You already know…Halloween is coming and after such a difficult year, with all the problems caused by Covid-19, there is nothing better than a Halloween party to cheer up.

See the steps for a good party and to please your guests!

Planning your party

1. Consider Halloween party style. There are several to choose from, so start thinking now. Themes you might like include:

Haunting Theme;
Ghost Theme;
Horror Theme;
Theme fairy tales;
Pumpkin theme;
Cemetery Theme;
Fantasy theme (any fantasy).

2 Write down your ideas. Before going to any store, make a list that defines:

Decoration you would like to have.
Types of food.
Song.
Prizes and games (optional).
Movies (optional).
Other ideas,

3 Think about who you would like to invite.

This will give you an idea of the amount and space and food required.

If you have a specific theme (like in the movies), you might want to limit the number of people so you don’t end up with 12 Freddie Kruegers at your party.

If the party is at your house, don’t exaggerate the number of guests. After all, as a host/hostess, failures and successes will be your responsibility.

4 Prepare the invitations.

Use your chosen theme to guide your invitation creation. Give the time, date and any details about what to wear, etc. Send invitations 2 weeks in advance. Here are some invitation ideas:

Take a sheet of black cardboard, an internet template, draw and cut it in the shape of a witch’s hat. To write the necessary details, use a white or silver gel pen.

If you don’t like witch hats, make the invitations in the shape of pumpkins, ghosts, headstones or black cats. If you put them in envelopes, add some confetti for extra flair.

Buy a bunch of miniature pumpkins or small gourds, and with a permanent ink pen, draw a funny picture on the front and the party details on the back. Allow the ink to dry well before distributing the invitations, otherwise you run the risk of staining everything.

Before the party

Buy or decorate for the party.

If you’re planning a big party, you might want to put more effort into decorating, but it all depends on how many hands are available to help! Decorate well in advance so you don’t have to rush.

For a haunted house:

If you have a hallway with lights, replace the light bulbs with illuminated skulls. Put glowing horror pictures in your windows and enjoy what technology has to offer. Look for motion-sensing decorations that are sure to scare your guests when they arrive for the party.

For the interior, use cobwebs in the corners of the ceiling and a smoke machine on the door. Hang spiders or bats in not-so-obvious areas, and if lighting is poor, buy some glow-in-the-dark spray bottles.

Decide on what foods and drinks you are going to serve.

You can find many ideas in magazines, books and online.

Prepare food in advance whenever possible, especially if it’s something complicated (like shaped like hands, skulls, etc).

Witch’s fingers are very simple to make with cookies and almond slices. Think about using cheese to “make” brains and mozzarella balls with black and green olives to “make” eyes.

As for drinks, a pot of punch is indispensable. And if you can get some dry ice to create smoke in the cauldron, it will be even better. An LED bulb, or fluorescent light under the punch bowl (or cauldron) would add a special touch.

Cover the rim of the cups with corn syrup tinted with red food coloring; place the colored syrup in a deep dish, run the top edges of the cups in the syrup and immediately turn them over and let the mixture drain into the cups that will be used to serve your scary concoctions.

Prepare a music selection.

Do this well in advance and place the speakers where the music can be heard easily. It’s not necessary to play just “regular” music: consider using sound effects, too!

If possible, place a speaker next to so that your guests will start to cheer even before they enter your house. The music outside can be different and much shorter than the music played inside. Snippets, videos with compilations of songs on YouTube and playlists on Spotify can help.

Plan Halloween pranks if you think that’s a good idea.

You will have to take into account the numbers of guests, their ages and interests. Search online for typical Halloween prank ideas.

Costume parties are undoubtedly the favourite. You could even think of something special, like all the guests dressing up as characters from a horror movie or a specific movie (maybe your house is decorated in the movie?), or like dead people.

Pumpkin Decorating Contest – A great idea as long as your guests don’t get too excited and end up turning it all into a smashing contest and throwing pieces of pumpkins at each other.

Party time!

Place decorations on the day of the party. Move furniture out of the way so candidates can move, dance, play, etc. Place the food in an easily accessible location, but not somewhere that gets in the way.

It’s also a good idea to make sure your house is ready to party. The food table should be away from anything that cannot be damaged due to splashes and spills. Have a place to store coats, keys and keep the bathroom clean.

Put the food on the table just before the party starts. It’s always good to decorate the table Halloween style, with an orange tablecloth, a witch’s hat, a pumpkin, etc. Wear your costume and what’s available. Provide plates, cutlery, napkins and glasses.

Serve drinks near the table.

Wait to ice drinks or to place any food that needs to be heated on the table until a sizable number of guests have arrived.

Workplace party

Arrange the decorations.

You can use the traditional orange and black colors and witch pictures, or choose a more specific theme. Use your imagination if it’s not a problem for your coworkers.

Decorate your workplace like a movie set. Employees can vote before the party to choose the Halloween theme. On the day of the party, everyone can dress up like movie characters.

Alternatively, certain workplace departments may have decorations based on different films. In that case, you could raffle movie titles and each person would dress up according to the movie drawn. This could turn into a contest or a prank to guess the movie corresponding to each fantasy.

A theme song is also a good idea, as long as it is to honor singers who have died. For a different Halloween, choose this option, decorating your workspace like an abandoned music studio and instructing each of your classmates to dress like a deceased musical character.

Start a game to solve a mysterious murder.

Halloween doesn’t necessarily have to be all about pumpkins, witches and zombies; it can also involve some old and sophisticated games. Have a murder mystery to solve at the party. You will have to prepare in advance, but it might be worth it.

You will have to write a character outline for each guest, letting them know how they met “the deceased” and how they feel about other characters.

Give each guest a sketch at the start of the game and reveal clues throughout the night, uncovering alibis, secrets and interactions, etc. Before the party ends, have everyone try to guess who the killer is (the person designated as the killer will have this information in the character outline they previously received). And, of course, the killer will have to reveal himself.

Organize a Halloween lunch.

Unfortunately, there are no traditional foods or drinks that come with a Halloween party. Therefore, prepare the food according to the theme of the party.

Generally, snacks are ideal.

Pumpkin dumplings, sausages (can be decorated like witch’s fingers), quail eggs (can be decorated like eyes), and hamburger (which can be decorated to turn into monster hamburgers).

Tips

Consider awarding the best costume, the scariest figure, the best horror scream, etc. The younger the guests are, the more prizes you should hand out.
Provide a place for the younger ones to sleep if adults and children are invited to the same party; this will allow the adults to stay late before waking the kids up to go home.
When you serve alcoholic beverages, your guests become your responsibility. Make sure everyone gets home safe and sound.

If you liked the tips, leave a comment! I’d love to hear from you 🙂 s2