50’s Themed Costumes? You Bet!

Posted on May 17, 2012 by Emma Rae Curtis

A few weekends ago, I happened to be at a stoplight waiting for it to turn green. While I was waiting, I group of young girls dressed up to the nines on their way to some sort of dance crossed the intersection in front of me.

I was thinking about how those dresses were so pretty and it (of course, right?) made me think of dressing up. It occurred to me how much fun you could have getting a group of young kids dress up together for a 50’s themed Halloween party. 

I could just picture having the young men wearing muscle t-shirts and jeans, and having all of the girls in poofy poodle skirts dance the night away in bobby socks. Don’t forget the bright pink lipstick for the girls, and the extra think hair gel for the guys! 

There are so many ways to dress up for Halloween, and sometimes it’s fun to step outside the witch/vampire mold. A 50s themed Halloween party can be an amazing night for everyone, and just think of all the options for girls dress up costumes  there are pink jackets, sock hop style dresses and those great cat-eye glasses from the 50s.

Can't go wrong with cat-eye glasses as an accessory.

You can give the kids vintage glass bottles of soda to drink, complete with straws and have cheeseburgers and fries to eat. You could even let them watch the movie, “Grease” and see if a friend would give them short, safe motor-cycle rides.

Oh, and don’t forget to play the song the “Monster Mash” at the party, and let them watch at least one scary movie to make sure to get the Halloween flavor in.

A Sock Hop Halloween Party? Why not!?

Emma Rae Curtis is a costume/dressing up/makeup & accessories expert. She mainly writes about Halloween but also about all things costume and dress-up related.

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Unusual Halloween Treats

Posted on May 16, 2012 by Emma Rae Curtis

This Halloween instead of giving out the obligatory Snickers and Twix candy bars, why not try something a little out of the ordinary.

Here are five unusual Halloween treats sure to make your trick or treaters night.

  • Skull painted Easter eggs make perfect treats. Just fill with your favorite small candies and pass them out to the kids on your block. You can print out templates for skull faces from google images and then trace them onto the plastic Easter eggs. I like to buy white plastic Easter eggs so that I only have to paint with one color.
  • Witchy popcorn balls are delightfully green. How so? Using green plastic wrap from Target or Walmart, make a simple popcorn ball recipe and top with a black construction paper cone hat. Super easy to make and ridiculously cute. I giggle as I watch the faces of the neighborhood kids as I hand them one.
  • Candy corn filled brooms. Every year at the dollar store they sell these mini brooms for maybe .50 cents. I stockpile them and then using lunch paper sacks from Target I fill the bags 1/4 full with candy corn and wrap it to the broom end of the stick. As trick or treaters come to the door I hand them the brooms instead of regular candy. It takes them awhile to find out that the treat is on the bottom!
  • Fondant lollipops are a great colorful way to make unusual Halloween treats. You can make or buy pre-made fondant. I like to cut the fondant in strips and wrap it into unusual shapes. I’ve made bats, ghosts, witches and snakes. It’s just like molding clay, so be creative!
  • Chocolate dipped rice krispy treats are sure to make your trick or treaters want to come back for more. Make a regular batch of the treats, cut into 2×2 inch squares. Place a candy stick in the middle. Heat semi-sweet, milk or white chocolate chips until melted and dip the bar until mostly covered. If you have enough white chocolate left over, separate it into small bowls, color with food coloring and paint faces onto the flat side. I like to make my treats into mini Frankensteins, but the possibilities are endless.
  • Emma Rae Curtis is a costume/dressing up/makeup & accessories expert. She mainly writes about Halloween but also about all things costume and dress-up related.
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DIY: Halloween Treats

Posted on May 9, 2012 by Emma Rae Curtis

At Halloween it can be all too easy to give away hundreds of dollars of candy. And while I’m a fan of sugary sweets, I do think that far too often kids end up with giant bags of candy that they just don’t need. Here are some great ideas for candy and candy-less gifts for trick or treaters this year.

Here are my ideas:

  1. Surprise balls made from crepe garland. Fill crepe paper with tiny toys or figures and wrap it slowly into a large pumpkin shaped ball. Add eyes and a stem to make it look even more pumpkin-like. Of course, you can always add wrapped candies to these little pumpkin balls, but if you’re hoping to save money or your child’s blood sugar, opt for toy soldiers or bouncy balls. Maybe even plastic spiders.
  2. Owl gift boxes – Make little paper boxes in the shapes of spooky animals like owls or vampires. Fill them with yo-yo’s or sticky hands or play-dough. The dollar store has plenty of inexpensive options that are far better for small children than candy. Be creative! Maybe you could make hair accessories for the little girl trick or treaters.
  3. Noisemakers are a great gift. Just fill any old drum with dried pasta, beans or small pebbles. You can make them out of paper, cardboard, empty toilet paper rolls or broken plastic cups. Just fill, seal and decorate. I keep plenty of fun Halloween inspired scrapbook paper at hand just so I can have plenty of things to choose from. If you want you can even make them out of cute fabrics.

I would love to know what you hand out. I’m always looking for suggestions. Feel free to email me or leave your thoughts in the comments. Thanks!

Emma Rae Curtis is a costume/dressing up/makeup & accessories expert. She mainly writes about Halloween but also about all things costume and dress-up related.

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Brainy Foods

Posted on May 1, 2012 by Emma Rae Curtis

While playful foods are not for everyone, it doesn’t take much to inspire a feast fit for zombies. All you need is a little grey matter. Brains for an appetizer, brains for the main course and brains for desert!

Here’s how you can equip your Halloween feast with brainy foods:

  1. Candied brain salad – Using walnuts, make a quick sugary glaze and roast them in your oven. Make your favorite salad. I like a nice Waldorf salad because it has lots of interesting elements and then place the shriveled walnut brains on top.
  2. Ice Brains – You can now find ice cube trays that are shaped like little brains. Make different colored brains by freezing fruit juice or milk into brain shapes. It’s a great way to ingest bloody brains without gagging on the texture. If you want to get creative make them out of jello and then freeze them.
  3. Brain loaf – Make a basic meatloaf recipe and then shape it into a brain. There’s nothing more suitable for grey-matter unless of course you want to eat liver and onions.
  4. Brain cupcakes – Sure, we’ve all seen them, brain cupcakes are gaining popularity online because of their unique look and delicious possibilities. Just make your favorite cupcake recipe and then shape either marzipan, or fondant into little brains to top them. If you like you can add red gel for a nice bloody effect.

Brains just ooze with possibility so don’t let your guests go home without feeling like you went all out.

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Aye, Aye to Pirate Costumes

Posted on April 30, 2012 by Emma Rae Curtis

I don’t know about you, but there was definitely a time when I dreamed of being a pirate girl.  When I saw Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow in “Pirates of the Caribbean,” let’s just say those dreams came back.  But Halloween, as always, is the best time to live out those childhood fantasies, and is there a better one than swashbuckling captain of the seven seas?  I can’t promise that you will find your treasure chest by the end of the night, but as a pirate, you will automatically increase your odds of scoring some booty in any costume contest.  The best thing is that pirate costume aren’t just for anyone who wants to be Jack Sparrow.  There are plenty of sexy costumes for us girls who want to live out that pirate fantasy.  Call us Jill Sparrows.  These pirate costumes come complete with ragged boots, colorful do rags and authentic looking pirate necklaces.   And for those of us who might end up causing a little pirate mayhem and may find ourselves in a spot of trouble, don’t worry, there are swords to protect as well.  These costumes are perfect for children too, though you might want to be careful about the sword!  Let your kid collect his own treasure chest of treats while sporting the best clothes a buccaneer has to offer.  There are blackbeard beards available for children who want as authentic a pirate look as possible while scouring the night streets for candy.  Or if your kid already has a beard, well he probably shouldn’t be trick or treating, should he?!

Emma Rae Curtis is a costume/dressing up/makeup & accessories expert. She mainly writes about Halloween but also about all things costume and dress-up related.

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Halloween Props

Posted on April 30, 2012 by Emma Rae Curtis

I love to decorate my home for Halloween, but sometimes I spend so much time inside that the outside of my home is neglected. And what is more important to the strangers that come up to your door on Halloween night? The inside where they can’t see, or the outside? I think the answer is pretty clear.

This year, I’m planning on making my front lawn into an elaborate spider-web shaped cemetery complete with headstones, a short gothic fence, lampposts, and coffins.

Here are some ideas on how you can create the same look with hardly any work at all:

A cemetery fence is usually a foot high. You can buy inexpensive white plastic fencing at the dollar store and spray paint it black. Once dry mark off the part of your lawn that you’ve determined will be the cemetery. Then start to work making the headstones.

Tombstones can be as elaborate or simple as you want to make them. I never buy pre-made headstones because they are expensive and difficult to store. I usually make mine out of styrofoam that I save in our garage throughout the year. Carve out the basic shape in the styrofoam and then spray paint it grey, white, black or bronze. You can then use basic acrylic paints to fill in the details of the name and any artwork you’ve carved into it. Add freeze dried moss or leaves, dirt and gravel to make them look more legitimate. If you are really excited and you want a truly authentic look, use rock dust and spray glue to create a rough concrete ‘stone-like’ exterior.

For coffins I usually use old musical instrument cases or trunks that have been discarded at recycle centers. Still, a large wooden box makes the best impression. If you have old plywood you can easily build one yourself. Depending on how you want it to look at night you may or may not actually paint it.

Just keep looking around your house to see how you can add to the scene. A nice touch of blood here, or cobwebs there can make all the difference.

Emma Rae Curtis is a costume/dressing up/makeup & accessories expert. She mainly writes about Halloween but also about all things costume and dress-up related.

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Have Yourself a Wicked Halloween

Posted on April 25, 2012 by Emma Rae Curtis

Wizard Of OZ Costumes

It can be really hard to come up with the right Halloween costume.  Believe me, I know.  It’s just always hard to find the inspiration.  I know a lot of my friends like to model themselves after celebrities like Michael Jackson or Lady Gaga, but I’ve always enjoyed dressing up as my favorite movie characters.

Last year, I dressed up my best friend and I went as Thelma and Louise, but no one got it.  So I figured, why not dress up like a character from my favorite childhood movie, one that EVERYONE knows?  Who wouldn’t recognized the ghastly image of a lanky woman, dressed in black with a tall, pointy hat, skin plastered in ugly green with a wart the size of Kansas on her chin?  Or if I want to be less sinister, how about the image of a sweet, pig-tailed girl in a simple blue and white dress skirt and red slippers?  Of course, I’m talking about The Wizard of Oz.

You can dress up as any character and you will be recognized and greeted with admiration.  And if you’re always a coward about dressing up on Halloween like some people I know, than you can dress up as the cowardly lion!  Are there scarier ideas this Halloween?  Sure.  But there are few people on earth that don’t love The Wizard Of Oz costumes, and those who don’t should be the tin man this Halloween. After all, he needed a heart, didn’t he?!

 

 

Emma Rae Curtis is a costume/dressing up/makeup & accessories expert. She mainly writes about Halloween but also about all things costume and dress-up related.

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Paper Crafts

Posted on April 24, 2012 by Emma Rae Curtis

Paper crafts are one of the most exciting aspects of Halloween. Banners, invitations, wreaths and more can all be constructed from this versatile substance at very little to no cost at all. All you need to have on hand are some good scissors, glue, twine, mini clothespins, a stapler, tape, card stock and construction paper. And, if you like, glitter.

Here are some of the quickest ways to get your home ready for the season without too much hassle:

  1. Banners – You can make a cute Halloween banner out of construction paper or card stock. Right now flag banners are very popular and are easy to make. Just cut out simple triangles, enough to spell out ‘trick or treat’ or ‘boo.‘ Decorate with other papers, stickers, or glitter and then using mini clothespins or twine hang freely around your home.
  2. Paper wreaths – A well constructed paper wreath will make your guests oooohhh and ahhh when they enter your home. Using old atlases or music books from a local Thrift store cut out flowers or circles. You can follow any number of tutorials from Pinterest. My favorite wreaths tend to have rough edges.
  3. Paper chandelier – A paper chandelier is usually made up of paper rosettes. You can make these rosettes in any color, though of course I prefer black and orange. Make three consecutively smaller rings and then hang them in order of size with orange ribbon. You can now hang your chandelier from the ceiling in your living room or entry way.

You don’t have to feel limited to decorations with paper crafts. Invitations, ornaments and menus all have to be designed, printed and assembled.

Emma Rae Curtis is a costume/dressing up/makeup & accessories expert. She mainly writes about Halloween but also about all things costume and dress-up related.

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Halloween Treats – No Tricks!

Posted on April 16, 2012 by Emma Rae Curtis

I often write about my favorite Halloween foods, but today I wanted to focus on special Halloween treats. You know, the goodies that you remember as a child all the way through your adulthood. For me, that would be an apple cinnamon doughnut my neighbors made when I was just a child. Today, I don’t have the time to make homemade doughnuts, and I know that most people don’t. So I’ve started making special cupcakes that the children in my family just love.

Here are some of my favorite Halloween cupcakes. They’re simply the best treat, with no tricks or fuss!

  1. Chocolate Peanut Butter cupcakes are completely decadent. Not for the faint of heart, let me tell you. Make whatever kind of chocolate cupcake base you like, be it from a box or grandma’s cake recipe turned into mini cakes. Once the cakes have cooled, make your peanut butter mousse. I like to use a recipe that incorporates all the good stuff, like cream cheese, powdered sugar, peanut butter, heavy whipping cream and whole milk. Pipe the mousse on the top of your cupcakes. Then melt some chocolate chips and drizzle over the top of the cupcake. It’s delicious and like I said, not for the faint of heart.
  2. Pumpkin cupcakes with cinnamon cream cheese frosting with a salted caramel drizzle are my next favorite treat to serve guests these days. I make a simple pumpkin muffin recipe, preferably one that is gluten free, so I can make up for all of the extra sugar in the frosting without feeling too guilty about all of the carbs. Then I make a basic cream cheese frosting, but instead of vanilla I use cinnamon. Then I use a great store bought caramel ice cream sauce, drizzle it, and add some finishing salts on top.
  3. Toffee crunch cupcakes may look complicated, but they’re not. Again, I make a simple chocolate cupcake, but this time instead of a cream cheese frosting I use a rich buttercream and add just  bit of Mexican vanilla. The Mexican vanilla has a rich flavor that I think adds some kick to the otherwise bland frosting. After I refrigerate the frosting for 20 minutes, I then make a chocolate glaze that I dip the cupcakes into and roll in crushed Heath candy bars. Once the glaze dries, I pipe the buttercream frosting on top. Magnificent!
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Use Candles this Halloween – More Than You Think

Posted on April 8, 2012 by Emma Rae Curtis

Halloween is the first holiday of the season where you can really start playing with mood lighting. And what better way to incorporate the feel of the holiday season than by using natural fire burning yellow light? There are hundreds of ways that you can incorporate candles into your decorating, but here are some of my favorites:

  • “Blood-filled” taper candles are a great addition to any centerpiece or side buffet table. They look like plain white candles, regal and tall, but are filled with red wax that elegantly drips down the side like real blood.
  • Battery operated candles have been growing in popularity in the last few years. LED tea lights are perhaps my favorite way to light pumpkins, centerpieces and paper lanterns. Safe, clean and easy to store in gallon sized ziplock bags.
  • Candy corn shaped candles are a delightful way to transition from Halloween to Thanksgiving. More fall-like, less Halloween, these playful candles can be large pillar candles or short candy sized candles.
  • Striped candles, be they taper or in a jar are always a wonderful sight on Halloween. Black and white, orange and yellow, orange and black, they’re so easy to make! You can either hand dip them or pour them into jars.
  • Using tea-lights to cast shadows on the wall, you can make creepy silhouettes. From scary pumpkins to frightened cats, let your imagine run wild.
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