Diary of a Party Planner: A Monster Bash
by Ashley Gibbs
This Halloween be spooky smart with easy tricks to create a monster of a bash. Whether you are planning a neighborhood hay ride, helping with a school party or packing your children’s lunch boxes, you can use these tips to incorporate a few spooky ideas for your friends and family.
Party Pumpkins
Jazz up this fall staple with glitter, stripes or chalkboard paint. To create a chevron design lay masking tape around the pumpkin and then cover pumpkin with paint (any color will work, but white paint will make the orange pop the best). Remove masking tape and you will have a perfect pattern. For chalkboard pumpkins, pick up some chalkboard paint at your local hardware store and follow the instructions on the paint can. Kids will love getting to give their pumpkins a new scary face every day with chalk. Lastly, glitter is an easy way to add a little sparkle to your pumpkins. All you need is glue and your choice of glitter! Use your fancy pumpkins as center pieces for a party or showcase them on your front porch.
Eat, Drink & Be Scary
A black marker is all you need to put a festive twist on prepackaged food items. Mandarin oranges make for an excellent jack-o-lantern; just draw a scary face on the flat side of the package. This is fun for a school party or to stick in your child’s lunchbox. Orange soda bottles can easily be transformed as well. Peel off the label, add a small ribbon to the neck of the bottle and draw on a jack-o-lantern face. To make Frankenstein cups, draw faces on small clear plastic cups, add vanilla pudding mixed with a little green food coloring, and top it off with crushed Oreos.
Frightful Fabric
Dress up your table with a little fabric. Pick up a yard of fabric from any craft store (black and white polka dot is always fun!), scrunch it up, tucking unfinished edges under. Sit your party pumpkins on top, or arrange food platters over it.
