How to Handle Halloween this Year

We’ve got exactly 30 days before the madness descents. Now is the time to take action. My university professor used to say to me failing to prepare is preparing to fail. Here’s How to Handle Halloween this Year.

That’s rather a melodramatic sentiment to associate with such a popular fun-filled festival, but it’s rather apt too. Halloween is full of melodrama. We can help to make sure that the melodrama and chaos you create is the good kind. Good chaos, you ask? Here we mean those squeals of delight that erupt when you present your kids with their crazy creative costumes or the whoosh of energy from a gang of little bodies running amok as they peak at their trick or treat sugar high. That’s the only drama we’re after for Halloween 2019. You with us? Hell yeah. Here’s how to make good Halloween melodrama happen in your home:

1. Get the costumes now

Honestly, don’t wait for a few weeks. Order them today. Order them right now. Let your kids choose the style they’d like, measure them against the size chart and buy. Now. Don’t wait. The stock depletes, the sizes get snapped up and you’re left 1) having to choose a different Halloween outfit entirely and it’s not quite the same2) it’s way too big or too small and there’s no time to do anything about it. The disappointment etched on a little face is just too much to bear and it’s easily avoided. There is time now, so order the perfect costume in the right size and all you have to worry about is the face paint.

2. Get the face paint

This adds a wonderful finishing touch to a look. You think you don’t need it, but you do. It’s worth it. And you get loads that are washable, don’t stain and aren’t the gooey sticky mess that you think they are. I found these awesome crayon ones that work well to create stitches for a pirate look or bloodied gashes for a gorier vibe – and I didn’t even get my hands dirty.

3. Learn how to face paint

Once you’re sorted with the paint stash, google some easy-to-copy face paint designs that will work well with your vampiress or your demon slayer, your killer clown or your creepy pirate girl. And perhaps practise a few looks beforehand. This way you’re not frantically slapping paint in a mad dash rush and all the effort you’ve gone to isn’t wasted and the overall effect is just as striking as you’d hoped.

4. Start assembling your candy stash

Every time I go to the grocery store in the month before Halloween, I pop a bag of candy into my trolley so that I can create a little stockpile at home. Having bags of candy around the house is a dangerous, I appreciate. So I keep it in my closet alongside the clothes that I’ve reserved for my slim days so every time I see the bag of candy alongside a top I last wore three years ago, it helps me to resist the urge to sneak a few piece (and then whole bag) – well until Halloween night of course, then I eat a bag’s worth anyway. Works for me. It’s worth a try for you. This way you’re also able to choose the candy that you want and aren’t forced to take the rubbish over-priced stuff that’s left in the stores at the last minute that no kid or adult will touch – and you end up snuffling just because you can’t bear to waste it. Be candy-savvy. Buy early.

Mum’s tips:

Keep on the lookout for outfit-related weather-proof accessories ahead of time:

When I’ve bought the family’s Halloween outfits, I always look for garments that my children can wear underneath their costumes to keep warm. The end of October can be unseasonably mild, but it can also be freezing cold. And it can pour with rain!

Thick long-sleeved black (or in whatever color best matches their outfit) vests, tights, socks and gloves work very well and won’t detract from their look. A nice black umbrella with a Halloween theme also works well for any icy downpours.

Don’t ever throw away or give away your kid’s Halloween outfit! This sounds cheap and mean, but hear me out. After all of the festivities are over, wash them on a cool delicate wash, air to dry. And then find a big chest or a plastic container and pack them away (with all the accessories). You never know when you’ll need an outfit again. They’re so versatile too. For school performances, World Book Days, dress up parties. And it may be that your younger child doesn’t possibly want to be ninja like his big brother was this year – but in a few years when he realises that it’s actually rather a cool ensemble, he’ll be all over it and you’ll have saved on having to buy an entirely new outfit. You need a fabulous new Halloween costume every year for yourself though, obvs!

With just a little planning ahead of time, your Halloween this year can be the most stress-free yet!