Halloween Fun 4 Everyone!

When it comes to carving your Halloween pumpkin, there are endless design possibilities. You can make it with the traditional happy face, or you can use stencils and make some very elaborate designs. They can be scary, weird, or funny. I’ve seen some outrageous celebrity carvings, one of Ozzy Ozborne at a Halloween party, that really fit the occasion.

First, finding that perfect pumpkin. Consider the shape you want - pumpkins come in all shapes and sizes. Make sure that your pumpkin is ripe, but not too ripe. Here’s a tip…when you thump on it you should hear a hollow sound. That means the pumpkin should be easy to scoop out….remember to save those seeds for baking. Pumpkin seeds make a yummy snack! Try to find a pumpkin that also has a nice stem & remember not to carry it by the stem, always carry from the bottom.

Store your pumpkin in a cool, dry place, until ready to carve. Warm temperatures will only speed up the ripening, then rotting, process. Yuck!

Cut a hole in the top of your pumpkin and remember that you will need this part for the lid. Make sure when you make the cut that you angle it inward, so your lid will sit properly on top of the pumpkin and won’t just fall through! This was the first mistake I ever made when carving and it ruined the whole thing!

To help preserve your pumpkin and prevent mold, wash the outside and the inside (when it has been cleaned out, of course) with a mild bleach solution (1 tbsp bleach to 1 gallon of water), and dry. To make your design last longer, coat all of the exposed ‘flesh’ of the pumpkin with petroleum jelly as soon as you have finished carving, including the surfaces you have cut your design into (you may need to use a cotton swab to reach tricky spots), as this will slow down the ‘old apple’ look and shrinking.

As for the actual carving part, it’s really pretty basic - depending on your design. Draw your pumpkin pattern on a piece of paper first, this way you can make revisions without damaging the pumpkin. If you do not consider yourself to be particularly artistic, there are many ready made stencils available, some even come with pumpkin carving kits. There are great patterns that you can find online and print out.

If you use the stencil method, trim off the excess paper and tape the pattern to the pumpkin. Then poke holes through the pattern on to the pumpkin with a push pin, nail, or pumpkin poker (in pumpkin carving kits). Make a dotted line with the holes close enough for you to be able to see the design well when ready to cut - the closer, the better. This part requires patience, but it will pay off in the end. When finished, remove the paper and rub flour or powder over the holes to make them easier to see.

To actually cut the design, you should use a small serrated knife, and slowly use a sawing motion to carve your design. Never use a razor or straight edge knife, as you may slip and ruin your design, the pumpkin, or injure yourself! I prefer the tools that come with a pumpkin carving kit. They are inexpensive and it really does help to have the right tools for the job.

Once you’ve completed your design, it is ready for display! If you want to light it, use either a light made for pumpkins, or a small votive type candle in a secure holder (there are some available just for pumpkins). Place the candle (in holder) inside the pumpkin on a piece of aluminum foil. Light the candle and place the lid on the pumpkin. After a few minutes, remove the lid and look on the underside of it for smoke marks. You will want to cut small vents in the lid where the smoke left marks. This will also help preserve your pumpkin and keep you from cooking it from the inside. Happy Halloween!

Copyright (c) 2006 Melissa Galt

Halloween isn’t just for kids anymore. In fact it seems

more and more adults young and old, especially singles, are

celebrating Halloween. It’s a great opportunity to meet new

friends and a possible date while disguised! So for a truly

awesome (no not gruesome) Halloween get together, follow

the tips and tricks here.

Set the mood! Yes, you do need to decorate for the season.

And like most other major holidays, a tree is in order,

only this one is more twiggy, black in appearance, and

bedecked and festooned with spider webs (yes, you can used

the left over Christmas angel hair), ghostly goblins,

pumpkin ornaments, and howling witches. There is a large

assortment of Halloween ornaments readily available, and

you can always make your own. Just check in with Pier 1

Imports, Bed Bath and Beyond, Linen’s and Things, Seasonal

Concepts, and even your local Hallmark Store. Beyond the

Halloween Tree, you’ll want to consider adding some festive

lights (ghosts and pumpkins are most popular) to an outside

railing or surrounding the door. You can even run these up

a stair rail inside and around windows. You aren’t going

for elegant– this is Halloween!

Okay, so you’ve got the tree planned and the lights ready,

now add a Halloween wreath to the door or better yet, a

favorite skeleton that glows in the dark to really add some

spook. Strategically placed webs with large black spiders

are effective, and your decor isn’t complete without jack

o’ lanterns lining the walkway and greeting visitors at the

door. You can make the party interactive and ask everyone

to bring a carved pumpkin, while you supply the candles.

It is a great ice breaker, and you can always come up with

a prize for the scariest, most creative, most recognizable

or biggest pumpkin.

Of course, you will need invitations, and in this high tech

age, it’s a lot more fun and unusual to get an invite by

snail mail with a follow up by email than just another

evite. Why not include a set of pumpkin seeds and roasting

instructions. You can provide the food or do it pot luck

style, but if you do a pot luck make it easy and ask for

specific types of dishes. Check out the menu here for ideas.

Not interested in sponsoring a pumpkin carving contest?

How about a mask decorating soiree where you provide the

goodies to decorate with along with the masks (order in

bulk from an online party source). You could even include

a cape decorating festivity, ordering a dozen or more from

a local party supply store. You could ask guests to bring a

Halloween ornament for the tree. It’s important to make

this interactive and a good way to mingle. Be sure to

award favors and prizes liberally, so everyone goes home a

winner.

—————————————————-

Melissa Galt is a Lifestyle Designer and Speaker based in

Atlanta, GA. She hosts a series of blogs on design tips and

trends and produces a monthly ezine dedicated to helping

subscribers design their signature life. For the latest

teleclasses, seminars, and ebooks on designing your life

check out http://www.melissagalt.com .

Copyright 2006 MagicFairyRealm.com

Chances are that you’ve had a very busy year like just

about everyone else has, and so you’ve had fewer chances to

spend good quality time with your kids than you’d like.

Well, it’s a fact of modern life, but there are still some

really good times to take advantage of. Halloween is one

of them. It’s a night full of fun and excitement, and you

can tailor it to just what you want.

Your kids are probably already talking about what they want

to do for the holiday, and so that means it’s time for you

to start thinking about how to make it one of the memorable

times for your family. The fact is that, despite whatever

else it may be, Halloween is the ultimate in dress-up

events, and what kid doesn’t love to have a dress-up party?

This is one where you can really let loose and have fun

being as goofy or as scary as you want. And the great

thing is that you can even all go out in public that way,

and no one will even think differently of you for it! How

great is that? Here’s what you can do to make the whole

thing worthwhile.

First of all, take time now to think about what you would

like to do for this Halloween. Make a list of some of the

activities that you would like to have. Will you go

trick-or-treating through the neighborhood? Or would you

rather take the kids to the mall and have the same kind of

fun there? How about a haunted house? There are many

types of haunted houses out there, and they’re not

necessarily too scary for little ones. It’s up to you.

There are still more options. But the key to the holiday

is dressing up. Once you’ve come up with the ideas for how

to spend Halloween, it’s time to get the kids involved.

Have a talk with them about what you think would be fun

this year, and then get their input. You may find that

they have some new ideas that are even better than the ways

you spent Halloween as a kid. Plan the whole thing out

with them. You’ll be making it a lot more fun for your

children when you let them in on the decision-making. They

love to feel like they have a responsibility in what’s

going on. The more they can do, the better time they’ll

have.

When it comes to the actual dressing up, make it as fun as

you can. Of course, you’re going to need to find costumes

suitable to your rules, and their tastes also. For girls,

fairy costumes are sure to be a hit. She can either be a

cute, gentle fairy, or she can be something just a little

scarier and more mischievous if that is to her liking.

Music, drinks, snacks, and whatever else you can think of

should be part of the dress-up party. This is really a

chance for you to have a “party before the party”. It also

gives you time to make sure your kids know the do’s and

don’t’s of the plans for the evening. And you can get all

that in while having fun the whole time. Think about it,

plan ahead for the holiday, and you’ll soon find you and

your kids having more fun than you’ve had all year!

—————————————————-

Magic Fairy Realm imports beautiful hand painted Fairy

Wings and hand stitched Fairy Dresses from an artist

community in Bali. See more articles like this one on their

website at: http://www.magicfairyrealm.com

Fill some clean rubber gloves with water, seal the end and freeze. When the gloves are frozen, cut the rubber off and put the “ice hands” in your ready to serve punch bowls. The effect is certain to make a few people jump! Need a good punch recipe? Here’s few:

Basic sherbert punch……take grape juice and lemon-lime soda and pour in a punch bowl together & top with a few scoops of orange and lime sherbert…..looks yucky, tastes great.  A spooky black punch…….take a packet of unsweetened grape koolaid and a packet of unsweetened orange koolaid, 2 cups of sugar and 2 quarts of water and mix together till the sugar is dissolved.

Then pour in 1 liter of ginger ale, just before serving & add a frozen hand or two. Ewwww!