Turns out, it’s fun being dead. Provided you lurk in the right zipcode.

At EcoSalon, we approach shelter with the philosophy that a home is more than just a roof over your head. It’s a refuge – an asylum, if you will – from the travails of everyday existence. Today being All Hallows Eve, that sentiment holds true not just for the living among us, but also for the dead. The undead, even, in the interest of fairness.

Here are ten of America’s most phantom-friendly haunts where a ghost can be a ghost without fear, recrimination and the associated heebie-jeebies.

10. Cell Block 14D, Alcatraz

Reputed to be the most haunted cell block on Alcatraz Island, witnesses claim to have seen apparitions walking the cellblocks; occasionally voices are heard emanating from what was once the cafeteria. Evidently, the food was really that bad.

9. University of Ohio in Athens, Ohio

Being dead anywhere within the city limits of Athens, Ohio is much like being alive in, say, New York City. It’s a real hotspot for the paranormal, home to a headless train conductor, pagan cults, and five major graveyards laid out to form a pentagram. Legend has it that ghosts instructed a farmer named Jonathan Koons to build a “spirit room” in which apparitions could manifest and hold conversations with him beyond the grave.

In a town like Athens, the local insane asylum has its share of ghouls. As expected. But the real action takes place on the college campus, said to be one of The Scariest Places on Earth. Funny, I thought that was high school.

8. The Hampton Lillibridge House

Savannah, Georgia is a lovely place to be a ghost, what with its temperate weather and antebellum charm. There is a plethora of old manses to haunt, too, but the Hampton Lillibridge House is a favorite. Built in 1796, strange phenomena didn’t start occurring until the 1960s. Two workers were killed during a renovation and others claimed they could hear voices, footsteps and pieces of furniture being thrown about. A particularly disturbing report is that at the mere mention of the word exorcism, a female voice could be heard screaming throughout the house.

7. The Battery Carriage House

Charleston is called “Holy City” for all the church spires dotting its skyline, something the dead and undead take very seriously. The city’s most haunted houses can be found in an area called the Battery, locale of the infamous Battery Carriage House Inn. Here, a headless torso with either, a) a macabre sense of humor or, b) a serious axe to grind, appears at the bedsides of guests in the middle of the night. Gullah legend has it that Boo Hags, a type of vampire that wears human skin as a mask and feeds off its victim’s energy while they sleep, have also been spotted in the neighborhood.

6. The Joshua Ward House

The builder of this house made the unfortunate mistake of erecting it on the foundation of George Corwin’s old home, the sheriff in charge of rounding up witches during the 1692 Salem witch trails. If anyone’s going to be haunted by a guilty conscience, poor Sheriff Corwin’s the guy.

5. The LaLaurie House

Physician Louis LaLaurie and his wife Delphine were not very nice people. Inside the walls of their picturesque French Quarter mansion, they tortured their slaves with bizarre surgical experiments and other atrocities, including the murder of a 12 year-old girl. After a fire broke out in the kitchen, fireman discovered several slaves chained to the wall of a dungeon. The LaLaurie’s fled to Paris, but the ghosts remain.

4. The Lizzie Borden House 

It almost feels boring to write about the Lizzie Borden House in Fall River, MA, but it bears mentioning. Now a bed and breakfast to the stars, it was the site of an 1892 axe murder, which, I think we can all agree, is the most unpleasant kind.

3. The Winchester House

Silicon Valley – a place associated with sterile, manufactured and thus un-haunted things – is home to one of the most paranormal houses in the nation. The Winchester House in San Jose was built by gun heir Sarah Winchester, who sought the guidance of spirits in constructing her dream home. The result is an officially weird house, sanctioned as “haunted” by the state of California, with stairways leading to nowhere, windows on the floor, doorways opening, and rooms with no entrances.

2. The Whaley House

The California Department of Commerce designated this house as officially haunted, as well, prompted by budgetary concerns, or, perhaps, the research of Professor Hans Holzer. Hans is a professor of parapsychology and is considered the world’s leading expert on psychic phenomena. San Diego’s Whaley House has been host to a myriad of strange and unexplained apparitions, making it “probably the most haunted house in America.” Maybe.

1. The White House

Most ghosts stick around ‘cause it’s personal; for Washington ghosts, it’s political. Abigail Adams, the wife of President John Adams, has been seen hanging laundry in the East Room, long after it’s dried. Many guests, including right-minded political leaders like Winston Churchill, claimed to have seen the ghost of Abe Lincoln. The Queen of the Netherlands was an overnight guest at the White House and allegedly fainted after she saw an apparition of honest Abe.

Happy Halloween, kids.

Images: timekin; USA Today; Justin Masterson; f_iodinea; Battery Carriage Inn; Todds Travel Photos; Jeremy M. Farmer; abbie*christine; Travis S; peyri; Wes

Your mantle is calling for your decorating prowess.

If you’re in proud ownership of a mantle this holiday season, Halloween is the perfect time to kick off your decorating prowess. A well-plumed mantle can set the holiday tone for the entire house. Get your mantle right and you might not even bother with the front stoop.

By our count you have exactly three opportunities to perfect your mantle before the end of 2011: now, as in Halloween; Thanksgiving; Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanza. Here are 25 exceptionally well-executed ideas to get you started.

Word of warning, I’m about to delve in Addams Family kitsch. These mantles are creepy and they’re kooky, mysterious and spooky.

You get the idea.

via Boopsie Daisy

via Just a Girl

via Home Design Interiors

via Second Sister

via Homestories A 2 Z

via The Shabby Chic Cottage

via Langes Fädchen, Faules Mädchen

via Poetic Home

via How I Keep Sane

via La Beau Rêve

via Mandajuice

via Wendy Copley

via Shaggy

via Shelterness

via Southern Living

via Little Miss Momma

via The Shabby Nest

via My Insanity

via Home By Heidi

via Modern Homes Interior Design

via Pottery Barn

via I Heart Nap Time

via Martha Stewart

Images: Occulta Gemini; Boopsie Daisy; Just a Girl; Home Design Interiors; Second Sister; Homestories A 2 Z; The Shabby Chic Cottage; Langes Fädchen, Faules Mädchen; Poetic Home; How I Keep Sane; La Beau Rêve; Mandajuice; Wendy Copley; Shaggy; Shelterness; Southern Living; Little Miss Momma; The Shabby Nest; My Insanity; Home By Heidi; Modern Homes Interior Design; Pottery Barn; I Heart Nap Time; Martha Stewart

In anticipation of Halloween, we found 13 of the best accessories and bits of furniture from the House of Frankenstein.

The design world has been fascinated with anatomy for a while now. Our obsession is a bit more seasonal. With Halloween creeping up on our calendars, and the encroaching Día de los Muertos not far behind, we’ve got skulls on the brain. And brains all over the carpet (see the footstool below).

Time’s a wasting, or so we are reminded by tattoo artist Scott Campbell’s upholstered chair (above) and a monobloc plastic seat titled Souviens Toi Que Tu Vas Mourir from Benjamin Le Du of Pool. That French bit means, “Remember that you are going to die.”

For something a bit more heart-warming, consider the Cuore Sacro lamp by Tania da Cruz.

Liviana Osti’s own Cuore features two carafes assembled in the form of a human heart.

Porcelain sculptures from Parisian studio Perception Park, part of Celia Nkala’s Ossements collection, were inspired by a human hip-bone she found in a flea market in Brussels. She sculpted the shape in porcelain along with a few others modeled upon a human skeleton she borrowed from the anatomy department of a local medical school.

The Lilac Bone.

The Sacrum.

And stackable vertebra candle-holders.

The Ventricle in cherry turquoise is a hand blown sculptural vase designed by Eva Milinkovic.

Wallpaper Number One by Shannon Wright takes the urinary tract and turns it into retro wallpaper.

Finally, brains on the carpet. Or rather a skull chair and brain footstool from the Vanitas Collection, accented with the “Something Dead” floor lamp, each sold separately by Vladi Rapaport.

These should set your teeth chattering before making you smile. The teeth brushes are handcrafted using traditional craft techniques by blind artisans at the former Home for the Blind in Berlin.

Shelve this under almost anatomically correct. By sculptural furniture maker Peter Rolfe, detachable torsos are available in his and hers.

Finally, antique anatomy slides cum refrigerator magnets to remind us to take good care of our bones so our scary Halloween costumes, aren’t something we can’t take off.

Images: Street Anatomy; Street Anatomy; Design Milk; Tsunami Glassworks; Shannon Wright; Mix And Chic; Voila; Street Anatomy; The Curiosity Shoppe; Street Anatomy; Kimico P.

Halloween is all about split personalities. Masked or unmasked. Sexy or cute. Polyester or spandex. Or is it masked sexy polyester cuteness? Once a year, zombies walk the streets, witches pole dance on their brooms, and pasties make an appearance outside of a strip club. It’s enough to make us clutch our pearls in horror, dive under a pile of leaves and not come out until the birds start chirping in somewhere in mid May.

Then there are the Halloween costumes that can make your brain explode, and not in the way that’s going to add to the haunted house deco. First there are the polyester costumes, made from petroleum. Then there’s the spandex of the man-made polyurethane blend. Sure, these costumes are not made for the long haul, but must they be made from what’s still floating around in the Gulf of Mexico?

And then there’s the Halloween Sexy Virus. This is like a zombie plague when rational, otherwise demure women and some men find throw off their clothes and take to the streets in pasties. Yep, we’re all consenting adults, but some Halloween costumes give good double take come October 31st.

So check out these costumes that are fun, that are WTF, and that are “I’m going to rock back and forth until this image is burned from my eyeballs.”

Sexy NASA You could spend years immersed in physics, math, and physical training to become an astronaut. Or you could just do some knee-high boots and a push-up bra and be done with it. Just get one that defies gravity.

Wizard Wanda School Girl Wicked Witch of the West, eat your heart out – this witch takes Harry Potter’s polyester wand-waving to new levels.

Transformer Bumblebee More than meets the eye – and how! Who knew a 1980s boy-centric cartoon could include glovettes and headpiece?

Officer Frisk Me Hello 911, sassy’s in trouble! Halloween wouldn’t be complete without a poly-blend that takes law enforcement to new limits.

Sexy Darth Vader Call me a Star Wars purist, but if you’re going to go sexy, don’t you want Leia’s slave girl costume from Return of the Jedi? Just nothing about Vader’s outfit makes me think it would make a great mini-skirt.

Sexy SpongeBob Squarepants This costume, called “nautically naughty,” brings a whole new meaning to this cartoon. It also brings SpongeBob’s tie into a really awkward spot.

Sexy Brian from Family Guy Confused? Good thing a picture of Brian from Family Guy is on this outfit, as well as a martini glass. Also: Why?

Borat So basically there’s no way this can be considered appropriate, right?

Image: greyloch

There is something utterly beautiful about a mixture of metallic glamour and death. As the end of October nears, I find myself craving something dark that can linger all year long. Jayson Home & Garden offers the Claw Bottle Opener ($24), a brass wonder for accessing bottles of pumpkin ale. A Porcelain Beaver Skull ($110) like this charming one from Beetle & Flor is the perfect coffee table embellishment, a ghoulish paperweight, or a flawless bookend.

And just in case you need a dark and brooding jaw bone dangling over your collarbones, this porcelain skunk Jaw Pendant ($65) will make you weak in the knees.

I never think of Halloween until the last possible moment and then I end up with no costume, no plans, and no food ideas. I think it’s my form of rebellion after living in San Francisco for so many years (many of them in the Castro).

I don’t want EcoSalon readers to suffer the same fate so I scoured the web for ideas that involve good food without artificial colors, flavors, or other food additives. You’ll find plenty of tasty treats, a fun cocktail idea, and some general green party tips.

Enjoy a safe, healthy, and green Halloween!

Heidi at 101 Cookbooks helpfully compiled links to all of her Halloween inspired recipes last fall. And there are some good ones here. Caramel apples with all-natural ingredients, toasted pumpkin seeds with creative flavor profiles, and a roasted pumpkin salad that sounds fantastic. Heidi’s recipes are always vegetarian and use all natural, healthy whole foods, so you can’t go wrong.

Because wasting anything edible (including pumpkin seeds) is not green, you’ll definitely want to use this recipe for all-natural Pumpkin Seed Brittle from Alton Brown via The Daily Green.

Martha can always be counted on for the most creative ideas. Here’s a “bleeding heart” martini that uses pickled beets in place of olives. Try some Fair Trade Vodka instead of gin, if you’re so inclined. Or check out Peak Spirits. A small, artisan distillery that produces organic vodka and gin.

Finally, for general green party tips for Halloween or anytime, have a look at these tips from Danny Seo via Epicurious.

Image: Ack Ook

I’m not much of a holiday decorator. I don’t spend two days unwrapping little chotskies out of bubble wrap (you know, the same ones I spent two days re-wrapping last year) and setting them up all over my home. I don’t hang hundreds of blinking lights from my roof or station large plastic figures on my front lawn. My holidays are a tad less elaborate and adorned. And I like it that way.

First of all, I hate packing and unpacking of any kind. I’d rather stick needles in my eyes. And I don’t like excess stuff sitting around, especially theme-oriented, color coordinated stuff.

Having said that, autumn is upon us and with the changing weather and falling leaves comes a feeling of nostalgia and celebration. But not to worry – there are plenty of simple, subtle ways to express the approach of the holidays without going over the top.

I’ve gathered an idea or two for garnishing your home – from tabletop to mantle to martini. Things that aren’t always exclusive to the holidays but that celebrate the seasons nonetheless. Here’s hoping you’ll see something that tickles your yearning for decoration, in the simplest most sensible sense.

On the top of my list but the farthest from reality, is this platinum and diamond encrusted skull (image above, For The Love of God). It’s the creation of British artist Damien Hirst, who has a morbid fascination with death and dying, and it sold for $100 million dollars in August 2007. No it isn’t simple or sensible. It’s glamorous and shocking, but I couldn’t resist.

Speaking of glamor, I’m a glutton for black. It goes with everything and makes everything look good. Just check out Leigha’s post last week for more details about bringing on the black.

I’m loving these touches of black with the slightest twist of orange or cream or candied apple (images above). And dried anything, from twigs to flowers, placed in a simple vase, turns an ordinary tabletop into interesting, without going gauche (image below).

All things metallic are hip right now, so use your imagination with gold paint and old buttons or beads. Preferably not all at once, just dabbing a little here and there does the trick.

So the table is set, but what’s the point of a party without a flavored martini?

Pumpkin Pie Martini (image above)

1/2 oz Sylk Cream Liqueur
2 oz Vanilla Vodka
1/2 oz Pumpkin Liqueur (or substitute pumpkin spice syrup)
1 tsp (or more) Whipped Cream
1 Cinnamon Stick for garnish

Pour the cream liqueur and vanilla vodka into a shaker filled with ice. Shake well. Add the pumpkin liqueur or syrup and shake again. Strain into a chilled martini glass. Top with the whipped cream, and garnish with a cinnamon stick. Serves 1.

Of course, you can’t have autumn without pumpkins, although I fly on the shy side with these gourd-like squashes. Carving with the kids is great fun, but when it comes to decor for your home, let’s leave the knives in the kitchen.

I’m needing a few of these velvet critters, so soft and snugly (image above). Or try your hand and paint them in plaid or polka dot; winter white or graphic delight (images below).

Draw a black raven or bats, use a doily as a stencil or monogram your initials (images below)….

…clothe them in old black stockings or leftover lace.

Let’s move on to flowers and wreaths; mantles and cakes.

Like I’ve said, crafts and such just aren’t my thing – I seek out simple and easy. So these orange calla lilies (image above) do just the trick. I’m loving how they’re arranged leaning to one side – asymmetrical is where it’s at.

I often have an aversion to wreaths – they are so easily overdone and embellished with too much garnish and frill. But these two gems (images above and below) capture the pure and crisp of the changing seasons and upcoming holiday cheer. You might even find one on my front door this year.

I’m crazy about these cheesecloth covered glass vases (images below), in all heights and sizes. Look closely and you’ll notice the black medical stitches down one side. Fill them with dried flowers or twigs and you’ve got a subtle way to share the Halloween gore without going too far. Add a spider if you’re so inclined.

Last but not least, these cakes made the cut. I’m not a pastry chef, nor am I competent in the ways of the kitchen, but I had to include them for the mere fact that they say Halloween at its most simple and sophisticated. Bon appetit and happy holidays.

Images: Better Homes and Gardens, Molly Findlay, this is glamorous, Delia Creates, Shelter Pop, Wise Craft, coco + kelley, green wedding shoes, style me pretty, Michelle Rago Ltd., Pinterest, Martha Stewart, Simply Grove, Country Living, Fina Art & Paper

Sure, you’re forced to take down the ghosts and fuzzy spiders (news flash: your neighbors are pissed if you haven’t done so), but some of the seasonal elements we put up to get in the mood  should endure until the end of the year, if not beyond.

Here is my list of favorite affordable decorative displays for the festive and frugal in all of us.

1. Lanterns

Rice paper lanterns bobbing outside (with solar lights) or in your rooms make a huge, happy statement. I love the cylinder shapes with Asian motifs like the ones found at My Green Party Goods, $3.50 each.  Keep out of wind and rain and purchase eco options.

2. Mini Pumpkins

Don’t toss these babies out with the bad Halloween candy. They transition to the Thanksgiving table (orange+pumpkin) and even co-mingle happily pomegranates and pepper berries for winter holiday merrymaking. You can buy organic by the case at Baldor, if you haven’t already succumbed to the adorable guys at the farmers’ market.

3. Bowls of shells

It’s likely you have amassed these already. Gather them in a pretty bowl for the coffee table, scatter on the table, line them on the mantle. Shells – often used to evoke romantic, seaside summer lazing – work just as well in fall and winter. I like combing the beach for sand dollars and tossing them into my mix.

4. Strung Cards

I string three rows of natural wire along my dining room wall to hang beautiful cards from the high holidays and my daughter’s October Bat Mitzvah to Halloween, Thanksgiving and winter holiday greetings. Just pick up some clamps and you’re in business. Guests love them and cards are so cool, why toss them out?

5. Photo Displays

I’ve mounted many photo walls for clients and friends, which is affordable art for the home and a way to display treasured memories from the year. Of course, assorting eco frames on various tables throughout the house works well, too (school photos, Halloween shots, other fun scenes).

6. Foliage

Harvest leaves, twigs and pine cones and branch out in your earthy styling of tables, entryways and other venues that smack of fall color. I like how Arenamontanus gathered a grouping for a desk.

7. Candles

Beeswax candles come in all shapes and sizes and really set the mood for seasonal statements. Mix ‘em and match ‘em, turn off the lights and turn on the tunes. For a great assortment visit 1000 Markets.

8. Recycled Cloth Coasters

Like these vintage treasures from Etsy, turn your excess fabric into coasters with easy sewing for delightful results. When do you put them away? Never.

9. Table coverage

Roll out the organic runners and roll out the fun, kids. This sumptuous moss design from Amenity can take you through the seasons and inspire unique styling. I use them to dress up many surfaces from the dining table to the buffet and entry way.

10. Vintage Dishes

This peach glass from Step Toes is a lovely example of the menagerie of collectibles you can break out to display and use for serving, from favorite heirloom porcelain to tea pots and even plates hung for display. This is where you canhave blast and save on that styling budget.

Mmmm. CANDY! Just smell the bowl full of those darling, little bars of CANDY. Just look at those chewy bites of CANDY!

Now, walk away. That’s right. Walk away and no one will get hurt.

Halloween is really one of the hardest nights to stay disciplined, to focus on staying healthy and stick to your local, organic fare and not endorse one night a year when it’s okay for kids to rot their teeth and poison their bodies with sugar and trans fats.

We get hundreds of visitors to our suburban-esque San Francisco hood and once the bell starts ringing, it tends to get frenetic. You can’t spend the evening just bobbing for organic apples but you can make some changes in your holiday routine.

Here are some good tips for staying focused for a  healthier Halloween:

1. Plan ahead pumpkin head!

Eat a really big, healthy dinner around 5 p.m. Give your kids a good dinner, too. Usually they’re too excited to eat, so just threaten them: No green stuff, no brown stuff. Growing up, we always had chili dogs on Halloween, but no one will eat that anymore. A veggie pizza is yummy and filling, and toss a massive salad for yourself and your friends. And don’t forget, many good foods stem from the pumpkins you carve, i.e. delicious and beneficial dried seeds, soups and desserts. Pumpkin is one of the super foods!

2. Pluck fruits of the vine, Frankenstein

Here’s something novel. Buy healthy treats to give away so if you have a few it won’t hurt: Organic fruit snacks, like the new ones from Amy’s,  Fair Trade organic dark chocolate squares, Z-bars. Don’t get carried away and give out toothbrushes, though. Everybody hates neighbors who give out toothbrushes. They deserve to get tee-peed.

3. Keep a Healthy Stash, Monster Mash

Keep a healthy, beat-the-blues treat aside for yourself, such as an organic dark chocolate bar, a bowl of fresh fruit or popcorn. I don’t know who made up the rule that giving away candy means you can’t snack on healthy treats throughout the night. Popcorn is high in fiber and I like to season mine with a bit of Cayenne pepper. Look out!

4. Slurp to your heart’s desire, thirsty vampire

Drink tons of water all night (from your reusable bottle, of course). Keep a water bottle by the front door, and keep sipping. Staying hydrated is a surefire way to keep up your energy throughout this high energy night, and to keep yourself from eating unhealthy foods that will just make you feel lousy in the morning  – you know, that Halloween hangover.

5. Sit on the porch and stay present

This is a great night to interact with neighbors, neighbors we are usually isolated from during the busy work week. Pull up a chair on the front steps with your bowl of healthy giveaways and haunt your old friends. It’s good for the spirit!

Top image: Doug88888

Image One: Organic Authority

Orange and black might be the traditional colors of Halloween but why can’t a little green fall into the mix? Here are a few simple tips to help make this weekend’s Halloween festivities a shade greener:

- When it comes time to make a jack-o-lantern, find a locally grown and organic pumpkin to carve.

- Make costumes from what you find around the house. Recycle clothes from years past or head to the nearest second hand store and rummage around. Try to convince the kids to trade costumes from last year with their friends.

- If the creative juices aren’t flowing (or your kids aren’t trading), rent a costume rather than buy. But if you’re set on something new, at least make sure it’s made using earth-friendly materials and fair trade practices.

- Use recyclable batteries in all the flashlights that venture out on a trick or treat expedition.

- Skip the plastic pumpkin buckets and collect the trick or treat sweets in a recyclable tote bag, or even an old pillowcase, appropriately decorated of course!

- Consider eco-friendly treats for the trick or treaters who arrive at your door. Instead of candy corn and snickers bars, why not hand out raisin boxes or organic honey sticks?

- Tell all the neighbours that your house is a Haunted “green” House. When they ask what you mean (and they will), direct them to the Green Halloween website which explains the whys and hows of making Halloween an environmentally friendly holiday.