A single garland of alternating round black, cream and orange beads sags across the upper middle of the picture, with seven Halloween characters hanging from it at varying lengths. A grinning black cat in an orange-striped party hat and ruffled collar and a mischievous carved jack-o'-lantern each appear twice, alongside a rosy-cheeked moon face with a small black bow tie, a friendly ghost with a bow tie and tattered trailing sheet, and a scarecrow with a pumpkin head, tall pointed witch hat and striped shirt.

Shading comes from fine ink cross-hatching and stippling, with muted watercolor washes that sit within or loosely follow the lines. Set on warm, aged paper with a subtle grain, the flat, evenly spaced frieze has a playful, nostalgic, folk-art feel.