrange on a cake plate with smaller similarly painted pumpkins, raffia or straw & you have a wonderful & economical centerpiece!! GAYGARDENER HELPFUL HINT: Most commercial pumpkins have their "skins" treated with a waxy substance. If you want the glitter or any paint to penetrate sand or seriously BUFF the pumpkins first