Susan Rossano
We have officially entered spooky season, and to prepare for Halloween it is important to get into the spirit of the holiday. Finding ways to partake in the festivities can help you preserve your inner child and bring some light to stressful times. Listed below are some of the ways to feel more jubilant, immerse yourself in fall and ensure that you are ready for Halloween’s tricks and treats!
- Decorate
There truly is no Halloween without decorations! Whether it is cobwebs, jack o’lanterns, lights or signs, there are easy ways to make your home a little more festive. By adding decorative pumpkins atop your furniture, hanging signs on doors and placing fake skeletons or ghosts around the room, you can give your space a little Halloween spruce. Even though a dorm room or apartment might not offer as much decorative flexibility as a larger home, incorporating smaller elements can convey the same feelings.
- Plan Out a Costume/Update Your Wardrobe
While it might feel like the costume element of Halloween declines in significance as you grow older, finding one to wear is a timeless tradition. It can be planned with friends or done individually, and it can be as complex or simple as you want. Even if you aren’t going to a party, wearing a costume can help transport you to your childhood, allowing you to feel joyous and carefree. When planning a costume, it is important to choose a theme and to have a vision of what you want to go for. If you are confident in your design, consider entering a costume contest. Outside of a costume for Halloween night, updating your wardrobe for fall is equally as important. Although the heat and humidity of Florida might prevent you from pulling out sweaters, wearing fall colors or Halloween-themed graphic tees are great ways to express your enthusiasm. There is only one time of year that it can be done!
- Have a Scary/Halloween Themed Movie Night
Halloween is the perfect time to have themed movie nights. You can delve into the scary classics (“The Shining”, “Scream”, “Halloween” or “Child’s Play”) or watch the more modern thrillers (“It” or “The Conjuring”). If horror films aren’t for you, Halloween-themed movies such as “Casper”, “Hocus Pocus”, “Ghostbusters”, “The Nightmare Before Christmas” and “Hotel Transavalina” are equally great options! You can also never go wrong with a Disney Original Movie (“Girl vs Monster”, “My Babysitter’s a Vampire”, “Halloween Town”). If anything can get you ready for Halloween, it is watching spooky scenes play before you on the screen.
- Do Halloween Crafts
Want a more hands-on approach to Halloween preparation? Get crafty! Through making drawings, undertaking a DIY project or creating your own Halloween-inspired craft, you can feel more involved in the holiday. Some popular Halloween-based crafts include making spider slime, Halloween bracelets, stick monsters or foam masks. Crafts are an easy way to relieve stress and can serve as an outlet for innovation.
- Bake Halloween Themed Treats
While one might perceive Halloween treats to be exclusively candy, they also include baked goods! Baking is a great way to embrace the holiday. It allows you to pick out what type of dessert you want to make (brownies, cupcakes, brittle, cookies, pies and more) and find a design that embodies one of your favorite aspects of Halloween. Some ideas include chocolate Halloween bars, pumpkin and cinnamon cookies, spider cookies, caramel apples and witch cupcakes. Baking is not only a way to produce something tasty, but it can also allow you to craft your own Halloween-inspired design and experiment with different flavors.
- Carve Pumpkins
A staple of Halloween culture is carving pumpkins. This is the perfect chance to visit a pumpkin patch! Regardless of where you buy your pumpkin, carving allows you to employ your design skills and exemplify originality. Carving pumpkins subsequently produces pumpkins with cute designs that can also serve as fall decorations! This is a great activity to do with others, and you can even have a contest as to whose is the most aesthetic.
- Listen to Halloween Themed Music
Music is one of the easiest ways to set the tone that it is Halloween! Playing songs like “Calling all the Monsters” by China Anne McClain, “Monster Mash” by Bobby Pickett, “I Want Candy” by Bow Wow Wow and “Ghostbusters” by Ray Parker Jr. bring me back to my childhood. They serve as great ways to get pumped for Halloween and help build anticipation for the holiday. Another recommendation is to make a Spotify playlist of your favorite Halloween or fall songs. This way, you can have an instant way to raise your spirits!
- Go to an Amusement Park
Amusement parks are the places that take Halloween to the largest extreme. Places like Universal Studios Orlando, Disney World and Busch Gardens Tampa have festive activities that make the season come to life. At Disney World, not only is Magic Kingdom transformed with Halloween decorations, parades and desserts,but cast members give out candy and tourists wear costumes! Universal is well known for Halloween Horror Nights, which include scare zones, haunted houses with jump scares and street performers who set the tone. Howl-O-Scream at Busch Gardens also has haunted houses, scare simulations and a mysterious mood. If you have the means and time, visiting one of these places puts you directly in the Halloween action.
- Indulge in the Candy
What is Halloween without candy? Not only should you buy candy for others in advance, but it is the perfect time of year to buy yourself some as well. I personally have a “death by candy” jar which I keep stocked with my favorites at all times. This is the time of year when Halloween-themed treats such as pumpkin-flavored Peeps, candy corn and Mellowcreme pumpkins make a resurgence. In October, sugar rushes from the consumption of candy are not only worth it but socially acceptable.
- Grab a Halloween Drink
As most people know, Starbucks has officially entered the fall season. take advantage of the festive drinks while they last! If you prefer Dunkin or other coffee shops, most of them have fall-inspired and pumpkin-flavored drinks as well. Outside of coffee, apple cider and Halloween punch are other drinks for the season. To add a special spooky flare to any drink, just add dry ice and watch gas rise from your cup!
Ultimately, while these are some recommendations of what you can do before Halloween, it is up to you to personalize your own list! Each of us have certain activities that get us excited for the holiday. Through decorating, eating festive foods and doing various crafts, you can immerse yourself in all things Halloween!
UF PRISM 