If you are anything like me, September means it's almost time for fun fall festivities. Crisp leaves, cool air, college football, apple cider, and (of course) Halloween! Halloween season is when you can let your spooky interior design spirit shine without worrying about many traditional design rules. Whether you're craving the illusion of a haunted room in your home, want to add cobwebs to your space, or dream about using oranges and reds in your home’s color palette, it's all possible during this time of year. With all the limitless options, creating a spooky and chic aesthetic this Halloween has never been easier.

If you're looking to opt for a more stylish Halloween look versus buying the 7-foot tall Frankenstein that your next-door neighbors can't seem to get enough of, keep reading for my five designer-approved tips for decorating your home this year.

Expand your Halloween color palette.

Pairing non-traditional Halloween colors with the usual orange and black will elevate your overall design plans and make your entire design bewitching.

My favorite colors to add to my Halloween design plans include gold, yellow, white, tan, deep green, and rich reds. These colors, combined with traditional Halloween colors, help make your designs less of a cheesy display and feel more mature. The goal of your chic Halloween design should be to make the design flow into the typical design and layout of the home, and by adding popular decor and rich colors to your designs, you can keep the integrity of the space.

Let your design tell a story.

Think outside the box when it comes to telling your Halloween story!

Without a doubt, you will always see pumpkins incorporated into my fall design decor—they are an autumn staple, after all! But if you only rely on pumpkins, you are seriously missing out on other spooky elements that you can bring into your designs to create your own personal Halloween story. Research mysterious events throughout history. Do any past stories give you goosebumps, or are there animals or symbols that have a deeper meaning that you could use? These are all factors to take into consideration when designing your space. Some non-pumpkin decor you could try include ornate candelabras, skulls, black butterflies, snakes, historical busts, or vintage items (pipes, glasses, vases, dishes, and serving trays).

Don't be afraid of negative space.

A cluttered space is not needed to have an effective spooky space. While you might want to put every Halloween decoration you own into your home, you truly don't have to! Bringing negative space into your spooky chic designs helps make your carefully chosen Halloween decor stand out from all the noise. I ensure I have enough negative space in my designs by mapping out my vision with Spoak's online design tool, Viz. Creating the layout before I begin my project helps me visualize where I should place my decor and how much space is needed between each item to give my design the themed and polished look I am trying to achieve.

Don't forget about patterns and textures in your designs.

Don't be afraid to use fall patterns and textures in your designs this Halloween. These two design tools can help bring your designs to life. They bring dimension to your designs and let your guests feel encompassed in the Halloween spirit. Some of my favorite Halloween patterns include buffalo plaids, autumn-colored floral patterns, and black and white stripes. My favorite Halloween textures include velvet, lace, and corduroy textures.

Let the light shine into your space.

One of my favorite ways to spice up a design is through lighting fixtures, candles, and lighting in general. Some easy ways to make your design have a spookier vibe is by changing the lightbulbs in your current fixtures to softer lighting, candles, or colored light bulbs; this will change the ambiance of your guest's experience when they view your designs.

Try to avoid blocking natural light with your decorations. Instead, let the light shine through via Halloween-themed accessories like fake cobwebs. This may seem to contradict what most people think Halloween is about — being dark and moody — but natural light brings in elements of nature and makes the best photography when capturing your Halloween designs.