Our newest team member, in-store Halloween expert and Visual Merchandiser, Alfie, has created a wickedly witchy Halloween window display for us to welcome in the spooky season. He focused on using natural materials and botanicals to make this window display as sustainable as possible. Alfie says "my main inspiration for the window display was the natural side of Halloween. That's why I used natural dyes and materials. There isn't the stereotypical witches and monsters and single use plastic items in the windows. I didn't want the window to be theatrical - instead it is raw and rich, using dried oranges and un-carved pumpkins. It's about celebrating the season, not about mass production. Like our products, I wanted the window to be one of a kind and hand-crafted."
Window dressing is a wasteful industry, props are often created using plastic, MDF board and vinyls. These are often discarded after several weeks use, ending up in landfill or staff sample sales. As an ethically minded business, we knew that there would be no window vinyls or plastic pumpkins in our windows. Instead we opted for sustainable alternatives such as;
- Recycled bottles filled with naturally dyed water
- Dried flowers, herbs and botanicals
- Dried oranges
- Real pumpkins, acorns and other natural materials
- Birch tree branches salvaged from tree surgery
- Hand painted window designs using chalk pens
- Reusable skull props made from plaster
Alongside our beautifully designed and sourced products of course.
Alfie used recycled glass bottles and filled them with water and various different natural, plant-based dyes including spirulina, algae and crushed rosehip. He also including recycled jars filled with his homemade loose leaf tea - a mixture of rosemary, orange and lavender which is thought to give a calming effect as well as helping to focus the mind. In addition Alfie strung up orange slices that he dried using a dehydrator, making the perfect decoration to last from now through until Christmas. Another beautiful touch are the dried flowers, sourced from local Margate business Mahal Kita. Alfie dried some of the flowers himself ready for his upcoming wedding!
Shop some of our favourite products from the windows here;
- Ghanaian Sun Mask in Black & White
- Hand Carved Soap Stone Plant Pot / Cup
- Indian Kantha Garden Tiger Moth Quilt
- Uganda Craft Collection Basket 'Cats and Houses'
- Zawadi Necklace
- Woven Kenyan Wall Hanging / Rug Cat on Burgundy
- West African Mud Cloth
- Hand Carved Cheetah Stool Large
- Ugandan Raffia Broom / Brush
You can visit our shop in Margate everyday from 11am to 5pm and see the window display for yourself! We hope this gave you some inspiration to make your own sustainable decorations for Halloween and beyond. Also make sure to pop in and chat all things sustainable with Alfie as well as coming to see what beautiful displays he comes up with next!
