|
|
bonus
Halloween Staging
 Tricks
for making window and in-store displays a treat.
Q: How can I make a creative
Halloween display without a lot of work?
A: With just a white sheet and a
large pumpkin, you can do wonders. Cut a large crescent moon from
cardboard or foam-centered board to use as the background, and paint it
black. To make a ghost, crumple newspaper into a medium-sized ball,
drape with a sheet and suspend it in front of the moon. To make this
ghost appear to fly, attach lengths of fishing line to each corner of
the sheet and tack to the ceiling or a nearby wall. In front of the
ghost, place the biggest pumpkin you can find, or group a bunch of
medium and small pumpkins.
These large graphic shapes of contrasting colors—black moon,
white flying ghost and orange pumpkins—are excellent for attracting
attention, especially that of drive-by traffic. Best of all, this window
display doesn’t require merchandise; the Halloween elements are all that
are required.
With a little more elbow grease, pumpkins can be carved into
fun jack-o’-lanterns. Or you can use faux jack-o’-lanterns that look
every bit like the real thing. Either will add a festive look to the
sales area without requiring additional displays.
Q: I want to stand out from the
crowd. How can I make an attention-getting display without typical
Halloween items?
A: Supersize it! Choose one
Halloween element and make oversized props. Many Halloween items can be
supersized. Candy corn, a traditional Halloween treat, can be
constructed from white foam-centered board. Large green or yellow cat
eyes, also cut from foam-centered board, can also be unusual props. Fun,
colorful, supersized props can highlight a variety of products or
florals.
Q: What can I do for a
traffic-stopping Halloween display?
A: Try this impressive “Bride of
Frankenstein” idea.
Imagine a dark and eerie space crawling with spiders; wispy
cobwebs shrouding a crude coffin placed on faded rose petals; a shadowy,
hulking figure dressed in black gazing at the victim; light from the
dripping candles of a gilded candelabrum casting a ghostly glow on the
victim’s ashen face—all a contrast to the beaded lace bridal gown on her
body. The bridal train, spilling out onto the floor, touches the corner
of a cobweb-covered white satin guest book.
Although this display sounds more appropriate for a haunted
house than a retail shop, it was used in a bridal shop window several
years ago. Such a departure from the usual bridal displays stopped just
about everyone who walked by, and the owner says she still gets new
customers who say they came to her shop because they remembered the
window.
Displays such as these call attention to your store in ways
that make it memorable. The Bride of Frankenstein display, for example,
is an eye-catching way to feature off-season bridal products—bouquets,
altar and table arrangements, attendants’ flowers, accessories and more.
It’s a great way to ensure that your bridal products and your store will
be remembered when wedding season rolls around.
Q: How can I do a Halloween theme
throughout the store without spending a lot of money?
A: With just a little effort, you
can create scary creatures for in-shop displays. Fabric, wood dowels and
plastic masks can become scary monsters, fairy princesses, crazy clowns
and more. To make a generic Halloween creature, tear 2 yards of
inexpensive cotton fabric into 2-inch-wide strips of varying lengths.
Drape long and short strips on a dowel suspended horizontally from the
ceiling to form the monster’s body and arms. Create a “head” of crumpled
paper on which to place the mask, and add a wig of yarn or shredded
newspaper. Attach the head to the body with pins. Although it may end up
looking lopsided, your creature will have personality.
All sorts of creature variations are possible simply by choosing
appropriate fabrics and masks. For example, skeleton masks, used with
torn gauze or muslin, make mummies, ghosts and other nether world
entities. Clown masks atop strips of red, yellow and black fabric make
fun, comical creatures, and shredded strips of inexpensive tulle will
turn pretty masks into fairies and princesses.
With Halloween just around the corner, do something different
for your store. Be daring, and reap the rewards. |
