Edmonton Journal has reported:
An elaborate Beetlejuice-themed Halloween display at a Terrace Heights home draws more than 300 trick-or-treaters each year. Katie Karpetz and her husband have been decorating their house near 101 Avenue and 71 Street for two decades, transforming it into a neighbourhood attraction known as the Beetlejuice House.
Karpetz remembers that only three children came to the door during the couple’s first Halloween there. Since then, their decorations have grown, and residents now look forward to seeing the display during spooky season.
“(Halloween) has been my favourite holiday since I went to my first community league pumpkin carving at the age of five,” said Karpetz, who also runs The Witchery Market.
Preparation usually starts in September, when the couple gradually brings out decorations and puts them up. On Oct. 31, Karpetz’s husband takes the day off work to spend hours setting up fog machines and lights. The date is also the couple’s anniversary.
The display began with assorted Halloween decorations before the couple settled on a theme drawn from Tim Burton’s 1988 horror-comedy classic, Beetlejuice. Karpetz watches the film during October. Although she had been reluctant to use inflatable decorations, that changed when she saw inflatable versions of the film’s sandworm monsters. She now owns four.
“We were slow getting up the sandworms this year and every time my husband was outside people were asking him why they weren’t up yet,” Karpetz said.
She is also involved with the Terror Heights online community, which maps homes in the Terrace Heights, Capilano and Hardisty areas that are decorating or handing out candy on Halloween. The project helps residents find displays and places offering treats across the three neighbourhoods.
Karpetz said she once worried that children were skipping door-to-door trick-or-treating in favour of indoor shopping malls. She now sees more homeowners embracing Halloween and drawing costumed children with decorations and treats.
“Don’t you worry, we’re getting those kids back into the streets where they belong,” Karpetz joked.
The Edmonton Journal is seeking nominations for Edmonton’s most elaborate Halloween-decorated houses and community halls. Readers can email chuculak@postmedia.com with suggestions for local homes that go above and beyond with October decorations.
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