People often say, “Halloween, it’s just about the candy,” and although I often agree with them on some level, I don’t really think it is a bad thing. To me, Halloween is one of the truly whimsical holidays around. There is no deep meaning, although there is a history, and children and adults alike, can simply enjoy the day.

Okay, maybe not the adults since Halloween is not only filled with ghouls, goblins and other costumes but it is filled with candy. Lots and lots of candies and whether you are simply handing out some candy at night or stocking a classroom with some well-deserved treats, chances are you are thinking about the presentation as much as what you will be giving up.

Over the last few years, I have really seen an increase to the number of items that you can now purchase for grab bags. There are boxes, envelopes, stamped bags and the usual plastic bags. You can find them pre-stuffed or empty and chances are your grab bag will probably be different from all the rests.

The only problem that I really see with store bought grab bags is not being able to create them myself. If you are a crafty type of person like me, then chances are you feel the same way. There is nothing as enjoyable as making a grab bag for your child’s and seeing the overjoyed look on his face as he carts them out the door.

Since most of us don’t have much time, the key to creating an excellent fun and fright-filled grab bag is to find one that is easy to make. Enter my ghoulishly delightful grab bags. These are fast, easy and you don’t need to be the craftiest of people to make them, although they do allow for some changes and you can make them as complicated or simple as you like.

So let’s kick off Halloween right with these cute little grab bags that will have all the kids screaming, “TREAT!”

Halloween Grab Bags

What you need:
• Sandwich bags (You can use freezer bags or snack bags but you will need to measure the width of the bag and change the cardstock dimensions.)
• Black, Orange and White Cardstock (Halloween Colors)
• Stamps (I used the Stampin’ Up stamp set called Booglie Eyes)
• Black Stamp Ink
• White Craft Ink
• Straight-edged cutter
• Glue stick
• Orange Pumpkin Ribbon
• Embellishments (I used a paper clip but you can use just about anything)
• Stapler

Directions
Before I get into the directions, I just wanted to mention that you don’t need to create the exact same grab bag as I did. Follow the basic size directions but after that, the night sky is the limit. One of the secrets to creating nice homemade projects is layering. If you layer the paper, then you have a more 3 dimensional style grab bag. If you don’t have stamps, just use stickers or color Halloween Printouts that you find on the internet.
1. Measure your baggie. If you are using a standard sandwich baggie, then the measurement should be 6.5 inches wide.
2. Cut the black cardstock into 7” x 8” strips. Fold the cardstock in half so you have a folded strip that measures 7” x 4”. Set aside.
3. Cut the white cardstock into 2” x 2” squares. Also cut additional black cardstock into 2.25” x 2.25” squares. Finally, cut the orange cardstock into 2” x 5” strips. Set aside
4. Take one of your stamps and the white craft ink (or some stickers) and cover the front and back of your folded black strips with images. Don’t line the images up; simply throw them on in a haphazard manner.
5. Stamp the saying into the middle of the orange strip.
6. Stamp the Halloween ghouls onto the white cardstock. If you mess up an image, don’t worry, simply turn over the card and stamp the other side.
7. Glue the white square in the center of the black square.
8. Put the grab bag tops together. To do this, align the orange cardstock onto the center of the black folded cardstock, glue into place. Glue the ghoul cards onto the orange, leave a little of an overhang on the outer edges.
9. Tie a small piece of pumpkin orange ribbon onto the paperclip.
10. Slide the paperclip onto the grab bag. Make sure it overlaps one of the ghoul cards and the orange strip.
11. Attach to a filled sandwich bag by placing each side of the folded card onto either side of the bag. Staple to secure to the bag and close the card.

And there are your cute, fun and, most importantly, easy grab bags.

Halloween Garland

Halloween is the time of year when the home’s front door becomes the focal point of festivities. Whether it’s trick-or-treaters knocking, or family and friends stopping by for a visit, Halloween is the perfect time to create a unique and colorful front door decoration to delight your visitors. JELD-WEN, the world’s leading manufacturer of reliable windows and doors, has created this harvest-themed raffia garland.

Directions:

1. Gather these materials, commonly found at craft stores:

• Raffia rope, taken apart and loosely braided
• Small and large scarecrows on sticks
• Festive fall wired ribbon
• Artificial fall leaves
• Artificial or dried orange Japanese lanterns
• Hot glue gun and glue sticks

2. Take the raffia cluster and bind off the top, if needed, with extra raffia pieces. Braid the raffia loosely and tie off bottom about six inches from the tail of garland with a single piece of raffia.

3. Glue small scarecrow into the raffia braid up near the top. Make a double-looped ribbon, leaving long tails, and tie around braid under small scarecrow. Tuck and glue tails down into the edges of braid.

4. Glue in larger scarecrow below the ribbon, angled to the side. Use the braid like a pincushion to anchor the scarecrow’s stick.

5. Add the individual fall leaves and Japanese lantern clusters. Start at the top and work your way down, gluing and inserting the items into the raffia braid.

6. Glue in moss or lichens to give a more authentic, fall look.

For more seasonal door decor ideas, visit www.jeld-wen.com.

Courtesy of ARA Content

Spider Favor Boxes (Halloween craft project below article)

Halloween is one of the biggest decorating holidays of the year, second only to Christmas. According to the National Retail Federation, nearly 60 percent of people plan to purchase decorations and 47 percent expect to decorate their home or yard this year.

With everyone getting into the Halloween spirit, make your house stand apart from your neighbors’ by keeping in mind this year’s trends.

“Making homes festive with creative Halloween decorations can be easy and fun for everyone from beginners to advanced crafters,” said Susan Atchison, trend expert for Jo-Ann Stores. “This season, cute is in and creepy is out. Gone are the days of menacing mummies or frightening felines. Cute spiders, goofy monsters and playful witches will be especially hot. Also, décor adorned with sunny and unexpected color pairings such as royal purple mixed with hot green, pink and jack-o’-lantern orange will add extra personality to the inside and outside of your home.”

If you’re in the mood to embrace the charming side of Halloween this year, check out these easy ideas from Jo-Ann Stores to add a playful and creative touch to your un-haunted house — inside and out:

• Show your trendy side by dressing your table with vibrantly colored place settings that feature friendly spiders made from basic shapes with large animated eyes. 
• Accent your mantle with spider votive holders on a yarn table runner to add quirky distinction to party décor. 
• For Halloween entertaining, give your guests goofy handmade spider boxes filled with goodies and treats. With wiggle eyes and bright, glittery colors, these little favors are gifts your guests won’t soon forget! (See instructions below.) 
• Greet guests and trick-or-treaters with a festive door wreath made with silly monster and jack-o’-lantern faces in a rainbow of colors. 
• Colorful lights aren’t just for Christmas anymore. Use strings of lights to decorate outdoor trees and bushes for Halloween. For a fun, friendly feel, add lively and unexpected hues of green and magenta with traditional orange and blacks to bring fresh life to your outdoor lighting. 
• Post unique stakes in the yard featuring cute character cutouts, such as the one featured to the right, to welcome guests (instead of scaring them away!) 
• Let kids make their own personalized treat bags this year by easily stitching two pieces of black felt together with a strip at the top for a handle. Glue on ears, eyes and whiskers to make a black cat or use green and orange felt to create a pumpkin.

Spider Favor Boxes

Skill Level: No experience needed
Approximate Crafting Time: 30 minutes plus drying time

Supplies and Tools (for one favor box):

One 2-inch paper mache box
7 inches of 5/8 inch dotted ribbon, optional
4 Chenille stems cut to 6 to 8 inches, black
Glitter, examples use black, green and purple
Tacky glue
Two 10mm wiggle eyes
Two 1/2 inch black pompoms
Black spray paint
Wire cutters
Scissors

Directions:

1. Spray paint box and lid. 
2. For legs: Make one small hole on each opposite side of box near bottom. Poke chenille stems through holes in box, extending out both sides. Shape legs and make small loop at end for foot. 
3. Spread glue on lid top and top of feet, sprinkle with glitter; set aside to dry. 
4. Glue pompoms to lid, then glue eyes to tops of pompoms. 
5. Fill boxes with favorite treats.

Optional: Glue ribbon around side of box lid.

Courtesy of ARA Content

Everything is already at home. Even very young children can get involved with the crafts and they really will love it. Choose crafts that are simple enough for them to handle and it should be fine. Just be ready to put down lots of newspaper to prevent any messes.

Egg Carton Bats

One of the easier homemade Halloween crafts is to make bats out of egg cartons. This is practically no cost depending on how fancy you want to get with the bats. Take and egg carton and cut off sections so that each piece has three egg holders to make one bat.

The two egg holders on the sides are supposed to be the wings. So cut a scalloped shape on the front and back of the side sections to create the wing shapes. Little ones might need some help with the cutting but older children should have no problem doing this part.

Make a hole in the middle of the middle egg holder so that you can later hang it up. Now paint the egg holders black. After the paint has dried, stick on eyes or use two pieces of white paper with black dots to make eyes. The children can get creative by adding fangs, glittery wings and other personal touches to their bats. String up the bats from ceilings and the inside of windows.

Invitations

Having a Halloween party? Homemade Halloween crafts include clever invitations. This is one of those easy homemade Halloween crafts that all the kids will love to do. Trace around the children’s hands onto a piece of card. The card can be any color, brown or mustard yellow for monsters, or green for witches. Silver or white can be used for ghost hands.

Stick on fingernails with scrap card and paper. Monster nails can be black or gray and square shaped. Witches nails can be more colorful and for the ghosts, silver or gray are good colors. Decorate the hands however you think monster, witch or ghost hands should look like. Write your invitation on the reverse side and hand them out, they are sure to be a hit.

Halloween Craft #1: Bouncy Spiders on a Stick

Kids love bouncy spiders on a stick. Simply use a dow rod for the stick. Create a big, black, eerie spider using pom pom balls of varying sizes for the body and head, eight pipe cleaners for the legs, a pair of beady eyes and a small red or pink pom pom for a nose. Once you finish creating your scary spider, glue a 20 inch piece of stretchy string to the spider and tie the other end to the end of the dow rod. Then, you will have a fun bouncy spider on a stick that children will love using to scare all of their friends.

Halloween Craft #2: Pumpkin Tambourines

All kids love to make noise at Halloween, so a pumpkin tambourine will be fun and exciting to make and play. Color and decorate two paper plates like a pumpkin. Paint a pumpkin face on each side. Let the faces dry, then glue the plates together with some dry beans, dry rice, bells, pebbles or other noise making stuff in the inside. Make sure the plates are closed completely. Add some streamers and other hanging decorations and play.

Halloween Craft #3: Ghostly Feet Prints

This is a very cute craft that parents will want to keep forever. Have children take off their shoes and socks. Paint the bottom of the child’s foot with white, non-toxic paint. Then, have the child press their painted foot on a piece of black construction paper. Allow the paint to dry as you clean the child’s foot. Once the white foot print is dry, drawn some eyes and a mouth on the heel side of the foot and you will have a really cool ghostly footprint.

Halloween Craft #4: Gigantic Stuffed Frankenstein Head

This fun craft will allow children to create their own monster. Cut out the shape of Frankenstein’s head from newspaper. Cut out two very large squares for the head and a couple of neck stakes. Glue or staple all of the pieces together forming a Frankenstein head. Before you close it completely, stuff it with other newspapers. Close completely. Then allow the children to paint it to look like Frankenstein. Paint the entire head green, then add some eyes, nose and a mouth. You can hang the finished product on the wall or front door.

There are millions of Halloween craft ideas. These are just a few quick, easy and fun things that children and adults can make to celebrate the spooky holiday. With a little bit of creativity, anyone can make some really cool Halloween crafts.