3 Tips for Planning a Halloween Party

Preparing for a Halloween party can be a daunting task, but making sure you have these three areas covered will make your planning much easier.

1. Decorations

Decorations help set the scene and there are a variety of options to choose from or create that will give you a spooky atmosphere.  There are several common items that can be re-purposed into spooky and eerie decorations without breaking the bank.

String lights aren’t just for Christmas anymore; there is an assortment of ways to add to your string lights to make them a creepy addition to your decorating schemes.  Using a black permanent marker and white, orange, or green table tennis balls you can create a variety of supernatural creatures to add to your string of lights.  Draw ghost faces on the white table tennis balls, jack o’ lanterns on the orange, and Frankenstein’s Monster on the green.  Cut a hole in the back and add them to your string lights for an eerie look.  Add cheese cloth over the ghosts for a haunting effect.

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With the extra table tennis balls you have from your lights, you can add eyes to them.  Either draw on the eyes with a marker or add googly eyes.  Add them to a wreath for that ominous feeling of someone watching you.  This would be great with all white table tennis balls or a mix of neon orange, pink, and green.

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Glo sticks can be incorporated in a variety of ways; you can add them to ice in your drinks cooler to give it that eerie glow.  They can be placed inside balloons before inflating, add a face and helium and have a floating head or ghost in a dark corner.  If you have a pool or a pond, add glo sticks to latex glove, inflate and then float them.

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Another great way to add to your outdoor decor is to take cardboard tubes and cut out scary eyes, add a glo stick and hide them in the bushes.

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2. Activities

There are a variety of activities that can be altered to incorporate them into your spooky theme.

A Ring Toss with a glo stick around the stem of a pumpkin or around the top of a witch’s hat is always a hit with the younger crowd.  Make sure your pumpkin has a long straightish stem.  If you are using a witch’s hat, stuff the top with newspaper and attach it to a base so it doesn’t flop over during the game.

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For Glow in the Dark Bowling; float glo sticks in water bottles.  Line them up, turn out the lights, and use a small pumpkin as the bowling ball.  To keep the pumpkin on track, use hay bales to for a lane.

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The Wheel of Doom is a great game for younger kids.  Rent a prize wheel and choose how players will win.  Will they have to complete a gross task before winning a prize like touching monster eyes (peeled grapes) or feeling intestines (boiled spaghetti); or will every spin be a win with the color they land on determining the prize?

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If you still have eyeballs left over from your earlier decorating, you can use them to play eyeball bounce.  Bounce the eyeball off the table or other flat surface into a decorated plastic cups or plastic pumpkins.

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Catch the Bat is a great game to get people moving around.  Wind up the Magic Bat and place it into a “spell book”.  Gather your participants; their goal is to catch the bat once it is released.  For more fun add more bats to the game.

 

 

For the artistically inclined, get white paper bags and have a creation station where they can create their favorite monster.  Have markers, construction paper cutouts, and glue on hand for impressive creations.  When the bags are done fill them with treats to take home.

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A Photo BOO-th is a great way to capture the memories from your party.  Rent the Selfie Booth and add some spooky props to the collection already provided and you have a recipe for success.  Create a hashtag for your party and post it in multiple places for all to see and use.

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3. Treats

Treats are always a favorite part of the season and can be done in a couple of different ways.  Whether you choose to do edible treats, have a selection of toys and trinkets, or a combination of both there are multiple ways to make them fun for all.

Adding plastic bugs to some of your treats automatically puts them into the creepy category.  Create “Bug Juice” with your favorite punch recipe (green or orange colored punch works great) add some plastic spiders, scorpions, or ants and you have “Bug Juice”.

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Create “Spider Webs” by renting a cotton candy machine and adding plastic spiders to it when you bag it up.

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A Bloody Colada can be made as either an adult or non-alcoholic beverage.  Rent a slush machine and pick up piña colada slush mix and strawberries.  Make your piña colada slush following the directions on the bottle and smash your strawberries.  To create your Bloody Colada; pour the piña colada slush into your cup, add alcohol if desired, and add strawberries, swirling for effect.

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Making Zombie Boogers is as easy as renting a popcorn machine and adding glaze flavoring.  Add Blue Raspberry Glaza Pop to a Naks Pak and the yellow oil combines with the blue to make a perfect green color for Zombie Boogers.

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An assortment of toys and trinkets are great for take home bags or as prizes for people with allergies.  Create a selection of small items for more fun and variety.