Vintage Halloween Decorations: Where to Find the Best Old & New

I don’t decorate much for Halloween.  You won’t see our yard decked out like a graveyard or any zombies hiding behind trees.  But I do have fond memories of my mom sticking paper cutouts on the door.  That was back in the “good old days” before Halloween was such an event.  Today I guess they’d be considered vintage Halloween decorations!

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Where to Buy Vintage Halloween Decorations

Here’s a list of places to look for vintage Halloween decorations. You’ll need to be more patient for the “in-person” shops and be willing to sort through things and buy offseason. That’s when you’ll get the best bargains.

• flea markets
• garage sales
• thrift stores
• Etsy
• eBay
• Facebook Marketplace
• Mercari
• Craigslist

Hint: If you want to start collecting Halloween decorations, keep your eyes open for them all year long at garage sales. Flea markets and thrift stores might be more inclined to hold items and put them all out at once. But check there toward the end of the summer. Or ask flea market vendors or thrift store employees when they’ll be putting out holiday decorations.

Also, set reminders for yourself to check Etsy, eBay, and other online platforms all through the year. You can get better deals before or after the holiday season.

Where to Buy Reproduction Vintage Halloween Decor

Any of those places listed above for TRUE vintage Halloween decor may also sell reproduction Halloween decorations. So you’ll need to be very diligent about reading all the details in the listings, especially if you can’t see the item before you buy it, to make sure you know exactly what you’re getting.

There’s nothing wrong with the reproductions… you just want to make sure you know what you’re paying for.

• Amazon
• Walmart – I’ve seen more online than in the stores.
• Occasionally I’ll see vintage style Halloween decor in local craft stores.

Vintage Halloween Decorations

I’ve been on the lookout for vintage Halloween decorations but they’re getting harder and harder to find.  At least around me.  But I did find this plastic Jack O’Lantern a few years ago.  His painted features are a little faded but he still lights up!  Even though the Occidental College pennant isn’t a Halloween decoration the colors are perfect for October.  I made the felt banner and the doorknob photo holder myself.  I’ll share those projects in other blog posts.

Reproduction Halloween Decorations

Did you see the Country Living magazine this month?  There was a whole article on vintage Halloween decorations that were made by the Beistle company!  They still make many of these vintage styles.

These Halloween garlands and banners are all made by the Beistle company.  I really like the tissue festooning and a few years back I made bracelets out of the barbed wire garland.

Here’s some of the black tissue festooning on my shelf at Paris Flea Market.  I use it for filler in jewelry boxes and anywhere there’s a little blank space.  I’m sorry it’s so dark.  Seems like everything on my shelf is black this month!  There are a few plastic skulls mixed in there, too.  I’ll be sharing the before and after on that box sometimes this month, too.

These paper cutouts are like the ones we had when I was growing up.  I’m pretty sure we had the Jack O’Lantern one.

The monster mask garland reminds me of the plastic masks we used to wear as costumes.

More Vintage Halloween Ideas

If you enjoyed this post, you might also like these:

• Vintage Jello Mold Pumpkins
• Vintage BINGO Card Halloween Garland
• 15-Minute Mummy Model
• 25 Subtle Halloween Decorations You Can Keep Up All Year Long
• Halloween Clip Art Gallery

Thanks for reading.  I’d love to hear how you decorate for Halloween.  Leave a comment and let me know.

‘Til the next project,

 Ann @ Duct Tape and Denim

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Originally published on October 7, 2016.