WHERE DO HALLOWEEN COLORS COME FROM?

By Tracie Anderson

Posted October 10th, 2024

When choosing Halloween decorations this year, sticking to traditional colors can make your home look scary-good.

Ever wonder where Halloween colors come from? Traditionally, orange and black are the main colors used in Halloween house decorations during this mystical holiday season, with purple often used as an accent color. But why?

Let’s start with the simplest one: black in all its forms, the color of death. The darkest of all the colors (technically no color at all) is clearly associated with the dark of night. It’s in the shadows where spirits reside, and spooky things take place. It is opposite of white, (representing light, made up of all colors) often used to represent goodness. Black, becomes a common symbol of evil – or, to make things a little more kid-friendly, “spookiness”!

Black also goes great with orange, the color of pumpkins and jack-o-lanterns. Pumpkins are a traditional harvest-time item, abundant in the fall, and orange fits in well with other warm fall colors, from the deep red and yellow hues of turning leaves to the rich golden shades seen in dried cornstalks and freshly cut wheat.

But did you ever wonder how pumpkins got associated with Halloween?

The concept of a jack-o’-lantern comes from a centuries-old Irish folk tale about a cheap and crafty old soul nicknamed “Stingy Jack.” Long story short, Jack made a deal with the Devil that went wrong (don’t they always?), dooming his spirit to wander the earth for eternity. In the tale, Jack used a crude lantern carved from a turnip to light his way, eventually becoming known as “Jack of the Lantern.”

Later, Irish immigrants in America found pumpkins much more plentiful – and more suitable for carving than a turnip. Scary faces were added to the carvings and the present-day orange jack-o’-lantern was born.

Purple is another common Halloween color, with less obvious origins. Some sources believe it’s included in the Halloween palette because it’s often associated with magic and witchcraft. According to legend, for instance, a purple door is sometimes used to mark the home of a witch – spooky!

Others think the introduction of purple may simply have been a marketing tactic to soften, or bring a more playful, family-friendly side to the celebration. Either way, purple and Halloween now seem permanently paired when it comes to Halloween decoration ideas.

Recently added to the Halloween color list is the spooky vapor of a chartreuse, green. Representing the poisonous gasses rising from the witch’s caldron, this green has come to represent the dangers associated with wandering into a haunted forest. Chartreuse adds to the Erie glow of light coming from the lands beyond the haunted mansion, giving us pause to enter.

Our last color is Red! A rich, bold, blood red to symbolize, of course, blood. For the younger folk, this stands for the poison apple offered to the innocent by the evil trickster looking to take advantage of their naive wonder and trust.

It’s hard to go wrong when decorating for Halloween. There are so many different iconic images, from pumpkins and witches to black cats and cobwebs, just for starters. You can stick to the basic color palette or throw in other colors for highlights. Bright greens and yellows work well, and of course, the traditional warm fall colors never disappoint.

For some scary-good DIY Halloween home decorating ideas, check out Halloween section by clicking the Halloween banner above. Keep it simple. Keep it fun. And have a scary-good time in your beautiful home this Halloween.