How to Haunt: a Beginner's Guide

August 28, 2012

Well, my favorite time of year is sneaking up on me: that glorious period between October 1 and November 1 that I call "The Halloween Season." It’s a time for apple cider, hayrides, pumpkin carving, and scaring the wits out of your neighbors and friends. And right about now—right at the edge of Halloween Season—is Halloween Party Planning Season! Here are some of my favorite resources for Halloween parties. Enjoy… but beware!

The Penny Whistle Halloween Book by Meredith Brokaw
Easy, kid-friendly ideas for Halloween costumes and parties. I especially like the dinner setting ideas—including tombstones on every chair and a ghost hovering over the table!

A Halloween How-To by Lesley Pratt Bannatyne
Halloween on a DIY budget! Learn how to make, craft, and create haunting scenes and ghoulish costumes. Take a close look at the idea for a homemade Medusa wig using dollar-store rubber snakes and lots of pipe cleaners.

Cupcakes, Cookies, & Pie, Oh My! by Karen Tack
This cookbook has sweet recipes for all occasions, but I am particularly drawn to the bandage cookies and scar cupcakes.

Extreme Pumpkins by Tom Nardone
Tired of cutesy little gourds with cutesy little triangle eyes? This is the book for you. I can’t decide which is my favorite: Drowning-in-a-Bag Pumpkin, Puking Pumpkin, or Roadkill-Eating Pumpkin. Also be sure to visit ExtremePumpkins.com.

The Best of Martha Stewart Living: Halloween
Nobody does sophisticated entertaining like Martha, and her Halloween ideas are elegantly gothic. Learn how to disguise family portraits with chiffon and family members with face paint.

My Ghoul Friday (GhoulFriday.com)
Eccentric, exciting Halloween tricks. Learn how to make all sorts of grisly decorations, but pay special attention to Ghoul Friday’s gallery of Halloweens past. I am particularly taken with the Monster Hunter’s Lodge and Picnic in the Pumpkin Patch party themes.

HauntForum
You never know what you’ll find in this online gathering place of all things weird and wonderful. There are specific forums for costumes, prop building, and more, but be sure to take a look at the "Showroom" forum, where you can see photos of other users’ haunts and taunts.

Well, there you go. Consider this blog your starter’s kit to a happy howl-iday. If you have a favorite Halloween book, website, or other resource, be sure to tell me about it in the comments! I’m always on the prowl for ways to juice up my own haunt!

Peyton J.
Buckner Branch