How to Use Halloween String Lights for Maximum Spookiness

How many ghosts does it take to screw in a light bulb? With the right decorating ideas and some Halloween string lights, none!

You don't have to be crafty, just have fun! Below are some Halloween lighting ideas to add major personality to your home.

To the Windows, to the Walls

Windows are a great space to combine your indoor and outdoor lighting. You can light up a window from the inside to avoid weatherproofing or project an image onto the window that will shine through in any weather.

One fun Halloween light decoration idea we're (almost) literally dying to use - ghost windows! You project or cut out a ghost silhouette to put in a window.

Alternatively, try a flying witch silhouette! String lights coming out of the broom so your witch appears to be flying through the house! You can also light the witch from inside the house. Use multiple windows to give your craft some dimension.

Light Up Your Fireplace

A fireplace is typically sturdy enough to handle a lot more than a small string of lights.

Don't go overboard on the mantle; subtle lighting for Halloween tends to be the spookiest. Use a variety of textures and height on your mantle for effect. Weave lights around the base of candlesticks of varying heights. Try shimmering skull string lights to contrast the simplicity of candlelight.

Want a little more originality? Where there's a will, there's a DIY way!

You can make bats out of origami paper. Simply fold the bats and place them on classic Halloween string lights. These bats will add some drama to your mantle. You can even add a decorative vampire castle in case your bats have... special powers.

If you don't plan on lighting your fireplace, hang some bats over the front. It will look like they are flying into their cave!

Themed Table Settings

One great way to use your table is laying out spooky decor!

For a truly majestic visual experience, turn your kitchen into a Hogwarts dining hall with floating candles. Use long tubes to give the candles a timeless look.

Alternatively, string up lights to look like the wall hanging from Stranger Things. People won't know whether they are dining in your house or the Upside Down!

Don't forget about the chandelier above your dining table! Get some dimmer lights and string cheesecloth around the fixture. The light will be bright enough to see and dark enough to cast shadows around the room.

Cover Every Surface in Halloween String Lights

Your piano is a great piece to showcase your Halloween party lighting ideas. Turn it into a sensational scare with fake spider webs, glowing bugs, tiny statues, and more candles. String white or purple lights and add some fake spiders!

Add a small floodlight nearby and shine it on a skeleton sitting at the piano. Turn up some scary, old-timey piano tunes and your guests' imagination will run wild.

Take boring lampshades and vamp them up, literally! Cut out vampires, bats, ghosts, or other shadowy figures. Tape your spooky shapes to the inside of any lampshade.

You can change the wattage of your lights to create more or less contrast in light. Bulbs with a super long life may just outlast even the hardiest of vampires!

Utilize Your Porch Space

Your porch is the perfect place for classic orange string lights. These lights will frame your other porch decorations without outshining them (pun intended).

Everyone loves a lit pumpkin on your front step, but what if you don't want to leave a flame going while your family is out and about? Try an LED light in your pumpkin to make it come alive from the inside out.

You can also put flickering light bulbs or colored lights on your porch- just make sure you have enough light for trick-or-treaters to walk up without tripping or stumbling.

Vamp up Your Yard

Your yard is the biggest interactive space for your outdoor Halloween lighting ideas. Hang dim string lights around fake gravestones or light gravestones from within.

You can choose lights that run on a timer like Christmas lights or motion lights that only turn on when someone walks by!

LED floodlights can change color, fill a wall with spooky lighting, or reflect against fog from your fog machine. Whether you're lighting up the dead or undead, your guests will be filled with fright!

Lastly, you need something larger than life that kids and adults alike will enjoy. Add an inflatable scary pumpkin monster that lights up to make a statement!

Light Up the Patio

Your patio is the perfect place for some serious mood lighting. Just get some paper lanterns that look like jack-o-lanterns and hang one over each light bulb. You can also add silhouettes or mouths and eyes to plain lanterns for custom jack-o-lanterns.

Nothing gets a big reaction like giant spiders! Arrange the spiders to look like they are crawling around the patio. Use your Halloween string lights to draw guests' eyes in the right direction.

Decor for a Happy Camper

Fairy lights are an especially price-friendly decor choice. You can string them around the camper or over the side-out.

Dimmable fairy lights are typically battery-powered and easy to string without a power source. Choose from ghosts, bats, pumpkins, etc. in different colors.

For those camping out on Halloween night, look for LED outdoor lights with a remote control. You can change the color of these lights from the comfort of your fireside chair or from within the camper!

Walk the Walkway

Give your path a glow-up in the most literal sense with pathway lights. You can cover them with carved pumpkins or buy metallic lights shaped like pumpkins for a similar look!

Another great way to use led lights: mason jar mummies! Mason jars are great for putting a large single light or tiny string lights in.

In this case, you will simply need to wrap the jars in cloth, adhere the cloth, add eyes, and voila! Your mummies will keep an eye on anyone traveling to or from your home.

"Wrap" Up

Whether you're an adult or kid, decorating with Halloween string lights only adds to the magic. The beauty of working with string lights is that you can go cute or spooky based on your mood.

If you aren't sure how to light up your space, don't let that keep you up at night! You can always turn on a frightful film for inspiration.

Whichever way you string it, your lights and decor are sure to scare for years to come. For more ways to light up your home for the holidays, check out our blog. Happy scaring!