A Pirate theme on the Halloween party would be one helluva fun way to enjoy. Here are some quick ways to organize your very own pirate theme Halloween party less the hassles.

Theme Invitations

Stick to the theme from the very beginning; opt for the invites that match with the theme. Since the theme is all about pirates, ships et al, the design of the invitation card should be according to the overall pirate mood. You may go for extensive designs like an entire pirate ship loaded with shabbily dressed pirates. You may even go for the simple designs like a face of a pirate sporting a bandanna and eye gear.

Gaming Zone

This time let the chill run down your spine with Halloween party games. For the scary story sessions, keep the stories revolving around the pirate theme of the Halloween party. If you have more guests turning up then organize games based on the theme.

As for what games to have, there are so many it is the subject of a separate article altogether! Suffice to say – ensure that everyone is participating in the game so no one feels left out.

Pirate’s Dining Zone

Keep the food part simple instead of lavish layouts on the Halloween. Stick to the traditional menu rather than contemporary. Keep your focus on the table layout, spanning from the cutlery and dinnerware to the table linen. Do not mow the table layout theme with the party theme. For instance, keep a mask or a placard with pirate’s slogan.

To add some mushy feelings to the mood, keep a nice looking flower arrangement. Put some fresh cut orchids teamed with Ireland bells in the vase. To add more glamor to the flower arrangement, you can put exotic calendula combined with bell lilies in all corners of the dining area.

Dress Them Down

Ensure that the attire is in sync with the theme. For male guests, follow the captain Jack Sparrows style. For the female folk, keep the Gothic attire for a dramatic feel.

Gear up to enjoy the Halloween in the pirates way.

Need some quick Halloween decorations, that even the kids can help with? Here are three great Halloween decorating ideas using easy to find, inexpensive materials.

Craft Foam Creepies

Craft foam is sold in sheets at the craft store in a whole array of colors. It is similar to construction paper, but made of thin, durable foam you can easily cut with scissors. Trace simple Halloween shapes onto the backside of the foam sheets and cut out. Use contrasting colors and a glue stick to add details such as a jack o lantern face, red eyes on a bat, or the face of a silly ghost. You can make these cutouts as large or as small as you want. Hang them in windows or hang them with clear thread form curtain rods, doorways, or in your front entry. (This works really well with bats, hang them from the tips of each wing, and one place on the body to make them appear to be flying) These can even be used on protected porches as the foam is water resistant.

Graveyard

A graveyard near your front walk is a creepy and creative touch to the Halloween spirit. We used scrap pieces of plywood and siding and cut them into rectangles with the tops rounded, like a gravestone. We first painted them gray, then washed over them with a watery white paint for age and spook factor. We used black paint to add amusing names and epitaphs, such as “I.M. Gone” or “Ben Dismembered”. Screw a wooded stake to the back and pound into the ground. I like to group them together on an area of grass, then rope them off with chains, add a few pumpkins (and in my neck of the woods, tumbleweeds are a nice touch) and line the edge of your “graveyard” with lighted jackolanterns for Hallows Eve. My kids have the lost fun with this!

Giant spiders and webs

First of all, set the stage for your spiders by picking up some webbing…it is really cheap, and stretches a LONG way! Corners of rooms or porches, or stretched over a door are great effects. To make the spiders, pick up large black pom poms and large black chenille stems from the craft store. Take 4 chenille stems and twist them together in the middle. This creates the eight legs. Bend the stems downward about halfway down each leg. Now use tacky glue or a glue gun (glue gun is my choice as it sets almost instantly, but the adult must handle this!) to secure a large pom pom in the center of the legs at the twist to form the body. You can add google eyes as some do, but I prefer to cut scary red eyes from felt or craft foam and glue on. Set your spiders in their webs, and you can bend the leg tips to attach them to a picture frame or a lamp chain. Remember, with this project, the bigger, the better, so buy the bargest legs and pom poms you can find!

Three great projects for Halloween, make enough of any of these and you can turn your home into a haunted house without the huge price tag. (Don’t forget to pack them away for next year!)

Here are some very quick and easy ideas to make your porch look extra special this Halloween.  Everything can be brought locally and inexpensively, so if you’re wondering how to add some last minute seasonal flair to your porch then read on.

Broomstick Display

Tie together a number of inexpensive broomsticks, broom side up, so that they stand independently.  Use black and orange ribbon to secure them for Halloween style magic.  Several of these displays either side of your porch look very effective.

Pumpkin Family

It just wouldn’t be Halloween without a pumpkin or two!  They always look amazing on a Halloween porch, carved creatively of course and with a candle burning inside on the night itself.  Try using a mixture of different sizes and colors of pumpkin to create your own pumpkin family.  

Halloween Baskets

Create a Halloween basket by first lining one with large autumn leaves and then filling with red apples and baby pumpkins.  If your basket has handles then tie with orange and black ribbons.

Halloween Wreath

Take some florist wire and make an inexpensive shop brought wreath look extra special by threading through mini pumpkins, berries, cinnamon sticks (wind the wire around these to attach) and large autumn leaves.  Be creative and in no time you’ll have a door decoration to be really proud of.

Quick and Easy Lanterns

Create instant lanterns with tea-lights and empty glass jars.  These can be painted with Halloween characters or left clear, as I prefer them, with the candles on show.  You can position them on steps or wind wire around the rims to create a handle to hang them by.

Happy Halloween!

Life sometimes puts way more on our plates than we can manage. Just as you’re recovering from back to school frenzy and are reintegrating driving kids here and there for after school activities, Halloween is upon you before you know it. If you’ve got a few kids to costume up, it can run into some money. If you’re short on time, money or both, here are five quick easy Halloween costumes you can make yourself in just a couple of hours. A trip to the dollar store for a few nifty accessories and you’ve got some happy trick or treaters. These costumes are a hit with young children.

The quintessential quick easy Halloween costume is the ghost. Yes, the plain white sheet is the main part of this costume, but your ghost needn’t be a plain Jane or Joe. This is a styled out ghost, cool as can be. Arrange the sheet over the child so that it’s evenly distributed by length and width. Ask the child to point to each eye – they think this is silly and it adds to the fun. Take a marker and draw circles, big enough for clear viewing. Trim the hem as necessary. Pin armhole openings, loose enough to allow easy movement. Remove the sheet. With a glue gun, attach sequins or beads around the eye holes and day-glow stickers everywhere. Stitch the armhole openings. You’re done!

Your little princess will feel like a real Princess in this quick easy Halloween costume. You can find the basic dress at a thrift shop. Look for a special occasion dress. Let your child do the choosing of color and style. A stop at the fabric shop will yield all the trims, lace, appliques and satin flowers you’ll need to make this dress truly special. A rhinestone tiara completes the picture perfect Princess costume.

Little girls invariably want to be an angel at least once! Again, it’s easy to find a white, special occasion dress at thrift shops. The fabric shop supplies more adornments. Use a spray adhesive to make sprinkles of glitter stick, as desired.

SpongeBob Square Pants(TM) is a funny looking guy popular with boys. All you need is a rectangular cardboard box and some acrylic paint. For authenticity, Google an image of this character. Mark the eye and mouth openings and paint away. This quick  easy Halloween costume goes faster when your child participates in the painting, which he’ll want to do!

A pair of jeans, a plaid shirt and a few dollar store accessories are all you need for the cowboy or cowgirl costume. With a hat, six-shooter belt and inexpensive boots, your kid is ready to rustle up some treats!

No matter which of these quick easy Halloween costumes you choose, attach reflective, glittery or glow-in-the-dark doo-dads for safety’s sake. A little imagination and a few hours is all you need for a Happy Halloween!