Seven Tips for a Successful Halloween Party

Weeks before Halloween, people already have their spooky decorations up in their yards, whispers are wafting through the air regarding what they are going to be for Halloween, and people are scaring up some great Halloween party ideas.

Halloween parties are often a time for family fun, and are not exclusive to adults or to kids. So, when considering gathering your ghouls and ghosts together, both young and old, keep the following top etiquette tips in mind:

• Check with friends before inviting: Halloween lands on one day each and every year, October 31. It’s a short season, and many people will be planning Halloween parties. Check with your friends and family BEFORE sending out party invitations to see if the date you choose runs into someone else’s party plan. If so, try to work out an arrangement so that both parties can still take place.
• Leave party end time open. When you are hosting a family Halloween party, in your invitation, leave the finish time open-ended to accommodate your guests. Keep in mind that people who are bringing their kids will want to know when the kids activities will take place so they will be there for this fun part and then they may need to leave for another party or because someone is tired. Other guests, especially those without children, may miss the kids part altogether, and enjoy arriving late and staying even later. Keep this in mind when you set the time frame for your party.
• Get help. At a family-style Halloween party, you will want to mix with the adults, stir potions with the kids, video the ghoulish mummy race, and take in the costume fanfare! With all of this and more, line up help. Do you have a babysitter or two available? They would be able to help you set-up, run the kids activities, keep the music going and anything else as long as you have them on hand to help. Don’t assume that your guests will pitch in on this front!
• Announce kids’ activities when they begin. Make sure when the Halloween activities for the kids begin, you let their parents and other adults at the party know that the ghoulish fun is under way. Everyone hates missing out on the fun, and some adults may even want to be included. Make sure you have some games or activities where the kids and adults interact together. For example, stuffing a scarecrow relay race, eating donuts off a clothes line, or decorating pumpkins.

• Serve food that everyone will love. Adults will enjoy a more fanciful menu: a delicious pumpkin soup or stew, an autumn pasta salad, corn muffins, apple and pumpkin tarts, etc. Make a few key items that your adults will rave about, but also keep in mind that the kids will be happy with a far simpler menu. Make up a batch of coffin sandwiches with popular fillings (simply use a cookie cutter), make a simple Jack o’ Lantern cake, serve favorite snacks, but place name tags beside them with scary names, as an example Boiled Lady Bugs, (Red & Black Jelly Beans), and Blood & Guts simple pasta.
• Be Prepared to Unmask. Given the season, you may request that guests don their costumes for your party. Be sure to remember that small children may be afraid of guests in their costumes. Be prepared to ask people to de-mask themselves quickly if this situation arises!
• Supervise pumpkin carving or decorate the pumpkin instead of carving. If you are planning on having adults carve pumpkins for a party activity, make sure to supervise carefully where the knives are placed. Little ones will be running around and can easily pick up something dangerous like a carving knife as the party excitement is underway. Supervise carefully when the carving takes place to make sure an unfortunate incident does not occur.  Another option: paint or otherwise decorate your pumpkins instead.

Now that you know how to throw a great Halloween party, check out our Halloween party ideas.