Here lies… your customer’s next favourite treat. This graveyard Halloween gift certificate sets the scene at dusk in an old churchyard: a violet sky, a glowing moon with bats flitting past, a bare dead tree, a wrought-iron fence and a row of crooked headstones. The cleverest touch is right at the front, where the value of the certificate is carved into the biggest tombstone, finished with the epitaph “R.I.P. · rest in treats”.
A Moonlit Churchyard, Set in Stone
The certificate is a landscape 8 x 3.5 inch design. Across the top is a deep violet sky that lightens towards the horizon, with a pale full moon in the top-right corner and two small bats. Along the bottom runs a dark, uneven ground line with a spiky iron fence, two small distant headstones and, on the far left, a gnarled dead tree silhouetted against the sky.
In front of it all stands a large pale grey tombstone with a rounded top. It is engraved with “VALUE” in spaced capitals, the amount in Pirata One, a gothic blackletter typeface, and “R.I.P. · rest in treats” in italic. The ground, fence and small stones are grouped into one object, so the whole scene moves together.
To the right of the tombstone, “Happy Haunting” appears in small spaced capitals above “Gift Certificate” in large pale blackletter. Below are the To, From and Valid Until lines in an elegant italic serif, the certificate number (HW-1601), the terms line and your business name and website. The Office Templates Online mark sits in soft violet on the dark ground at the bottom right.
Epitaphs for the Tombstone
The line under the value is where this design gets its personality. “Rest in treats” is only the start; here are some epitaphs to engrave instead, depending on your business:
| Business | Epitaph idea |
|---|---|
| Restaurant or café | “Here lies hunger. It didn’t stand a chance.” |
| Hair salon or barber | “R.I.P. bad hair days” |
| Spa | “Stress: gone but not forgotten” |
| Bookshop | “Died of a good plot twist” |
| Gym | “Rest in pieces, old routine” |
| Bar or brewery | “Here lies thirst, 31 October” |
| Cleaning service | “R.I.P. dust bunnies” |
Keep it short. Two or three words per line fit best on the stone, and the joke lands faster. Read it aloud once before printing; if it makes a colleague groan and smile at the same time, it’s the right one.
Filling In the Certificate
- Click the amount on the tombstone and type your value, or a service such as “1 Tour”.
- Replace the epitaph with your own line.
- Edit “Happy Haunting” if you prefer another greeting, for example “Enter If You Dare”.
- Replace the business name and website, and number each certificate.
- Check the terms line and adjust it for your policies.
- Download a print-ready PDF or an image for sending online.
Businesses That Suit a Graveyard Theme
A tombstone might sound gloomy, but this certificate is really a gentle joke, and it suits a surprising range of businesses:
- Ghost tours and haunted attractions: the obvious match, and the tombstone can read “1 Ghost Tour”.
- Escape rooms with horror-themed games.
- Pubs and restaurants hosting Halloween nights or murder-mystery dinners.
- Theatres staging a seasonal show.
- Bookshops with a gothic fiction table in October.
- Salons, spas and gyms, using a funny epitaph from the table above.
Running a “Rest in Treats” Promotion
If you want a simple promotion around the certificate, try this: for every certificate bought in October, the buyer gets a small free treat when they visit, such as a drink, a cookie or a discount on their next visit. Put the certificate on a small A-frame sign near your door with the tombstone value clearly visible, and post it on social media with a caption like “Our prices are to die for. Halloween gift certificates now available.” The epitaph gives staff an easy conversation starter at the counter, too.
Keeping the Tone Light
Graveyard humour works because it’s clearly a Halloween joke, but a little care goes a long way. Keep the epitaphs playful and aimed at everyday annoyances (bad hair days, hunger, boring routines) rather than real people or real loss. Avoid names and dates that could look like a genuine memorial, and skip the design for customers you know are grieving; offer them one of the other certificates in the set instead. Used this way, the tombstone reads as a wink, not a reminder, and customers will enjoy passing it on.
If you run a memorial-adjacent business such as a florist, you may prefer a softer message like “Treat yourself” rather than a pun.
Printing the Night Scene
This certificate is mostly dark, so good paper makes a real difference. Choose a smooth, bright white card stock around 100 lb cover, and a matte or silk finish so the violet and black print evenly without streaks. Print at 100% scale; the scene runs to the edges, so trim just inside the edge or ask for full-bleed printing at a print shop. The pale tombstone and text will stand out crisply against the night sky.
If you’re printing at home, it’s worth doing one test print first: dark backgrounds use a lot of ink and reveal any printer banding, and a quick check saves a stack of wasted card.
Graveyard Certificate FAQ
Can I make the sky orange for a sunset?
Yes. Recolor the sky shapes in deep orange and plum, and the black silhouettes will still stand out.
Is the dead tree editable?
Yes. It’s an editable vector shape, so you can recolour it, resize it, move it, flip it or delete it.
Can I add more tombstones?
Yes. Copy one of the small headstones and paste it, then move it along the ground line.
Is it too scary for families?
Not really. There are no skeletons or ghouls, just a silhouetted graveyard and a pun, so it works for family attractions too.
Your treats are to die for, so say it in stone. Add your value, carve a witty epitaph and let this graveyard certificate bring your customers back from beyond, again and again, all season long.
