Ever worry about what to get for the discerning ghoul in your life? That’s never a challenge for Austin’s fans of the macabre and malevolent, with the 11th annual Horror for the Holidays art and gift bazaar this weekend – December 6-7 – making sure there’s more than just a severed foot in your stocking.

This seasonal scare is the signature event for Blood Over Texas, which founder Bunny Voodoo unleashed over a decade ago as a nexus for Austin’s huge and underserved horror community. With an annual calendar that makes sure every day is Halloween, it’s clear to Voodoo that “the events were the biggest way to bring the community together” – from the annual Fright Gallery to this December chance to get your photo with Evil Santa.

The original Horror for the Holidays was a one-day affair at the former Spider House, “and I believe we had 14 vendors,” said Voodoo. That first year was an immediate success, and within two years the event had outgrown the space, adding more booths and shifting to a series of bigger venues. Since 2022, those giving the gift of terror have been able to spend a full weekend browsing creepy collectibles and paranormal presents at the Palmer Events Center – but that doesn’t mean Horror for the Holidays isn’t still expanding its evil empire. This year the event will infest two floors of the center, complete with celebrity appearances, a film festival, and 110 vendors just at the ground floor market. Voodoo said it’s not quite a full-bore horror convention but more of “a baby con.”

Horror for the Holidays started hosting celebrity guests back in 2023 with a reunion of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre cast members. 2024 was then dominated by a rare appearance by David Howard Thornton, better known as the Terrifier series’ butcherous Art the Clown. “I knew he was popular,” Voodoo said, “but I didn’t know he was that popular.” This year, however, “we’re concentrating on the icons,” she explained. They don’t come much more iconic than Dawn of the Dead star Ken Foree, who’ll be taking part in a special conversation with host Scarah, Damsel of the Doomed, on Saturday at 1pm. He might also get the chance to catch up with some old co-stars attending the fest, including Barbara Crampton (From Beyond) and Dee Wallace (Lords of Salem).

The lineup is a more curated list of guests than most horror events, and that’s because Voodoo doesn’t want the famous names to overshadow the market. Her philosophy for filling the shopping floor isn’t simply first-come, first-served, but more about creating a well-rounded experience. She’s always excited to host vendors whose wares she’d personally peruse, “and that becomes a problem because you want to buy everything,” Voodoo admits.

This year marks the first time there will be crafting opportunities, so visitors have a chance to make their own gifts. Voodoo said she had been inspired by the taxidermy classes at another annual Palmer guest – the Oddities and Curiosities Expo – but previously there simply wasn’t the space. With Horror for the Holidays expanding to both floors, guests will be able to book time to learn how to assemble their own book-page Xmas wreath or make a felt ghost.

Important to Voodoo is that around 90% of the vendors are local Austin artists, and several have returned every scaring season since that first Christmas at Spider House. “It’s based on how Blood Over Texas started, which was as a community group,” she said. “There’s nothing better than seeing the same people, year after year.”

Blood Over Texas Presents Horror for the Holidays

Saturday 6 – Sunday 7, Palmer Events Center

bloodovertexas.com

This article appears in December 5 • 2025.

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