Halloween house decorators take things scariously in Western Pennsylvania
These people dress up their homes for Halloween in a House Boo-tiful fashion.
From fog machines to skeletons to clowns and pumpkins that talk, these decorators take this holiday “scariously.”
We asked readers to show us what monstrosities, vampires and seasonal beauty they have decked their halls with. We chose five of the most elaborate, gory or gorgeous to be featured here. Each will receive a framed photo of their house in all its gory glory.
Ghost family
Tracey Kramer of Scott was inspired by her children, Kohl, 3, and Aiden, 2, who love Halloween. Her father, Charles Black, helped his grandchildren design a yard full of ghosts, pumpkins and spiders. They started planning in August and began the display early in October, often adding to and rearranging items through the month.
“It is just so much fun to do,” Kramer says. “Kohl loves to turn the lights on and off every night, and Aiden likes to help with the set-up. He likes to move things around in the yard.”
Black, who also lives in Scott, built a stand for one ghost so it is high enough for everyone to see. Those who drive by often beep their horns when they see the ghost hanging there, along with his fellow ghosts, Kramer says.
There is a pumpkin head that talks, saying things such as, “I had a piece of pumpkin pie, and I actually liked it.”
“Halloween is a time for the boys to have fun,” Kramer says. “They love seeing all of the decorations and helping to put them up. It's a memory we are making together.”
Psycho clowns
Joe Geier of Brookline had a dilemma when he went to assemble his Halloween display: In years past, a large portion consisted of body parts — heads, arms and legs.
“I thought, with ISIS and all of the tragedies, that I didn't think it was right to display the body parts,” Geier says. “I didn't realize how many severed body parts I had in my collection until I started looking at it this year. There is a line, and I didn't want to cross it, so I decided to go with a theme, which is a first for me.”
He went with “Psycho Clowns,” with six creepy clowns, clown banners that change as you walk by and carnival-inspired music, including a tune from Stephen King's “It.”
He repurposed many of his decorations by repainting or recycling them into something new.
“I do this for fun,” says Geier, who starts pulling out decorations in early September. “I like to see what I have, and I try to mix it up a bit so it's not the same every year.”
This year, he invested $250 in new LED lighting, which is more efficient than his old lights. He has piping in the yard that pumps the fog. With the fog and red lighting, it appeared the house might be on fire, which prompted a visit by a policeman, Geier says. “He was a little surprised when he realized it was my Halloween display.”
Growing fear factor
Tim Flynn of Plum, who has been decorating his Halloween house for 14 years, often lies awake at night thinking about his Halloween display.
“I just really enjoy doing it,” Flynn says. “It's a project where, if you make a mistake with a measurement or something breaks, you can say that is just part of the display. A broken fence looks like it belongs and was broken on purpose, even if it wasn't.”
The display has changed over the years as his children grew. When they were younger, Flynn displayed more cute stuff, but now that they are older, he does a scarier display.
There are at least 12 gravestones and a fog machine, as well as moving displays, such as a see-saw with skeletons, a coffin with a waving skeleton and another skeleton popping out of garbage can. It's all coordinated with music.
“On Halloween, many of the younger children are afraid to come near the house,” Flynn says. “So we take the candy out to them.”
Inside edition
Erin Molyneaux Pichette of Mars turned her study into an autopsy room — the Zombie Execution Lab — with jars of blood samples, rusted tools and an “Enter if You Dare” sign on the door. There is a skeleton drinking a cocktail and petting a rat, as well as blood-splattered windows. In the dining room, a butler named Alfred serves rat appetizers. A porcelain witch flies from a lighting fixture in the kitchen, and a tree full of crows adorns the living room.
“I just love this time of year,” Pichette says. “I really love all holidays, but Halloween is definitely my favorite.”
For the past three years, she has collected branches, searched her parents' house where she found the rusty tools and shopped at Goodwill.
“From the outside, my house looks very normal,” says Pichette, who decorates her yard with mums and pumpkins.
She got her freak on after receiving decorations from her friend Diane Toth from Canfield, Ohio. “Diane is my inspiration,” says Pichette, who works on the displays for weeks. “I am excited to keep the tradition she started going. I just love, love, love this time of year.”
Bug off
Chris Barbarita of Upper St. Clair invested in a pair of professional smoke machines to create as true-to-life fog as he could for his Halloween display that he set up with partner Scott Copley and a friend, Jeff Brizek of the North Side. It takes almost a day to assemble, usually one of the first weekends in October.
Spiders, created out of trash bags, appear to be climbing the outside of the house, while another larger bug clings to the roof. Big, buggy eyes made out of bouncy balls stare out from the bushes. Skull heads adorn the tops of the railings, while ghosts hang from a nearby tree.
“I love Halloween,” Barbarita says. “We live near an elementary school, so the kids in the neighborhood come by and stop to look at it. ... We do it because we love the holiday, but it is also nice to know that people appreciate it.”
Most of the decorations remain each year, but Barbarita says he likes to add a few new ones and then have older ones return at some point to keep the look fresh. The smoke machines are incorporated with sound effects and 1,500 lights.
Instead of candy, last year they gave out finger lights. This year, they will give foam tubes that change colors.
“Halloween is the perfect time for the spiders, ghosts and gravestones,” Barbarita says. “We love to do it.”
JoAnne Klimovich Harrop is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. She can be reached at jharrop@tribweb.com or 412-320-7889.
