This year, the iNSPIRE Q Design Team honored the traditional Mexican Day of The Dead (Día de Muertos) holiday by creating a festive gathering space. Not only that, but we’re also here to give you our Day of the Dead décor ideas that you can easily replicate in your own home!
THE DECOR
Our goal for this theme was to keep the setting playful and exuberant in order to best honor the holiday’s spirit of celebrating family. Our Day of the Dead décor ideas focused particularly on brightly colored decorations mixed with tasteful touches of black pieces throughout the room; no Halloween vibes here! In this instance, we used vibrant pottery and glassware for serving dishes and drinkware. Meanwhile, the Mexican textiles, marigolds, poppies, and sombreros add to the overall theme.
Our Day of the Dead décor ideas also included a nod to traditional hand-painted sugar skulls (calavera de azucar), which we created by using pumpkins. We decorated our side table with Day of the Dead fabric found at a local craft store. And hanging a tissue paper poppies and marigold garland helped to keep this gathering space lively!
Want to learn how to make our tissue paper floral garland and grab an easy recipe for churro flavored Chex Mix? Then check out our easy steps below to get started!
TISSUE PAPER POPPY AND MARIGOLD GARLAND INSTRUCTIONS
Traditionally in English culture, poppies symbolize memorial for those who have passed. In Mexican culture, marigolds hold a similar theme. These orange flowers are important to the celebration of Día de Muertos as marigolds (more specifically, their petals) are symbolically known to be a guide for the deceased’s spirit looking to find their altars set up for them by their families to honor their lives during this three-day holiday.
We honored this tradition by creating a festive, brightly colored paper garland that can also be reused!
First, you’ll need:
- Tissue paper (pink, yellow, orange and black paper work best!)
- Scissors
- Pipe Cleaners
- String (optional)
- Tape
Directions:
- Layer tissue paper (about three sheets worth) and make sure they are aligned properly prior to folding
- *TIP: layer different colors together for a fun effect!
- Accordion fold all layers, then round both ends of the ‘petals’ using the scissors.
- Tie the center of the flat paper with pipe cleaners and unfold the flower into desired shape.
- Cut center layer into fringed strips for a fun effect.
- Place string on the back of the pipe cleaners and tie marigolds together to make a chain.
- Tape ends to desired space to hang garland.
CHURRO CHEX MIX INSTRUCTIONS
Churros are a sweet pastry that are typically fried and coated with cinnamon and sugar! In Mexico, you can find these treats stuffed with chocolate, vanilla, toffee (cajeta), or fruits, such as strawberries.
Our recipe featured requires no fryer and has all the flavor of the churro traditionally found in Mexico!
First, you’ll need:
- 4 cups Rice Chex cereal
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup butter
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
Directions:
- Place Chex cereal in a large bowl and set aside.
- In a small bowl combine the granulated sugar and cinnamon and set aside.
- Next, in another small, microwave-safe bowl combine the brown sugar, butter, and honey and microwave on high for 1 minutes or until melted. Pour over cereal and stir gently until evenly coated. Place in microwave and cook on high for 3-4 minutes, stirring after each minute.
- Sprinkle cinnamon-sugar mix over cereal and gently stir until evenly coated. Pour onto parchment-paper lined sheet pan, spread evenly, and allow to cool completely.
- Once cooled, enjoy!
We sincerely hope you enjoy our Day of the Dead décor ideas on creating a festive and fun space in order to celebrate!
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