Haunted Swamp Halloween Decorating Ideas

October 5, 2020

Haunted Swamp Halloween Decorating Ideas

I recently had the most amazing opportunity to style my back yard for Party City. I was given a modest budget, along with specific pieces I needed to include. And I only had a few days to put it all together. As a native Floridian, I wanted my space to be somewhat authentic to Florida, with a spooky Halloween twist. And I am going to share loads of Haunted Swamp Decorating Ideas. I have TONS of photos to share! Hopefully you will be inspired to create a stunning Halloween display in your yard this season as well! Be sure to read to the end for an interactive link to shop the look at Party City!

This review is based strictly on my opinion. Others may have a different opinion or experience with the product listed. I was provided the sample free of charge and paid a small fee by the company or PR agency and I provided my honest opinion.

Halloween Decorations

When I was thinking about how I would style the yard to look like the perfect haunted swamp, I had a lot of ideas that would have cost a LOT of money. But, I wanted to stay tru to my brand and keep it as budget friendly as possible. So, not including the products I ordered from Party City, I spent less than $100 for everything. And, a lot of what I ordered from Party City was very affordable. And, nearly all of it can be reused for years to come in different Halloween designs.

Haunted Swamp Halloween Ideas

The first thing we did was clear nearly everything off of our backyard party space. Typically, we have a small seating area, a grill and several plants on the deck. Once the space was nearly empty, we started working on the surrounding space. I knew I wanted the space to include a dock, a seating area, and a small graveyard. The entire space was about 20×40′, but it can absolutely be set up in a smaller space.

The first area that we worked on was the dock. We cut down some small pallets, and secured them together with scrap lumber. We also used scrap pieces of wood to fill in some of the spaces in the pallets. This was a great way to keep the budget low and create a huge visual impact.

Once we had the dock where I wanted it, it was time to add the details. We used the 2×4′ boards we cut off the pallets to make support posts for the rope railing. I simply screwed a few screws into the bottom of the pallets every few feet. But, I wanted them to look a little more worn and old. So, I used a propane torch to give the wood a more aged look.

Then, I wrapped rope around the posts. We secured the rope with a small screw hidden in the knots. I also wrapped a strand of purple twinkle lights around the rope. Finally, I added detail decorations. A friend brought over three huge bags of Spanish moss for me, so I spread it around the area. Then, we added plastic skulls, beads, sticks, more purple twinkle lights. Swamp critters on and around the dock completed the look.

A borrowed green canoe was the perfect addition to our dock. I draped it with creepy fabric and Spanish moss to really make it fit with the haunted swamp theme.

Halloween Graveyard Ideas

Once the dock was finished, we all began working on the graveyard area. This area was really simple to style, and added a little more Halloween magic to the space. We used six foam tombstones, fabric roses, a pop up coffin, and a creepy zombie. We finished it off with a fog machine, and a spooky animatronic ghost in this space. Then we added more Spanish moss to that space too. I was able to purchase everything for this space from Party City. You can shop online or in store and get everything you need.

Halloween Swamp Tours

Now, it was time to really work on the bones of the Haunted Swamp! I made a simple Swamp Tours Sign with HTV. (Check out this Farmhouse Sign DIY for step by step instructions for making an oversized sign). Once it was finished, I used a propane torch to melt and burn the HTV and age the sign. We hung the sign on the back wall of the party deck crooked. Then, we hung Spanish moss all over the back deck and surrounding areas. The counter top area was also covered in moss and other haunted swamp halloween ideas and decorations. We even included a real alligator head.

The open space of the area was decorated with old wooden rockers, a vintage liquor barrel, candles, sticks, more moss, a wash bucket full of skulls, a handmade witch doctor hat, a voodoo doll, creepy cloth, spiders, bones, and full size skeletons.