9 Surprising Ways to Celebrate Halloween
Halloween is coming up, and that means it’s time to think of all possible ways to celebrate All Hallows’ Eve. Halloween is my favorite holiday and my favorite time of year, and I just can’t wait for it each year! I try to celebrate Halloween in my own and unique way and I don’t spend a lot of money on costumes and foods.
Although this holiday of mirth and mischief is all about jack-o’-lanterns, trick-or-treats, spooky costumes and rib-tickling games for all the family members, sometimes you can shift the focus on the other uncommon and thrilling entertainments. Check out the list of the most surprising ways to celebrate Halloween.
1. Haunting Time
What can be more horrible than spending All Hallows’ Eve in a deserted haunted house with all the ghosts and spirits moving around? Just imagine you roaming around the empty dwelling where some vicious murder must have been committed. The psychological implication alone will frighten you more than any real facts and data.
Haunts have developed from occasional events on Halloween into a full-fledged entertainment over the last decade. You can find plenty of scary haunts across the country, which provide visitors with arranged tours and add-on options. It’s not that difficult to find a haunted house in your town as well, since abandoned churches, dwellings or schools are a common thing. If you and your friends venture to get such a thrilling experience, make sure you have flashlights with extra batteries, comfortable outfit and even some recording device to capture those memorable moments.
2. Create Your Own Haunted House
Another great way to add a touch of mystery to the holiday is to create your own haunted house. If you have kids, be sure they will fall in love with this idea! Unlimited budget is nice, but you can create a haunted house with little expenses, proper planning and creativity. Apart from the common Halloween decorations, try to use other effects like lighting and sounds to create a spooky atmosphere.
Cover the walls with light-reflective fabrics, dark trash rags and old ragged papers or sepia photos. Curtain your windows with thick cloth, leaving some slots. Appropriate lighting is the staple of creepy environment, that’s why you should think of how to dim the light so that your family members, friends and visitors still have enough light to move around safely. Whatever option you will choose, don’t forget about spotlights, flameless candles and multi-colored string lights. Put dried foliage on the floor for the crunching sound and imitate the spiderweb by using thin silk threads. Your haunted house is ready for real adventures!
3. Horrifying Banquet
All those disgusting eyeball sweets, chocolate brains and caramelized fingers can scare almost everyone. If you want to celebrate Halloween in an unusual way, though, a horrifying banquet is a must! Turn your kitchen into the competition venue and encourage your kids and friends to take part in eerie cooking! You will have to use your imagination to create scary yet tasty and edible dishes. For example, you can use jelly and meatballs to make brains and eyeballs. Pay special attention to a Halloween cake; it’s going to be the centerpiece of the holiday. Cobweb cakes, graveyard cakes and skeleton cakes will definitely cast a spell on your guests! Creepy drinks such as blood-red cherry punch will complement your festive table.
4. Bone-Chilling Movie Night
If scary decorations and spooky sweets aren’t enough to frighten you, bone-chilling movies will definitely do the trick. The most important thing about horror movie night is that you have to watch films in the dark with your eyes open no matter what! While some movies can scare you senseless, others will make you laugh all night long. Be sure to have unforgettable horror movie marathon with your pals with the most classic Halloween films like Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th, Scream and Psycho. You will definitely refuse to go to bed alone after the marathon!
If you enjoy the holiday with your children, you should obviously look for something less frightening but fun. I opt for cartoons such as Corpse Bride, The Nightmare Before, Monsters, Inc., Casper or Monster House. Watching cartoons with your kids or nephews is a nice opportunity to indulge your inner child and laugh heartily!
5. Video Game Marathon
Nowadays many people are so used to computer effects that horror movies don’t scare them any more. Bloody scenes of yesteryear can cause chuckles instead of screams. How can you save the situation? Horror video games are the answer! You might not be a computer game junkie, but this kind of computer games will obviously arouse you interest and intrigue you! They will provide you with immersive environment where you control the situation, interact with other participants and actually live your life. The environment is so close to the reality that you will scream like a little child whenever you see the monster or zombie. Playing video games on Halloween evening is a nice chance to have family bonding time since if you scream you’ll scream together!
6. Celebrate Halloween at Work
Nowadays Halloween is popular among employees as well. The celebration of Halloween has become a strong and lovely tradition over the years, which helps create a better organized and motivated work team. Don’t consider Halloween at office a boring holiday; with the myriad of funny and fascinating activities you will have good time with your colleagues. Decorate the working place with a couple of carved pumpkins and garlands. Festive menu can include pizzas, apple breads, pumpkin pies, fruits and sweets. The holiday of Halloween will be incomplete without a costume party. So ask your colleagues to make a few Halloween costumes: the most creative costume, the creepiest one, the most intricate costume and the most sophisticated costume. The winner will get a small gift!
7. Throw a Halloween Sleepover Party
While you may be bored with ordinary Halloween parties, Halloween spooky sleepover might be something extra special! If you throw an adult-only bash, you will need some invitations, themed treats and drinks. Every party starts with invitations. They are important since they contain essential information like whether children are allowed to come and whether costumes are a must or not. Look for grave-shaped invitations or consider making your own ones.
You shouldn’t also forget about spooky decorations for the house. You don’t have to buy Halloween decorations, though, a few pumpkins and some DIY crafts will be enough to decorate your house. When it comes to Halloween treats and drinks, try to make them as disgusting as possible! Bloody spaghetti, ruby punch and spider cupcakes will make your party more frightful. Finally, prepare a smart prank for your guests! A chain saw killer or a dark figure passing by your windows will make everyone scream, but it would be definitely the funniest part of the evening!
8. Get Ready for Trick-or-Treating
If you are planning to stay at home, get ready for trick-or-treating. Your visitors would be much more excited or scared, if you perform it in a zombie or werewolf costume. It will surely catch the kids off guard. Make sure you have enough goodies to give to your guests, but it’s not necessarily should be candies. Cute school gear, itty-bitty toys and nice inedible knickknacks are all good options to consider.
If you do expect someone to come, make sure your house looks really spooky. When I was a child I approached only fun houses with strings of colored lights, cobweb on windows and doors and rag-dolls or a boogeyman on the porch. The best decoration attribute of Halloween is certainly a pumpkin. With a cool carved scary or wicked-faced pumpkin, your house is very likely to grab everybody’s attention! Be sure to have great time while prepping your house for the holiday!
Read also – 8 Fun Family Activities to Try This Fall
9. Ghost Stories and Mystic Legends
Halloween and ghost stories always go hand-in-hand. Sharing thrilling stories with your family or friends is nothing but a mere pleasure. If possible, try to arrange a campfire on your backyard and equip it with comfortable cushions, white sheets and lanterns. Some legends and stories are too impressive and dreadful even for adults; that’s why if your company includes small kids opt for stories that are not scary.
All Hallows’ Eve offers a great opportunity to share your chilling experience or compose the ghost story of your own! The Internet swarms with websites dedicated to horror fiction and ploys for unfledged horror writers. Paranormal stories, read in the dark with a flashlight, can become the staple of the evening if you celebrate Halloween alone. Chilling atmosphere is guaranteed!
With wealth of ideas you can turn an ordinary Halloween into the most unforgettable holiday ever! Combine your favorite Halloween traditions with these ideas to get into the spirit of All Saints’ Day. This spooky day can be still fascinating even without trick-or-treating or spooky costumes. Do you have any other ideas on how to celebrate Halloween this year?
