I'm not sure when Halloween became such a trendy holiday or why my kids seem to enjoy it just as much, if not more, than Christmas.  I feel like Halloween has taken on a whole new identity in the last few years.  Crafts and food have become more and more intricate and impressive and the day has become so much more of a production than it used to be!  As a kid, I remember just grabbing whatever things we had in the house that could be made into a costume [usually at the very last minute] before running out to fill my quota of candy for the year!

I must admit, however, that I am loving this new life Halloween is taking on.  This year, I decided to shy away from the typical orange, black and purple that have been customary holiday colors in exchange for eye-popping black and white with silvery, crystally accents to make it all shine.  Throw in a few spooky holograms {becoming widely available in most home goods stores} and you'll have yourself a captivating tablescape.

Usually when I think about buying new things for decor, I always try to come up with other ways [or holidays] that things would also work for.  Christmas red can be tied to Valentines Day and used again for July 4; Christmas green can be used for spring/St. Pattys Day festivities; blue works equally well for Father's Day, July 4th and boys' birthdays;  and pink is perfect for girls parties, Mother's Day and again, Valentines Day.  So there are my standard colors that I usually buy when it comes to serving pieces and decor: Red, Green, Blue and Pink.  Clearly, I don't have much on hand that works well for Halloween except for a mix of my standard white plates and big crystal goblets; so off to the 99cent store I went to try to complete my look, inexpensively. I stress doing this inexpensively because I've already spent waaaaay more than I care to divulge on costumes alone!  Shhhhh.....

I couldn't believe how much great stuff I found!  I was able to pick up a few small black salad plates, a few packages of glittery skeletons, bats and spiders {which double as decor, a napkin accessory and a small favor for my guests}, and some extra-large chains that could easily be bedazzled with glitter to add a bit of sparkle.  They also had giant crystal-like goblets if you don't want to break out your "good stuff".

Serving as the main focal point, my centerpiece was a beautiful black rhinestone studded albino pumpkin {tutorial here} with a few more small ones to complete the look.  The best thing about this scheme is that you can take things you may already have {white plates, candlesticks, silver platters, etc.} to make this a stunning presentation for your guests!

What do you think of trading in the guts and the gore for something more visually appealing this Halloween?