Our top tips for the perfect Halloween
Pumpkins and PJ’s – our top tips for the perfect Halloween
So, Halloween is just around the corner but this year might be a little different from the last. We would usually all be dressing up and heading out trick or treating or to a festive party, but this year we are all staying in and staying safe and cosy. Here at Cyberjammies, Halloween has fast become one of our favourite times of the year, it's cosy and festive and gives us an excuse to decorate our houses, indulge our inner-child and of course eat a ton of sweets!
We’ve pulled together our top tips for the perfect Halloween, so whether you’re dressing up for a 'ghouls night in' or relaxing in front of the TV we hope you enjoy it, stay safe and have lots of spooky fun!
1. Your very own Haunted House - We’ve all seen those houses where the owners really go the extra mile to get that super-spooky feel. You may not want to recreate the set of Hollywood movie, in your front garden but it’s easy to borrow some of the best bits for your very own Haunted House. Set the tone with some spooky music and be sure to hang cobwebs, skeletons and bats on the approach to your door. Don’t forget your windows too by putting long taper candles inside and creating a spider’s web in black wool. Give the entrance of your house some spooky treatment too, although you won't have any trick or treaters this year, some parents are walking around their neighbourhoods to spot the best decorated houses!
2. Add a touch of scary to the inside too - Here are some haunting DIY's to do with little ones! Make pumpkin style lanterns by covering old jars with orange crepe paper, create faces with some black paper and add some tea lights. For spooky candles, buy some white and red candles, melt the red wax onto the white ones, so that it looks like they’re dripping with blood. Make some black paper bats and then attach them to any decorative twigs you already have in the house or along the bannisters of your stairs. Finally, on a plain white table cloth, stencil as many tiny spiders as you can, so that they look like they’re crawling across your table.
3. Ghouls Night in – Usually by now, every supermarket has their racks
piled high with scary party costumes ready for a festive party or night out, but as we are all staying home this year how about inviting your girlfriends to a 'Ghouls Night In' on Zoom? Wear your best costume (with PJ bottoms of course) have some fun creating a scary makeup look and have some fun! You can create awards for the best costume, do a Halloween themed quiz, play some drinking games and play some halloween music!
4. Stay in and cuddle up – Make some spooky snacks (see next tip),
turn down the lights, replace them with a few candles, then settle down for a few Halloween movie classics. Our all-time favourite has to be Hocus Pocus for true family fun and there’s a whole generation of kids that have never seen classics like Ghostbusters, The Witches and The Addams Family. Newer movies that are taking on Halloween classic status include Hotel Transylvania (all three are scarily good), The Corpse Bride and Hubie Halloween. For some truly scary grown-up films, then your go-to classics are Nightmare on Elm Street, Scream and all of the Halloween series. If you’re not keen to spend the evening hiding behind the sofa then maybe Beetlejuice or any of the Scary Movie series will be a better choice.
5. Scary scrumptious treats – Sweets are of course a staple for any Halloween night but there are some other easy ways to add spooky touches to your treats. Ordinary chocolate cupcakes can be transformed into spider versions by adding legs made from string style sweets like liquorice and a couple of white chocolate buttons for eyes. Alternatively make Halloween biscuits by icing a cobweb onto chocolatedigestives or any chocolate covered biscuit. If you’re having a party, sweetie kebabs can easily be putting together with wooden skewers and a selection of brightly coloured sweets. Finally, to add a scary touch to any drinks you serve, freeze plastic eyeballs, spiders and bats into ice cube trays. Something to keep the kids busy!
6. Pumpkin Power – These days it can seem that carving some eyes and a smile onto a pumpkin isn’t enough. The traditional pumpkin works for us but if you’re looking to do something a little different, here are a few ideas. Painting pumpkins has become really popular in the States and this creates so many new ways to create a standout design. Paint your pumpkin black and add some felt whisker and ears, then paint on a white nose and mouth and you’ve got a black cat. Alternatively paint it white, add a black stitch effect mouth and black mouth and your pumpkin has become Jack Skellington from The Nightmare before Christmas. The options are endless and if you’re very creative, you can create lots of different spooky characters or your favourite film characters; we’ve seen some fab Sully and Mike Wazowski, minions and even a double pumpkin BB8. If you’re fond of carving and want an easy twist on the traditional, we like the words BOO carved out, a simple cat face, a winking eye pumpkin or a moon with lots of stars. Of course, if you’re able to carve out a full Halloween scene, a famous face or intricate pattern, you have our utmost respect and we’d love to see the results.
Have a happy, fun filled Halloween!
