Halloween Laboratory Themed Party Ideas

Does the Laboratory remind you of the biology and chemistry classes you sat through in high school and college? I admit that’s still a scary thought!  That makes the laboratory a perfect theme for a Halloween party. Mad scientists, spooky decor, strange, bubbly concoctions. What more could you ask for in a Halloween Party? Here’s some Halloween Laboratory Themed Party Ideas that will have your guests looking forward to spending time in the lab.
Laboratory Halloween Party Ideas
This is a partnered post with Oriental Trading, but all Halloween ideas and opinions are my own.

Halloween Laboratory Party Ideas

1. Design a Backdrop.  I began decorating by creating a backdrop behind my serving area. I tacked an orange throw behind my buffet and then covered it with stretchable spider webs. (Be careful! These are sticky.) I arranged plastic spiders into the webs to give the webs a spookier look.  *Tip: You can change the look by making the spider webs thicker and more dense or thinner. I added plastic skeletons-because all good labs need a skeleton-and a creepy Laboratory sign to complete the look.
Buffet Table for Halloween
A backdrop can set the stage for the party!

2. Prepare a buffet table. It’s much easier for guests to serve themselves! It allows you to prepare food in advance and be able to mingle with the guests. I wanted the buffet table to incorporate the spooky theme too. I started by placing a plain white tablecloth on the buffet and covering the tablecloth with more stretchable spider webs. Around the outside of the buffet table, I added black gauze garland string lights. I filled an apothecary jar with stretchable spider webs and added plastic spiders. You can add other spooky touches as well, like pumpkins, small cloth witches hats, or jars labeled with spooky signs.

Candy Corn Snack Mix
Candy Corn Snack Mix is an easy recipe for the Halloween Party.

3. Prepare spooky snacks. My favorite types of snacks are those that can be made in advance so I can enjoy the party. Some easy goodies that guests will enjoy (and which can be made gluten-free and in some cases, dairy free) include Bloody Non-alcoholic Vampire Shots, Graveyard Smores Cups, Easy Embalming Fluid Punch, and Crazy Candy Corn Popcorn Mix. You can find the recipes by clicking on the links.
Bloody Vampire Shot Mocktails
Kids and adults will love these non-alcoholic Bloody Vampire Shot Mocktails
Halloween Smores Cups
Halloween Smores Cups give all the fun of smores without the work!

4.  Set the Table.  Once again I started with a simple white tablecloth and covered it with stretchable spider webs. Now I was ready to add the tableware! I went with the  Spooky Soiree themed tableware from Oriental Trading because not only did it remind me of a laboratory, it reminded me of my favorite Halloween poem, The Raven, by Edgar Poe.  Yes, my inner literary geek came out.  I was able to get cups, plates, and napkins to match my theme.
Halloween Table
The raven theme added to the laboratory feel.
Embalming Fluid
Guests will love fun names for the food, like this Embalming Fluid Punch.

5. Make Easy Place Cards. I used white cardstock, a black marker and some plastic skeleton hands to make a place card for each guest. I wrote each guest’s name in a spooky font and added them to their plates. The place cards only took a few minutes to make, but I thought they elevated the spooky status of the party.
Place Cards
Place cards make it easy for people to find a seat!

6. Add Extra Touches that fit the theme.  It’s the little extras that make a party special. I thought this Zombie hand napkin holder would be something that would “grab” my guests. I used plastic spider web baskets to hold our snack mix and glow in the dark cups for our punch. My absolute favorite was the skeleton hand glasses for the Vampire Blood shots. All of these were things I thought someone might find in the laboratory of a mad scientist!
Napkin holder

I’m so excited to share my Halloween ideas. I can’t wait for our party! How are you celebrating Halloween? What are your favorite easy party ideas?

You Might Like These Posts:

How to Host an Allergy Friendly Halloween 

Popcorn Witches: Halloween Recipe & Craft 

Easy Jack O Lantern Glasses for Halloween 

Bootiful Clothespin Wreath for Halloween 

29 Comments

  1. What a cute and festive party! I love your ideas! The food looks awesome and festive!

  2. You have some great ideas for Halloween, this year I’m going to decorate and host a fun party this year!

  3. What a great themed for Halloween party. You did a great job. I really like your Halloween smores cup.

  4. You did a great job with this party. One day I’ll get back into hosting parties. I just hate thinking about all the cleanup, lol.

  5. What a great idea. The backdrop is the perfect setting and it looks easy to do.

  6. What a fun idea! I love this time of year for ONE thing. Candy Corn!

  7. That is an adorable Halloween setup! I love the cobwebs you added. So easy but added a lot!

  8. These are phenomenal ideas! You had me at the vampire mocktails!

  9. Thanks for the great ideas. We are helping to plan a party at a friends house this year, so needed this as I am NOT creative!

  10. This is so cute! I love having Halloween parties! Those vampire mocktails are super cute. This makes me want to do a laboratory theme for Halloween!

  11. Wow! What awesome ideas! I love every single detail But really love the skeleton hands!

  12. It’s totally been a while since we last hosted a Halloween party! I think these are all awesome ideas! I love every single detail, from the treats to the decor! It’s pretty cool!

  13. I love Oriental Trading Company! This sounds like a fun Halloween party!

  14. Love your setup! This is perfect for a kids Halloween party! My son and his friends would love this!

  15. This is perfect for all of the kiddos who love Halloween. Enjoy and have fun if you celebrate this day.

  16. That sounds like so much. I bet my kids would love a party like this.

  17. These are all cute and festival ideas. I like the Halloween Smores Cups, my daughter and her kindergarten class would really enjoy them.

  18. I want an invite to your party! These are all such fun ways to spice up the Halloween table!

  19. Everything looks so cool and spooky. I love the look of those non alcoholic vampire shots. So neat!

  20. Oh, that looks like so much fun! I wished that we had a large enough space to host a party like that. Halloween parties are always a lot of fun.

  21. Now these are some awesome ideas, a spooky laboratory theme is just perfect for Halloween as well.

  22. These are some fun ideas. Halloween is always my favorite holiday!

  23. Oh my gosh you are so creative! He looks so much better than what I could’ve done. These are some great ideas and I think I might steal a few for halloween!

  24. These are great Halloween party ideas! It’s just the right amount of spookiness! The Embalming Fluid Punch is amazing – kinda gross, but I’d have to take a sip or two.

  25. These are great ideas! My favorite part about all of them is how simple they are. I mean, come on. It doesn’t get much more Halloween OR easy to make than popcorn mixed with some classic Halloween candies.

  26. This looks so cool! My daughter would want to do something like this. She’s all about decorating for Halloween.

  27. That is one awesome setup. We’re having a Halloween party this year, and I think I’m going to straight up copy this. I love it!

  28. Going to share this with my son. They are planning a big Halloween party this year and think they would love to use some of your awesome ideas.