Thrifted, Upcycled, and Vintage Halloween Decorations

I was recently invited to participate in a fun blogging group called “Thrifting with the Gals”. I’ll tell you more about them in a moment, but I thought it would be a great opportunity to take a stroll down memory lane and revisit some of my upcycled and vintage Halloween decorations.

As you can guess from the name, these bloggers love to go antiquing and thrifting for vintage treasures, which they use to decorate their gorgeous homes. Some of their posts are about antiquing trips, some about decorating ideas, and even a little upcycling here and there.

Because this is a blog hop, you may be visiting me from one of the other gals’ sites. Perhaps Rachel from The Ponds Farmhouse, who is turning a collection of thrifted finds into FABULOUS Pottery Barn-inspired décor.

Anyway, since I have *so many* Halloween projects, all of which started at thrift stores and/or incorporate vintage pieces, it seemed like a fun post to put together. 

Especially if you’re new to my thrifting and upcycling adventures! Halloween is my favorite holiday, and since I’ve been blogging for nearly 10 years now, I have a lot of spooky content here. And some of my older projects may be completely new for some of you!

So let’s get started and revisit some of my favorite upcycled and vintage Halloween decorations from over the years.

All blue, bold, and underlined text is a clickable link to a specific post. Most of the photos in this post are also clickable, as well.

Thrifted Halloween Decorations

Upcycling and Halloween seem to go hand-in-hand, don’t they? Which means, of course, that the thrift store is an amazing source of future Halloween projects- many of which require little to no effort at all.

Glass light shades from Habitat ReStore are <usually> easy to find and so easy to transform into little ghost lights like this.

Even flower pots, another thrift store staple and/or one you have in your garage, are delightful as little jack-o-planters. Especially since terracotta jack-o-lanterns have been so on-trend over the past few years.

The plant choice is up to you, of course. I like faux cactus which served as faux stems for mine.

Halloween silhouettes are another easy project, which started with thrifted vintage embroidery hoops. And believe it or not, but the “floating” aspect is thanks to a thrifted dress!

And who doesn’t like styling lanterns for different seasons and holidays? This thrifted lantern was so rusty and crusty that it just HAD to be used for Halloween decor- a Halloween terrarium, to be more specific.

For the front porch, the thrift store handbag section might be your best bet. This straw tote bag was already orange and black, but you could totally spray paint a natural-colored one.

Vintage Halloween Decorations

When it comes to vintage Halloween decorations, my vintage children’s books-inspired mantel might be my best example of that.

I loved layering it together, starting with a childhood treasure of mine. It even gave me a chance to incorporate other vintage-upcycled projects, like these candy corn decorations from old thread cones.

Probably the most popular project that I ever created on my blog is this candy bowl holder. Can you guess what it started as?

I’ll give you a hint: It’s a classic vintage piece, most commonly found in living rooms filled with magazines or knitting supplies…trust me, you’ll recognize it if you click the photo!

Repurposing vintage books from thrift stores (vintage resource books and yearbooks) has also served me well. Those textured covers were perfect for this mixed-media project.

And while this Hitchcock-inspired project technically started as a curbside find, it’s still secondhand. And definitely one of my all-time favorite vintage Halloween decorations to date!

Vintage doilies, especially torn or stained ones, can also work well on upcycled Halloween décor projects like this, too.

Upcycled Halloween Projects

What can I say? I really do love finding items at thrift stores that can be upcycled (simply or more thoroughly) into Halloween decor.

I’ve even been known to upcycled vintage Christmas decorations into vintage Halloween decorations! Anyone remember those old window candles that were so popular at Christmastime? Well…

What about a vintage picture frame that was already a little creepy to begin with? Further spookification with some crafty magic and I’ve got the whole vintage Halloween gang together again.

And no actual vintage Halloween postcards were harmed! Printed scans of existing vintage postcards were placed in the frame. I know some of you vintage lovers were worried for a second!

I really can’t help myself around old light fixtures. This large ceiling globe is now one of my favorite vintage Halloween decorations: a creepy moon light complete with a flying witch.

Even vintage spice racks get in on the fun, especially the ones with glass bottles and glass bottle stoppers. Aren’t they charming as a set of magic potion bottles now?

Non-valuable vintage or newer figurines are ideal for this super simple upcycling idea. Bonus points if you find one that’s already broken or chipped- blemishes are “boo-tiful” for haunted Halloween figurines!

Vintage Halloween Decorations and Thrifting with the Gals

I hope you’ve enjoyed this little Halloween jaunt down Elm Street…I mean, memory lane. Even though I’ve upcycled a LOT of things into Halloween decor already, I’m definitely not done.

I also want to send a special thanks to Ann from the blog, Dabbling & Decorating. She’s the one who asked me to join the Thrifting Gals this month as a guest host and is one of my favorite accounts to follow on Instagram. I love seeing the antiques and vintage pieces she hunts for in New England– and her dog, Ella, is one of my favorite pups on the entire internet!

Craft on!

S

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