Now that most of the fake cobwebs have been cleared, I wanted to recap our first Halloween at Content.
This silly holiday holds a special place in our hearts, because it was right around Halloween that John + I made our relationship "official". It was at my first (somewhat annual) Halloween party in 2008, hosted in a Hoboken bar, that John met my family and friends for the first time. Mind you, he was dressed as a gay construction worker that year, and even I would not have worn shorts that short... He made the Village People proud!
I also consider that first Halloween John's last opportunity to take notice of the crazy that results from any party I'm planning, and quickly run for the hills. But he didn't. Choosing instead to calm my self-inflicted anxiety with a trip to Central Park where we rode the carousel and visited the zoo.
Fast forward 7 years, and that adorable BF/GF couple is now husband and wife, and that dingy Hoboken bar has been replace with our loving, historic home.
What remains the same is Halloween. A holiday purely for fun and mischief.
This year I focused my party decor and planning around a 'witches house' theme; as opposed to 'murder scene', or 'abandoned drug den'. All were viable options in the beginning stages.
Here are a few pics of this year's party!
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| The focus of the kitchen mantel was the witch's apothecary filled with her favorite ingredients for spells like spices, insects and bones. |
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| There are some great free printable available for every holiday. You just have to know what you're looking for. These printable bottle labels were a great addition! |
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| I split the party snacks into two rooms, so guests wouldn't be all in one space. Here's the dessert setup in the kitchen. I centered the display around the witch's potion recipe book (another free printable), a bowl of apples and small jars filled with red water. |
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| Most of the evening took place outside, in the courtyard. DJ Mario kept everyone dancing all night! |
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| Sadly, I didn't get a photo of the witch's cauldron in action. Here's the setup though. During the party, the cauldron (not shown) hung from the chains, and dry ice which was accentuated with large green glow sticks made for a bubbly brew effect. |
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| I kept my Fuji instant camera out all night too, and let people document their own memories. Can't wait to put these in a book! |
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| I saw a tutorial for "fossil cookies" on Pinterest way back when. I couldn't find it again, so I winged it and they came out great. I simply used premade sugar cookie dough, baked as instructed, and during cooling pressed Dollar Store insects into the tops. Certain bugs definitely came out better than others, but overall they came out great. And so simple! |
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| Here was the makings of red velvet cupcakes. I never did get a photo of the finished product, but I simply iced them with cream cheese frosting, make two small holes about a half inch apart, and used red food coloring to give the effect of a vampires bite. Again, simple, but so cute! |
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| This was a more subtle nod to the witches theme, adding some dried flowers from the garden, a hat and a few more free printable on clip boards. |
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| A witches home would not have been complete with out some family heirlooms. I printed a few Google images, and Mod Podged them to cardboard that I sprayed black the day before. I then cut them into 'frames' and paired them on the mantel with a spooky Dollar Store cling I put on a flea market mirror. |
The one extra special effect this year was a DVD I found on Amazon entitled "Creepy Crawlies II" that I projected onto the wall and mantel in the dining room. Perfect for right over the savory snack table!
Halloween 2015 was a success! What do you think? Maybe you'll have a few ideas for next year....
Happy Haunting!
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