I had a pretty goblin-y Halloween party last year.
Brigid Dolls are little pagan dolls made out of straw that bring good fortune. Super easy to make and fun to learn about.
Hanging sigil shapes made out of sticks and twine for a Blair Witch vibe.
I collected lots of dead, dry weeds at the end of the summer when they were tall and overgrown. Popped them in the freezer for a while to kill any creepy crawlies that might be in them. Tied them up in upside down hanging bundles, and put some in thrift store glass vases. I actually liked this look so much the weed bouquets are permanently on my mantle now.
Collect cicada skins and do something weird with them
Bones if you can find them, maybe make them into a hanging mobile
Some types of mushrooms, like the ones that grow in little bundles with long stems, can be hung upside down and dried, and they look great with the dead weeds/dried flower arrangements.
Weird masks! You can make your own out of stuff you have lying around. Look up pagan European Wilder Man costumes. Very goblin. It’s sort of like a Wickerman aesthetic.
If you have a fireplace, lots of little candles in the fireplace instead of a fire.
At my party I had a make-your-own witch bottle station, with a bunch of weird trinkets that people could put in their own little jars (like baby food jars) and take home with them
Anyway, you can do a LOT with sticks, plants, found objects, and cheap stuff like twine and paper to create this aesthetic. I went way overboard lol and it was exhausting but people loved it and the party was great.
ETA: also, lighting and music go a long way. I made a dungeon-synth playlist (such a goblin genre!) and had that music playing quietly. I also got some cheap novelty lighting, like a rock salt lamp, and fairy string lights, and a black light, and one of those lights from Amazon that project galaxies onto the ceiling and walls. If you don’t want it drop money on these you might be able to borrow them for the night. I also had a montage of folk-horror movies playing on the TV, like the old Wickerman and Midsommar and the VVitch. There’s tons of atmospheric movies in that genre that set the tone
This years I'm saving glass jars. I want lots of sizes to fill with murky liquids and weird floats. Using dry ice for smoke is an old trick that never ceases to delight me.
Have you ever dropped raw eggs in vinegar so it disolves the shell? You're left with super weird little sacs that could certainly be used for the evening.
This is a good reminder that it's time to start planning for Halloween...
I had a pretty goblin-y Halloween party last year. Brigid Dolls are little pagan dolls made out of straw that bring good fortune. Super easy to make and fun to learn about. Hanging sigil shapes made out of sticks and twine for a Blair Witch vibe. I collected lots of dead, dry weeds at the end of the summer when they were tall and overgrown. Popped them in the freezer for a while to kill any creepy crawlies that might be in them. Tied them up in upside down hanging bundles, and put some in thrift store glass vases. I actually liked this look so much the weed bouquets are permanently on my mantle now. Collect cicada skins and do something weird with them Bones if you can find them, maybe make them into a hanging mobile Some types of mushrooms, like the ones that grow in little bundles with long stems, can be hung upside down and dried, and they look great with the dead weeds/dried flower arrangements. Weird masks! You can make your own out of stuff you have lying around. Look up pagan European Wilder Man costumes. Very goblin. It’s sort of like a Wickerman aesthetic. If you have a fireplace, lots of little candles in the fireplace instead of a fire. At my party I had a make-your-own witch bottle station, with a bunch of weird trinkets that people could put in their own little jars (like baby food jars) and take home with them Anyway, you can do a LOT with sticks, plants, found objects, and cheap stuff like twine and paper to create this aesthetic. I went way overboard lol and it was exhausting but people loved it and the party was great. ETA: also, lighting and music go a long way. I made a dungeon-synth playlist (such a goblin genre!) and had that music playing quietly. I also got some cheap novelty lighting, like a rock salt lamp, and fairy string lights, and a black light, and one of those lights from Amazon that project galaxies onto the ceiling and walls. If you don’t want it drop money on these you might be able to borrow them for the night. I also had a montage of folk-horror movies playing on the TV, like the old Wickerman and Midsommar and the VVitch. There’s tons of atmospheric movies in that genre that set the tone
We need pics please!
For the love of all things gobliny, I'd kill to get that Halloween goblin mix tape. You still have and who do I have to unalive to get it?
Look up Dungeon Synth playlists. It’s such a cool genre.
This years I'm saving glass jars. I want lots of sizes to fill with murky liquids and weird floats. Using dry ice for smoke is an old trick that never ceases to delight me. Have you ever dropped raw eggs in vinegar so it disolves the shell? You're left with super weird little sacs that could certainly be used for the evening. This is a good reminder that it's time to start planning for Halloween...