What’s Everybody Going As for Halloween This Year?
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For some die-hard Halloween fans,spooky season begins as early as July. But for the rest of us it starts right now, as September winds down and October officially arrives. So to get us all in a Halloween mood, I assembled a coven of Strategist parents to discuss the costumes our kids are clamoring for, and which candy, decorations, and non-candy treats we’re most excited about this year.
What’s the best candy to give out?
Lauren Ro, senior writer:I really like gummy sour candy, myself. So I’ll just get bags of sour candies that have Sour Patch Kids. Swedish Fish are good too. Last year we handed out a mix of gummy stuff and it had Nerds Clusters in it, and every time an older kid came to the door, they were like, “Oh I want that one” or “Oh yay, Nerds Clusters!” So those seem to be a popular choice.
Liza Corsillo, senior writer:What is a Nerds Cluster? Is it like Nerds on the outside of a gummy thing?
LR:Yeah, it’s very tasty.
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Winnie Yang, senior editor:They seem so bad for your teeth. But everyone loves them because they’re crunchyandchewy. I like to give out interesting candy from HMart, like I buy bags of Hi-Chews and Kasugai fruit gummies and dump out all the individually wrapped candy into a bowl. Or else I’ll get the good chocolate bars like Snickers or Three Musketeers. What are the other good ones? Kit Kats? Andie, my 9-year-old, loves Kit Kats. Just not Tootsie Rolls. Tootsie Rolls are the worst.
LR:I’ll mix in some chocolate, too. Snickers and Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.
Jen Trolio, senior editor: I bought a bunch of individually wrapped Halloween Oreos that are pretty cool. Each package has two cookies and the filling is orange and green. Some of them look like little jack-o’-lanterns.
Are there any good lower-sugar treats?
Simone Kitchens, deputy editor:Last year we did mini bags of Pirate’s Booty, Famous Amos cookies, and Goldfish from Costco. They’re just little packages of snacks. But the younger kids seemed really excited because the bag looked so big.
LR:Utz makes Halloween-shaped mini pretzels that are popular.
How about treats you don’t eat?
WY:A friend of mine was telling me about a San Francisco event where you pass out goodies to 2,500 trick-or-treaters. So because there’s already going to be so much candy there, she wanted some other options. I think she settled on little squishy toys.
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LR:In our neighborhood, there’s an event that’s usually the Saturday before Halloween. A lot of people hand out non-candy things for that. It’s a lot of plastic junk, like Halloween-themed rings that light up. But the best thing was that one family gave out miniature flashlights so the kids could walk around safely.
WY:Glow sticks would also be a good option.
JT:Mini erasers, pencils, and stickers are popular, too. The non-candy equivalent of a full-size candy bar, though, are definitely thepacks of Halloween-themed Pokémon cards. Or, Plus Plus is making these awesomeHalloween “critter” setswhere you get a little pack of their building toy pieces and you can make a little monster out of them. They’re more expensive, however — about $4 each — so they’re not the most economical if you have a lot of trick-or-treaters.
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What do your kids use to carry all their loot?
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LR:I like the classic pumpkin baskets if you can find them, but you have to buy early — I remember I once tried to get one the day before Halloween and they were sold-out everywhere. And I actually reuse the felt Easter baskets I got from Crate & Barrel.
SK:We used an Easter basket last year too, Lauren! It was a Liberty floral one, so not at all on-theme.
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LC:We were pushing my son in a stroller last year, so we just put anything we got in the stroller. But I loveZara’s Halloween stuff for kids, and they have some little bags that are very cute. There’s abatand aghost.
JT:We try to do a thematic treat pail when possible — when my older daughter dressed up as a witch a couple years ago, she carrieda plastic cauldron. My younger daughter useda pink tulle onewhen her costume was “Ballerina Cat”; it lights up, which turned out to be a huge win once it got dark. My niece is going as Hermione from Harry Potter this year, so she’s getting aHedwig treat pail. Otherwise we just do classic pumpkin buckets! My favorites are the ones that are a little rounder and more “sculpted.” Sometimes they come in fun colors to get away from the traditional orange. They’re pretty cheap, only a couple bucks, if you can find one locally. But if I’m being honest, it’s actually much easier to use something with a wider opening.
What’s your opinion on Boo Baskets?
JT:Boo Baskets are a more recent trend. They’re basically like anEaster basket, but you don’t necessarily wait for the day of Halloween to give them. I’ve seen lots of families gift them at the start of October with like, a pair skeleton pajamas and a couple Halloween books or toys. I don’t make them for my kids because we already have too much stuff.
LC:They can be especially fun for younger kids if you are trying harder to limit their candy intake. Or for older kids you want to gift but who might not be going trick-or-treating.
JT:We do sometimes “boo” my kids’ close friends and classmates. That’s where you essentially play Ding, Dong, Ditch but you leave a surprise bag of Halloween treats on someone’s doorstep. It’s supposed to be anonymous but the kids always want to reveal themselves, eventually. It’s a fun “pay it forward” kind of activity — you get booed, and then you go and boo someone else in your circle. There’s a bunch of stuff online that you canbuy or printfor doing this.
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Boo Bag Halloween House
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What’s everyone dressing up as this year?
LC:Do any of you already know what costumes your kids want to wear?
LR:Solomon, who is 3 years old, wants to be the Pixar lamp, but I don’t know how to do that. I have to make that somehow. He likes putting both of his feet into one of my Crocs and jumping around saying he’s a Pixar lamp. But that’s all I’ve got so far.
WY:Andie has been talking about going as Wednesday Addams for a while. I’ve been encouraging her to doKPop Demon Hunters, but I don’t know if she’ll go for it. She likes to start talking about what she’s going to be for Halloween right after Halloween ends, and then every month it’s a different idea, all year long. Does anybody else’s kid do this? I’m like, “Okay, just tell me in September, please.”
JT:I thinkKPop Demon Hunterswill be some of the most popular costumes this year, for sure. My kids want to be Carmen Sandiego and a piece of sushi, though, so I’ve got at least a little bit of DIY to do. I think it’s actually me and my husband who will do theKPop Demon Hunterscostumes in our family. We’re going to try for Derpy Tiger, the big blue smiling cat, and Sussie Magpie, the little black bird with three eyes and a top hat.
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LC:My son is obsessed with trains, so I’m thinking that if it’s me choosing, I’ll just do a conductor outfit because that’s pretty classic. In the past we’ve talked aboutregular clothes that make good Halloween costumes. Would you all just go for Oshkosh pinstripe overalls?
JT:Yes! And I think you should make sure you have a very solid hat, and a train whistle.
LR:And a little red handkerchief. I actually have all of that stuff, Liza, if you want to borrow it.
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JT:That reminds me, I have seen some very robust Facebook threads lately — in my local Buy Nothing group, and some local parenting Facebook groups — about what costume components people are looking for, or ready to get rid of. Those can be a really useful place not only for finding the actual stuff but just to get ideas.
How early is too early to decorate?
LC:Jen, just because I know you do decorations, I’m curious if you could give us a status check on what’s going on at your house right now.
JT:Shelly the Skelly is out. She’s thegiant groundbreaker lawn skeletonthat we got at Costco last year; I put her up not this past weekend, but the one before, right as the season was officially turning to fall. And I have a wavingfaux-neon skeleton in the front window. I always wait until at least Labor Day, to put up Halloween stuff, but sometime’s it’s a lot of work, and October is only one month, so I’m all for starting a little early to get the most out of it.
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Halloween Pumpkins
JT:I also just bought some flat-pack pumpkins from LOLL Designs — they’re made out of that same plasticky composite material that a lot of weatherproof patio furniture is made of. Each one is two pieces and you just slot them together. I’m going to put those on the porch. I’m excited that the squirrels and deer can’t eat them and they won’t be able to rot. We’ll save the real pumpkins until much closer to Halloween.
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LR:I like to get decorations from Meri Meri for holidays and birthdays — a lot of it, as long as you carefully fold everything up, you can reuse them for years. They’re a little pricey, but their stuff is just so good that I think it’s worth the investment.
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