CONTRIBUTING EDITOR ~ JORDAN
You can feel it in the air. The breeze becomes crisper, the cascade of red and yellow
foliage has begun, and there’s an eerie feeling in the back of your mind. Whether
it’s the prospect of the holidays that’s rattling your nerves or the creepy
spider decorations that are suddenly crawling around your neighborhood, that
feeling is your signal that Halloween is drawing near.
As the ghostly
trimmings of Halloweens past begin to haunt your house, kick up your block
party plans with the following 22 ideas to make your bash the best yet.
THE FOOD:
This appetizer is easy to prepare and can be made in smaller
or greater quantities, depending on the size of your party. Scrape the seeds
from the jalapeno pepper if you don’t
want the dip too spicy, or use a poblano pepper instead, which has less heat.
Another appetizer idea is these spider deviled eggs that will
make your guests’ skin crawl! They’re
simple to assemble and contribute well to the Halloween theme. If you wish to take it a step further, check out these
spider web deviled eggs and consider adding avocado and wasabi to your deviled
mixture.
This is your opportunity
to get creative. These melon monsters can be as harmless or as scary as you
want. Try cutting out arms from an additional melon that extend out from either
side and encircle the fruit. Eyes can be slanted inward to make an angry face,
and other features like horns, antennas and spikes can be customized to your liking.
If you’re serving a main course, you’ll
want to make sure it’s something
relatively inexpensive that can serve a lot of
people. This Ghost Pizza is your perfect solution, while still staying in the
Halloween spirit. Don’t limit yourself to just ghosts, but instead think of the
possibilities of Frankenstein faces that can be
created with a selection of veggies. Your options are endless.
Another option for a main
course is these Jack-O-Lantern Cheeseburgers. Serve the burgers on a platter
with bun tops off so kids and adults alike can admire your creativity.
For a sweet finish, try these pretzels covered in an orange
candy coating with a green M&M accent to make the sweetest pumpkins you’ve ever tried.
Don’t forget about the classic caramel apple that complements
the fall season. This will give your
overstuffed guests a taste of a traditional favorite without having to leave behind
the bulk of the apple. For variety, try a
peanut butter drizzle with chopped Reese’s on top or coconut flakes and diced
almonds for a take on Almond Joys.
With a focus on food, it’s
easy to let drink options slip the mind. For a beverage that celebrates autumn
and Halloween combined, try apple cider inside a hollowed-out pumpkin. The
pumpkin punch bowl can also be used for
alcoholic beverages for adults. Try adding these ghoulish shrunkenapple heads to give your guests a shock!
If you’re strapped for
time this year and can’t plan for food preparation, don’t panic. Look for a
party rental vendor who offers products like popcorn poppers, pretzel machines,
hot dog machines or even cotton candy machines to give you a break, but also
lend a classy touch. These rentals are not very common at block parties and
will surprise and intrigue your guests.
THE DECORATIONS
Warn your guests of their impending doom by decorating your
house with monstrous features. This project can be done on any part of the
house if you don’t have a garage door. Try
adorning your front door frame with an
upper and lower jaw so that guests must step through the teeth to enter.
This simple do-it-yourself project will be a sure sign to neighbors that your house is haunted. The cloth over the ghosts can be
tied together as if they were joined in
ghostly hand dancing around a fire, or they can be separated throughout the
yard and left to eerily blow in the wind.
An easy way to give your house a creepy vibe is by throwing
sheets over the furniture. This will make
the impression your house hasn’t been lived in, in addition to being a fast way
to decorate just before guests arrive. Spider webs attached to dark corners and
crevices will also make your house seem vacant and mysterious.
Give your friends a fright
when they walk into your bathroom and see cockroaches pouring from the vent.
Get ready for a few screams!
No Halloween party is complete without scary faces breaking
free of their picture frames. You can also use forms of hands or fingers to
show that spirits are escaping from their haunted pasts in your home.
Although this idea was taken
from the world-famous Harry Potter series, these floating candles will give
your house a dim and chilling ambiance. Keep
the lights low to give these candles their full effect.
THE ACTIVITIES:
Here’s a new twist on an old classic. Provide your visitors
with a fun way to celebrate throughout your party with a soundtrack that’s on-theme. If you’re
wondering what prizes to have on hand, try a pumpkin trick-or-treat bucket
filled with little toys for the kids, or a ticket into a raffle which will be drawn
at the end of the night for the adults.
A fun and busy activity for the kids is a t-shirt costume decorating
contest. Set up a table for them to work on and provide kids t-shirts in a variety
of colors, as well as sharpies, glue, glitter, paint, ribbon and other
adornments. Once the shirts have had an hour to dry, have the kids put them on
and do a Halloween fashion show!
Another game for the kids, or perhaps some very flexible
adults, is this acrobatic challenge that can be
easily assembled in your hallway. Hang toilet paper across a hallway so
that anyone who wants to pass must climb through the spider web maze.
A Halloween party wouldn’t
be complete without the opportunity to bob for apples!
Halloween Charades is a great way to get in the spirit of the season, and all ages can participate. Make up
your own cards with famous Halloween
movies, characters or creatures, and have your guests show off their acting
skills.
If you’re wrapped up in
the zombie craze, maybe your party is the perfect time for a little zombie
action. This game can be modified if you don’t
want your guests running around your house.
An example would be to give everyone three clothes pins as
they walk into the house to clip somewhere visible on their clothes. One person
is secretly selected to be the zombie and goes around sneakily stealing clothespins
off of other guests. If you lose all your clothespins, you are now also a
zombie and must steal other people’s clothes pins. Trust us; there will be no survivors.
Bean bag tosses are games that can be played while carrying on
a conversation, and are great for block parties. To increase the competitive
natures in your guests, add a point system and make smaller holes worth more
than bigger holes.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
Any of these block party ideas will contribute to your celebration’s
success. After all the party preparations are finished,
remember to kick back, relax and enjoy the fun of the fall season. After all, that’s what having a happy Halloween is all
about.
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