Halloween is Almost Here! Are You Ready?

Holy cow! Can you believe it? October is almost over and with that, Halloween is just around the corner. This weekend is the last opportunity to get your special Halloween projects ready before it's time to party and get your scare on. But, some people wait til the last minute to make their preparations whether it's costumes, decorations, or planning for their parties. The way I see it, there's two sides to this situation: On one hand you're in the crunch-time and rushing to get everything ready, HOWEVER you may also find some great deals on candy, decor, and costume at the store. Nothing wrong with that at all! If you need a boost though for some last minute ideas for your Halloween celebration, then NEVER FEAR! I've got some great ideas for you right here at The Creative Cabana!

Costumes

So you still need a costume huh? Well if you haven't already done your research on the web for some ideas, I invite you to take a moment and think about what you'd like to be. In the classic debate of "I don't know what I want to dress up as", start by asking the basic questions- good or bad character?, male or female?, famous person or average-joe?, funny or scary?, and work your way down until you've narrowed your choices. Sometimes you can create a costume using your wardrobe which can save you time (and money)! Examples: Mary Poppins, Little Red Riding Hood, James Bond or Bond Girl, etc. Look through your closet or your child's closet and see if you kind find some clothes that could make up an awesome costume outfit. If you don't have a spectacular wardrobe to work with, then consider getting creative with materials around your house. If you have a large cardboard box, use it to create a giant Ipod, Tablet, Cereal Box, anything that can incorporate your face into the design.

If you're worried about your child or yourself looking stupid, DON'T BE! Your ideas are just as clever and creative as these examples above. Don't worry if you are not super artistic or if the costume isn't picture perfect- it's Halloween go and have some fun! 

Decorations

Last minute Halloween decorations can be pretty simple and quick if you can plan accordingly. Working on a tight schedule, and an even tighter budget can be tricky but there are ways to give your guests plenty of tricks AND treats when it comes to decorating. For outdoor decorations consider using some of your Christmas string lights in order to light up parts of your house and displays- blue and white lights are great for this. If you have some basic decorative candles at home, try adding some spooky ribbon or glitter effects to give them the creepy and mysterious look. You can add some ghostly flares to your home by adding a pair of eyes into mirrors, doors, and parts of the walls were someone may be "peaking" at your guests. One idea I saw on Pinterest was to take the cardboard rolls from your toilet paper, cut eyes in them, run some lights through the rolls and put them in a tree near your house. Pretty cool!

Party Ideas

When it comes to Halloween, you definitely need to have good music to keep your party going! As a DJ at my college's radio station, every year for Halloween I would put together a special soundtrack playlist which consisted of pop music songs, sound effects, themes, and even a special mix of music from Disney's Haunted Mansion attraction. It was really cool, and to be that's just part of the ultimate decoration to your party. That being said here's some of my suggestions for music for your party (these are also good if you're sitting outside passing out the candy- gives you something to listen to). Click on each song to here it!

1. Michael Jackson- "Thriller"                              6. Cast of The Rocky Horror Picture Show- "Time Warp"

2. Rockwell- "Somebody's Watching Me"           7. Witches from Hocus Pocus- "I Put a Spell on You"

3. The Eagles- "Witchy Woman"                         8. The Jacksons- "Torture"

4. Atlanta Rhythm Section- "Spooky"                  9. Cliff Richards- "Devil Woman"

5. Bobby Pickett- "Monster Mash"                    10. Cher- "Dark Lady"

And that's just some of my suggestions! There's many other great tunes to help get your guests on their feet. 

Another great idea for your Halloween party is to jazz up your refreshments with some spooky flare! If you have a punch bowl you'll be using why not keep it cool and fresh with a frozen hand? Find a latex glove and fill it with water, then knot the glove and store in the freezer. When you are ready to use it remove the glove by cutting off the knot, take the glove off, and put the frozen hand into the punch bowl. Seriously pretty cool, right?

You can also fix up of my favorite treats of pigs-in-a-blanket, but dress them up to look like mummies or fingers. Yummy or creepy? 

                                                


Now that I have inspired you to get your Halloween creative genes going, I hope that you'll be able to create a spectacular array of decorations, treats, and costume that will instantly WOW your friends and family! If you'd like more great Halloween ideas, be sure to visit The Creative Cabana on Pinterest and follow us for everything creative!

*All images used in this post were pulled from Google Images with no intention of copyright and for no profit. The songs mentioned are all the property of their respective owners and songwriters. I do not own Disney or "Hocus Pocus" and all material related belong to their respective owners. I also do not own The Rocky Horror Picture show and I credit "Time Warp" to the cast and writers of the production. All links to the videos for the songs mentionned were available on YouTube. No Copyright Infringement Intended.