I’m still amazed that it’s really October! The conversation at our house has pretty much turned to non-stop Halloween topics. Same for you? I keep warning the kids that Halloween is not a big deal in France (and that October 31st falls during a 2-week school break), but they can’t help themselves.
They are daydreaming about throwing a party for their friends. Bobbing for apples, pumpkin carving, maybe a spook house in the barn. Martha’s new book Handmade Holiday Crafts, came in the mail last Friday, so they’ve been taking turns bookmarking their favorite ideas from the Halloween section. Personally, I’m feeling drawn to the glittery projects (skulls, bones and pumpkins). I suppose I’m just looking for an excuse to get my glitter on.
Have you started making Halloween plans? Are you hosting a Halloween party this year?
UPDATE: The good people at Martha Stewart saw this post and want to offer 5 (autographed!) copies of Handmade Holiday Crafts to Design Mom Readers. So this post just turned into a giveaway. Woot! To enter, leave a comment below telling us about your favorite Halloween craft or tradition. The five winners will be announced on Wednesday.
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The winners are Kelly, Rik, M. Peterson, Heather and Janeannechovy. Thanks for playing!
I haven’t been much of a Halloween crater except for costumes: a pink cheetah, pig, brown bear. This year we will focus on decor — and this book is just what I need to get on those!
We start the morning off with a pumpkin carving contest and my sister makes pumpkin pancakes for everyone. Then we send everyone home only to come back in a few short hours to enjoy some pasta with pumpkin and sausage. We pass out candy and take all the little ones Trick-or-treating! (Adults must be dressed up too)
My good friend, Anthony, was born on Halloween so we have loved celebrating “Hallowant” for many, many years :)
So fun! We are in East Asia and miss all the Halloween/Western holiday traditions. Would thoroughly enjoy this book. Thanks, Gabby!
Our traditions are: pumpkin carving, cider donuts and toasted pumpkin seeds.
Can’t wait for Halloween. It’s my favorite holiday!
We are in East Asia and miss the Halloween/Western holiday traditions and would thoroughly enjoy this volume. Thanks, Gabby!
My family always toast pumpkin seeds after carving your jack o’ lanterns. I love the way it makes the house smell like Fall time. Yum!
I think I’m a bit in the minority in that I don’t care much for Halloween but I do enjoy the candy available! Our family always just bought a ton of candy, ordered pizza and had a movie night instead of trick or treating.
Homemade chili, breadbowls, then trick or treating with the kids as I steal all the 100 Grand candy bards they acquire!
Boo! Who doesn’t love free candy?
I have a life-sized stuffed skeleton that’s fun to put out every year. Also made a “Boo” pennant this year.
Our favorite halloween tradition is gathering in one of the neighbor’s driveways, making a fire in our fire bowl, and sitting in a semi-circle to meet the trick-or-treaters. We (slightly) taunt them by making them each do a trick for their treats!
Although I’m almost 50, Halloween has secretly been one of my favorite holidays! My older sister was born on Halloween so every single year of my childhood my parents ordered “pizza pies” on Halloween and all of our grandparents came over to sit in our living room and see all the trick or treaters come in. At the end of the night we always enjoyed a huge sheet cake from our favorite bakery Cramers in Yardley, PA. It always had all sorts of fun plastic “halloweenie” decorations all over it!! I loved being the house in the neighborhood that was known for inviting the kids in and guessing who they were. Although we don’t have a birthday in my immediate family anymore, I wouldn’t miss a Halloween pizza party and a chance to guess who all the kids behind the masks are!!
My favorite part of halloween is visiting a pumpkin patch. :)
oh fun! we are sort of halloween crazy at our house and every year come up with a theme for the entire family to dress up in…the year we did pirates we made the front page of the paper…i wonder if Take to the Skies will do as well this year? happy halloween everyone!
My son and I spend weeks piecing together his costume–a tedious, handmade Max from “Where the Wild Things Are,” a cardboard robot with flashing lights, a burglar. On Halloween we have a pot of soup going on the stove to warm us up before we head out into the cool air. We pass out candy for awhile, let Grandma take over, then we take the kids trick-or-treating. My son collects candy like it’s his job!
I love going to the pumpkin farm with my girls – I love the colors the weather, everything about it!
My favorite halloween craft is balloons covered with cheesecloth to make them look like ghost. Super easy craft project and look so cool one they’re hung up
Love me some Martha!
How about a Halloween based Alice in Wonderland Tea Party?
Halloween has always been my favorite. I like making ghost feet with my baby’s feet-white paint and black paper. Super cute.
Yahoo! I’m feeling crafty and looking forward to the holidays!
Love this giveaway! Favourite Halloween tradition is getting together with friends and throwing a block party for the neighborhood to enjoy!
I’m not sure what my plan is yet! Possibly dressing up and going to a halloween party.
Even though Halloween falls on a school break, it would be fun to have a Halloween party at some time this October. Your kids would have fun and it would be fun to see how the French kids have fun with the holiday. Enjoy!
Hallowe’en has got to be the best holiday for crafts & decor. Martha Stewart’s book is just what I need to inspire me for the other holidays as well!
Pumpkin patch, hot cocoa, caramel apples, trick or treating…all of it is a joy!
My siblings nad I have a Halloween party every year. Yeah we’re all grown up but we do it anyway. We do something with the kiddos and then something for adults when they fall asleep and then watch a scary movie – it’s just fun!
Halloween is by far our favorite holiday. Every year we throw a party for our daughter and her friends. We choose a theme and go wild, last year pirates.. This year 1950’s vampires. People think we’re over the top and that’s just how we like it. I love reading everyones traditions and get tons of ideas from blogs and peoples comments. Hope everyone has a great All Hallows Eve~
We love dressing up and giving out candy too.
We always do a big chili cook off for Halloween. My personal favorite is white chicken chili. Yum!
I love baking pumpkin seeds after cleaning them out of the pumpkins we carve! Mmmmmm.
My favorite so far this year (yes I decorated in September) was the ghost and bat garland i hung in the kitchen to make it look like they are flying through the air. My daughter’s favorite are the fake spiders all over.
My favorite tradition is watching old scary movies with friends and baking anything with pumpkin!
I love making costumes for the kids. When my daughter was about 6 months old, she was dressed as a S’more. She wore a white sleep sack and hat, and sat on a huge piece of “chocolate” and a “graham cracker”. She looked so cute.
The classic carving of pumpkins gets me in the Halloween mood. I do two or three every year and look forward to this activity once fall begins!
We have never been super huge into Halloween- maybe I just need the right craft ideas!!!
Fun fun fun! I think the Blairs should make Halloween a big deal in France. ;)
I went to a “hippie” (old barn converted into a school house, the library in the loft, apple orchards, pine groves, donkeys, sheep, chicken, compost, gnomes, nature walks, may pole celebrations…. the list could go on) elementary school where instead of Halloween we had “Storybook Character Day” everyone came as a character from a favorite storybook and we had a big parade in the front school yard. It was a really fun way to get in the spirit of Halloween with the costumes and what not, but minus all the candy, sugar, and sometimes over done ghoulish pleasures.
Every year we throw a Halloween Party. We deck the house out with a spook alley entry and all. The guest list gets bigger every year.
What a fun book!
We are big into Halloween plate-skeleton’s around here. With 3 boys 5 and under it is the perfect craft for them.
We love assembling the costumes…changing our minds about the costumes, swapping accessories and gear. When i was growing up, our tradition centred on making popcorn and bagging it up to give away. All fun!
My favorite Halloween tradition is making my son’s costume…it is the one time of year that I get to flex my creative muscles. He is still a little boy, but he has chosen some great costumes so far: at age 3, Professor Harold Hill from “The Music Man” (he wandered around singing “76 Trombones”), at 4, Curly the Cowboy from “Oklahoma” (he sang “Oh What a Beautiful Morning” at each house), amd at 5 Jack from the Magic Treehouse series. Amd NO, I did not choose any of those for him…I am just along for the ride.
The favorite Halloween tradition is for each member of my family to carve a pumpkin with the scariest face we can come up with. We don’t use pumpkin carving kits, and each person tries to comes up with a different scary face. We also toast the pumpkin seeds afterwards for a tasty treat!
I love handing out candy Halloween night and seeing all the great costumes
okay, I have to un-lurk myself! I love your site and I always get some great ideas and suggestions fun kid stuff. I luv Halloween! My friend and I have a tradition of watching “Silence of the Lambs” while making treat/goody bags. It’s kind of funny, because we love cutsie Halloween goody bags but must watch this movie to get in the mood!
My favorite traditional is heading to the pumpkin patch for a hayride.
We always have a great Halloween party with friends. So much fun!
Martha knows how to do Halloween! What a great book.