There will be a lot of kids walking around the neighborhood during Halloween. Apart from the planning for the event, children will be knocking on your door and asking for goodies so be ready for them by exercising these safety tips.
1. If you are going to be at home the whole night, keep your porch lights and any other exterior lights on so they know that they come and knock at your door.
2. If you live in a street where a lot of cars pass regularly, go out so you can tell the drivers not to speed and you can check that there are no acts of malicious mischief or crimes happening against children. Should you see someone out of place, report this directly to the police by dialing 911.
3. For those who have candlelit jack o lanterns on their front porch, make sure that this is placed a bit far from doorsteps or landings. Children could play with it or at worse, their costume could catch fire and you will have a bigger problem on your hands. One alternative is to use lighted bulbs instead.
4. When you are carving a pumpkin or working on a lantern, don’t let the kids touch any of the sharp tools.
5. Your children will choose what they want to wear during Halloween night. Just makes sure that the outfit they choose to wear is flame resistant and is not too long as this could make them trip or fall.
6. Should you own a pet, make sure it is leashed or in a caged as kids who don’t know any better could be discouraged from knocking.
7. When children knock at the door, give candy to each of them. If they push and shove, tell them to line up as there is plenty for everyone. Never invite them into your home so you won’t be accused later on of anything. When everyone’s trick or treat bag has been filled, tell them the safest route to take so they can be on their way. Also, remind them to have their goodies checked first by their parents before eating it.
8. Since everyone is going to give candy, you can do something different by providing them healthier treats. Examples of these include a pack or raisins, pretzels or biscuits since this will not damage to their teeth compared to candy. These are also easy to swallow since some candies may choke the child.
9. Most kids will only go trick or treating in the late afternoon or early evening. So you don’t get a knock at 9pm or 10pm, put up a sign that says you will only be giving out candies until a certain time.
10. If your kids are going trick or treating, remind them of a few things like going around the neighborhood with a group, don’t take candies from strangers, only visit homes of people they know, look both ways before crossing the street, come home at a specified time and have the candies checked before eating them.
Nobody wants anything bad to happen during Halloween. By practicing these safety tips, you are sure that kids who will be knocking on your door as well as your own will have a fun filled evening so everyone will sleep soundly that night.
You don’t have to wait till Christmas or someone’s birthday if you want to give a gift. This is because you can also give one during Halloween which you can give when you are invited to a Halloween party.
1. One of the more personalized gifts is the basket. You can order this from an online store or buy this from the grocery. Some retailers who offer this gives 10% of whatever you purchase to a charity of your choice so you don’t only please someone but also help a stranger.
2. But if you want to add a personal touch, why not make it yourself by picking out the items including the basket. These come in different sizes so you are sure to find that can hold candy, fruits and even a bottle of wine.
3. If you find that the basket is too big, go for something smaller like a candy filled mug. Just like picking up all the items for the gift basket, you can surely find the ideal mug at the grocery, fill this up with their favorite chocolate and then wrap this up with cellophane tape and a card attached to it.
For those who don’t like to eat chocolate, perhaps they would love a pack of coffee or tea. Just make sure that the flavor you get is appropriate for the autumn season.
4. Most kids and some adults enjoy wearing a costume during Halloween. So another great idea will be to give out articles of clothing that feature this holiday. Remember, your choices of giving items should not be limited to just the color orange since you can also get olive or tan.
5. There are also stuffed toys which go well for the season. If you look around, you might find something similar to Merlin the Cat, Hocus the Bear, Ghoulianne the Ghost, Pocus the Bear, Shriekers the Ghost or Ghosters the Ghost.
6. For kids who are not interested in cuddling, give them something like an action figure that came from a Halloween movie. You are sure to find some that appeared in movies like the Nightmare Before Christmas, Nightmare on Elm Street or Batman. There are also the classics characters like Frankenstein, the Headless Horseman or a simple skeleton.
7. A lot of countries especially those in Asia celebrate Halloween by lighting a candle so the dead will be able to walk about the earth by seeing what is ahead which is probably why giving candles is also an interesting idea. With aromatherapy being quite popular, give this person a scented candle that they can light and smell.
8. For people you know who love to write, why not get them stationary that also features this holiday. Better give this early so they will be able to use most of it before Christmas.
9. One gift that you can give someone without spending any money is help the host of the party. You can even cook, set up the place and clean up afterward because their hands will be full and they will need all the support available to make the party as successful as possible.
There are a lot of interesting gifts that you can give your friends and loved ones this Halloween. So see what is available and then make or buy it.
Remember when were kids that we had a great time donning those Halloween costumes we made or our parents have bought or rented for us? We gang up with the rest of the neighborhood kids and go around screaming “trick-or-treat!” like there’s no tomorrow, leaving our voices hoarse the next day. Well, we basically have experienced it, we let our kids practice it, but do we really know the origin of putting on Halloween costumes in the first place. Some of us may already know but for the benefit of those who don’t, here’s the story.
The origin of the celebration can be traced back to ancient Celtics. The have this feast called Samhain which is a festival held during the end of the harvest season and which is also the Celtic New Year.
According to Celts beliefs, during this time of the year, the spirits of the dead will go up to the surface world and try to posses living bodies for the year to come. To prevent there bodies from being possessed, Celts would light bonfires and dress up in all sorts of morbid costumes just to discourage the spirits of the dead from entering their bodies.
However, the practice of placing costumes in America can be traced to only as recent as the 1900s. It was only in the 1930s that Halloween costumes began to be mass produced. The usual costumes that people rent or make are those of different monsters including but not limited to vampires, ghosts, ghouls, demons, witches, and skeletons.
Even if it is the night that evil is supposed to surface, “good” costumes are also a common choice among children and adults alike. In fact, princess, fairy and angel costumes often times make it to the top ten list of top Halloween costumes.
Also popular are pop culture costumes which mimicked famous personalities, fictional characters, celebrities, and even politicians have an equal share in exposures during Halloween. Women, no thanks to commercial advertising, have also found this a good time to wear sexy outfits to show off their bodies and sexual prowess. But that is another story.
Other costumes that seem to have a following are clowns, nurses, cats, and that lowly Halloween symbol, the pumpkin. Superhero characters are also fast becoming popular costumes no thanks to the comics to movie fever that have hit the silver screen in recent years. The demand for new and modern costumes have put costume makers busy and costume rentals fully booked.
The fact that costumes for Halloween celebration have become so varied that the modern tradition have overshadowed the earlier tradition which makes wearing costumes during Halloween different from other dressing up feasts there is. And that is the concept of dressing up during Halloween is to mimic the supernatural, the ghoulish being, or basically the scary stuff.
Nevertheless, who are we to keep traditions from adapting to the modern times? Things will always evolve, that’s just how things naturally work. We can’t simply insist on wearing only scary stuff during Halloween. Creativity will play a role in this aspect and people will always crave for new things.
So not withstanding the darker origins of wearing Halloween costumes, we and our children and their children will continue to celebrate this day for as long as there are candies to share and creativity to spare.
Wearing a Halloween costume is one of the most precious memories any child could ever have. This is because she or he will be able to attend a Halloween party, join other kids in trick or treats, and boast to other kids that his or her parents sew a Halloween especially for this occasion.
Sewing basics for Halloween costumes
Many sewers spent so much time on their craft. Because of the amount of time they have spent on this activity, they were able to discover on their own the secrets, tips and techniques behind any successful needlework. But since you cannot spend the rest of your life just to learn sewing, it is best to enroll in a simple sewing class that can teach you the basics of sewing, the tools you will be needing, and just about everything you want and need to know about the craft. Or since you will just be sewing a simple Halloween costume for your child, you can just do some research on how to go about in sewing.
For beginners, one of the most important things to consider is the type of sewing that he or she wishes to do. Usually, sewing is done using the hand alone because this gives personal touch and displays the sewer’s talent in sewing. But, since the sewing machine is now available to make the work easier, faster, accurate, and convenient, more and more people prefer using it. For hand or machine sewing, you need tools such as different types of needles and threads.
Once you have decided whether you will be sewing by hand or by machine, the next step is to determine what type of costume you will be sewing for your child. For boys, the most common Halloween costumes are the “Old West Sheriff” which is macho, easy, and comfortable; the “Captain Jack Sparrow” which is the perfect pirate costume for little boys because of the comfort it brings; “Zorro” which can come in many variations depending on the size, age, and height of the boy; the “Harry Potter” costume which come with cool reading glass, cape and etc which are popularized by the Harry Potter movies; and the “Batman Begins Scarecrow” which is the safest yet scariest costume for little lads.
For little girls, the most popular Halloween costumes would be the “Grecian Princess” which make the little girls look like pretty Grecian goddesses; the “Pretty Princess Witch” which involves a friendly yet colorful witch Halloween outfit; the “Pirate Lass” which can be a little edgy but comfortable and cool to look at; the “Woodland Fairy” which is a safe yet amazing fantasy costume; and the “Can Can Dancer” which is fun and pretty to look at once worn by little girls.
For deciding what will you be sewing and the costume design, you can now proceed to looking for fabrics that will fit it. Since it will be clothing for kids, the most common fabrics used are made of cotton because this is hypoallergenic, strong, and easy to work on compared to other types of fabrics. But, you may also opt for other synthetic fabric types for curtains and mates such as wool, silk, satin, and others depending on the type of clothes or items you will be sewing.
The next step in sewing Halloween costumes for kids would be choosing patterns for your sewing project. Sewing patterns usually are composed of simple sheets papers that are marked with specific measurements to achieve the proper size and fit for the one who will be using it. After getting everything mentioned, you can now start sewing the Halloween costume for your beloved little one.
Halloween is just a few weeks away, and then after that it will be Christmas but let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Let’s tackle everything one at a time. Halloween itself will require a whole lot of your time especially if you’re a parent. Expect to be handling the costume designs and worries of your kids for their school play and party or for their trick-or-treating on the 31st. And with all those things in mind, you will always have to shoulder the burden of costs. How to come up with Halloween costumes while working on a budget.
It is true that your life would be easier if you say buy a Halloween costume from the store or rent one from a costume shop. But if you have four kids and all of them wants a costume that can be quite a burden for your wallet.
Also, if you’re going to rent or buy one, you will have to tackle the stress of your kids fighting over which one would be the fairy or which one would be Spiderman. While your kids argue you go down memory lane and reminisce of the time you were a kid. There’s no quarrel over costumes because in the first place you have to make your own.
This, of course, lights up a series of light bulbs in your head. Why not have my kids make their own costumes. It’s economical, its fun to do, and you can show your kids the value of work. However, if you follow this path be prepared with some resistance especially if you have promised your kid a great costume last year or if you have spoiled them a little along the way.
In the end, it is your decision to make. Plus, homemade Halloween costumes are not always the crappy things that children always thought they would be. With extra effort and a lot of imagination, you can make your kid a Halloween costume better than the ones they sell at the mall.
To encourage your kid avoid the usual white bed sheet with holes for the arms, eyes, and mouth costume.
This is not a great idea, unless your kid wants that. But as someone who has been around, try to be more creative and spend time on your kid‘s costume.
Try to remember that nowadays, its okay to have costumes of celebrities and superheroes. In fact your kid might be badgering you of a batman costume. That one can be tricky but with the right materials you can make one from a black cloth, ski mask, kid‘s tights, and that pair of boots your kid has in your room.
Other costume ideas include a cat or kitten costume which involves leggings, sweatshirts, stockings or rope for the tail, and probably a paper at mask. A devil costume is also quite easy to make. Clothe your kid in all red or black and buy that head band horns which you can practically see everywhere during this time of the year. You can add a cape if you want and of course a forked staff. Just make sure your kid knows that the staff is for props only and not for poking his neighbor.
Materials you will need for your budget Halloween costumes are readily available in most shops or most of them you can even find in your own home. Again, you can create a great costume while working on a budget, all you need is time to spend and imagination to burn.
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