Britain’s frightfully fabulous Halloween houses: Nation gets into the spooky spirit this October as skeletons and corpse brides try to lure trick-or-treaters into their cobweb-covered homes (but would YOU be brave enough to enter?)
Halloween is just two days away and Britain is getting into the spooky spirit with streets and houses covered in cobwebs and decorated with skeletons and pumpkins.
In West London, a quiet Kensington street has been all but transformed into scenes reminiscent of a nightmare on Elm Street with ghouls, ghosts and bats.
Pumpkins are also a popular decoration with an estimated eight million set to be used over the course of the Halloween festivities.
The owners of these lavish homes in one of London’s most exclusive neighbourhoods have clearly been planning their spooky facades for some time judging by the incredible displays.
Some of the most wealthy London homes have called in floral specialist Warren Bushaway from London Event Florist who specialises in decorating homes for the festive periods and celebrations.
SURREY: A colourful Halloween display outside this house in Surrey warns guests the owners mean business
NOTTING HILL: A large spider stands guard at the entrance to a house in London
WINDSOR: Enormous spiders can be seen crawling up the walls of this house
KENSINGTON: A skeleton welcomes guests to a spooky house in London
Warren counts on Simon Cowell, Robbie Williams , Peter Crouch and many other celebs as regular clients to decorate their multimillion pound homes.
Some Chelsea residents have decided to embellish their entrance with a gorgeous golden skeleton, and to make things even spookier, he is wearing a black cloak and holding a matching skull-pointed spear, perhaps to ward off unwelcome spirits.
Meanwhile in Kensington, skulls and pumpkins are the order of the day with one property employing a line of the vegetables leading up to its door.
It’s not just family homes that are getting into the spooky spirit either.
A hair salon in Chelsea has shown customers they’re up for the fun by decorating the entire outside of the shop with autumnal leaves and skulls.
And a Mexican restaurant in the area has dressed up in some very lively colours, opting for some green foliage and pink flowers in a Day of the Dead homage.
KENSINGTON: A string of cobwebs arranged outside a luxury West London home
LONDON: A skeleton stands guard outside a property in the capital as Halloween approaches
CHELSEA: A hair salon in West London has shown its customers its in the spooky spirit
HOLLAND PARK: A garish Halloween display in London sees a house flanked by skeletons
KENSINGTON: Pumpkins line the way to the front door of a house in Kensington
KENSINGTON: An evil looking clown sits outside a family home
CHELSEA: Colourful bouquets and skulls adorn a restaurant in London
However, there have been calls for Brits to exercise caution with Halloween displays due to the effect it can have on nature.
Nature lovers have been warned that wildlife could die if they were tricked by Halloween pumpkins.
This week, Dorset Wildlife Trust warned: ‘Pumpkins can be fun to carve and decorate during Halloween, but they can actually make wildlife sick if eaten.
‘Please make sure you take your pumpkin back inside at the end of the evening if placed outside.
‘Or even better, place it in a window instead.’
Forestry England are asking people to ignore online tips and tricks telling people to toss their pumpkins into the woods, parks, fields and gardens for wildlife.
Caution! Dark forces may be lurking near the premises. These owners opted for a less overt decoration but are still sure to raise some eyebrows with this yellow caution tape and fluffy cobwebs
NOTTING HILL: Simple, yet effective: While this house has opted for a more subtle look, its dark trees help forge a spooky scenery, as do the tiny fake bats adorning the patio
CHELSEA: Black miniature skeletons hanging above this West London residence with little orange pumpkins hanging around the entrance to create a stark contrast of colours
SURREY: Another skull lover! A huge white skull centred on an autumnal wreath is sure to scare trick-or-treaters away
CHELSEA: Beware! These hanging skulls are sure to terrify – don’t be fooled just because a bunch is hanging amongst some perfectly orange autumnal leaves
Kate Wollen, assistant ecologist for Forestry England, said ‘We see many posts on social media encouraging people to leave pumpkins for wildlife to eat, but please do not do this.
‘Feeding pumpkins to birds, foxes, badgers, deer, and wild boar can make them unwell and can spread disease.
‘Pumpkins are also often decorated and have things such as candles in them.
‘Animals eating the pumpkins could then eat a foreign object and this could kill them.’
She said it’s far better to use the flesh to make a delicious pumpkin soup or add discarded pumpkins to compost heaps to make a rich soil for next year’s vegetable garden.
Kate said ‘They are 90 per cent water so are a great composting material, adding a great source of nitrogen and moisture.’
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