Light up your Halloween

Halloween decor can be elegant or spooky, but no matter which angle you choose to follow, local designers agree Halloween decorating doesn’t have to break the bank.

You can transform your everyday living space into a horribly successful fright fest by using inexpensive items in unexpected ways, said Alexis Marshall, co-owner of The Industrial Event Space at 2330 Industrial Road.

“To make a room scary, you actually don’t need a lot of space,” she said. “You’ll need three things: a flashing strobe light, a fog machine and long black drapes.”

Use the old-fashioned black light with white fabric that billows from a nearby fan. Pair that with a fog machine that churns out thick rolls of vapor and a room is transformed from bland to frightfully fun for the holiday, Marshall said.

“If the room is dark enough, a strobe light will disorientate a person’s vision so they can’t see what’s ahead or behind,” she said. “(It’s) the perfect time for a zombie to jump out and scare you.

“A fog machine sets the tone for a hazy setting. It creates just enough haziness to make a person unsure of what’s around their feet. Black drapes allow for a creature’s eyeball to peek through the cracks or for a monster’s arm to reach out and snatch up a guest.”

The Industrial Space is a family-owned venue created out of the Marshalls’ love of decorating. Over the years, the family’s house drew all the kids for its over-the-top decorations on Halloween.

“We have always had fun making it as spooky as possible,” she said.

Just three minutes from the Strip, the decked-out warehouse space has been transformed for cherry-blossomed baby showers, glittering golden anniversaries and wonderland wedding receptions since opening two years ago.

More than the perfect flower petals that drip from the table bouquets or the sheer curtains that create a magical effect, lighting plays a key role in transporting a guest from everyday life into the world you’ve created with the decor.

“Lighting offers more options for creating atmosphere than anything else,” Marshall said.

Introduce red lights low on the ground to your outdoor holiday decor for a horrifically haunting effect. If a zombie theme is preferred, green lighting glancing off half-eaten faces form fantasies of horror in those who cross your threshold.

“There are so many lights that are easy to use and not too expensive that you can buy just about anywhere,” she said.

Lisa Katz, co-owner of Sassy Soul Creative Decor, agrees that lighting is the most effective and least expensive way to make the most dramatic change to a space.

“It’s all about the lighting,” Katz said. “Every year, every square inch of my house is lit up. Everything looks like it is on fire.”

From tiny fairy lights that twinkle on tables to faux torches with fiery flames licking at the brass casings, she finds a way to create vignettes in each room of her sprawling Henderson home. Without the lighting, the creepy scenes would fall flat. “It gives that wow effect that wouldn’t be there otherwise,” she said. “It is so affordable and it transforms the entire room.”

Red cellophane, found at local craft stores, placed over recessed lighting creates a pinkish pall that engulfs a room in an eerie atmosphere.

“Cut the cellophane a little bit larger than the canister and do it the day of the party,” Katz said. “You can’t tell that its cellophane taped up there and it costs, maybe, a quarter.”

Colored light bulbs in an array of reds, purples and greens, can create a sense of movement in a small space such as a bathroom or entryway.

“Anything you can illuminate, illuminate it,” Katz said. “It will make a magical space.”