Halloween Tips, Tricks and Treats

Your 2020 Guide to a Sweet, Spooky and Safe Halloween

As rustling leaves begin to fall and colder days draw near, a question haunts the air: How will we celebrate Halloween this year?

This Halloween might look a little different, but don’t let the circumstances frighten you out of celebrating the season. Halloween is happening. And with a little creativity and a dash of magic, families can find socially distant but not socially awkward ways to celebrate. Try trick-or-treating by mail, embarking on an at-home scavenger “haunt” or hosting an online costume party.

“This year has the potential to be the Halloween that kids remember the most because their parents made an effort to make it extra special during a very scary moment in history,” says Bill Cotter, a children’s book author and illustrator.

Want help planning? Here are a few crafts and activities. Gather your kids and candy lovers of all ages and dive in.

More Candy, Less Contact

If there’s one word that’s synonymous with Halloween it’s “candy.” In fact, 90 percent of young parents surveyed say they can’t imagine Halloween without chocolate, candy, and trick-or-treating, according to The Harris Poll. Try these ideas for keeping the spirit of the season alive, from a safe distance.

• Keep the “trick” in trick-or-treat. Surprise your neighbors by dropping a bag of candy on their doorstep, or place individually wrapped bags of candy outside your home for passers-by.

• Organize a trunk-or-treat. Decorate the trunk of your car with faux cobwebs, signs, the whole nine yards. Load it with candy. Invite your close friends and family to do the same. Park your cars in a lot, or on your street. Go trunk-to-trunk to gather treats.

• Trick-or-treat from miles apart. Send candy-filled care packages to loved ones around the country.

• Hold a drive-by parade. Invite friends to dress up and show off their costumes from their cars. Leave a table with bags of individually wrapped candy by the road, so they can pick one up as they go.

Silly, Scary and Stylin’ Masks

This Halloween, safety is in style. “Protective masks can become festive costume accessories,” says Tabitha Sewer, a DIY fashion entrepreneur. “You can use fabric paint, paintbrushes, stickers, pipe cleaners, rhinestones or buttons to decorate them,” she says. Here’s how:

• Decide on the look you’re going for. A wart-covered witch? Vampire fangs? Or a goblinlike grin? Sketch out how you want it to look ahead of time.

• Before you begin decorating, try your mask on. Mark off where your mouth and nose are. Use that as your guide.

• Get to it! Let the paint and pompoms flow. “With a little imagination,” Sewer says, “you can turn pipe cleaners into a mouth, and try rhinestones for shiny teeth.”

• When you’re done, let it dry. And if all your work leaves you craving something sweet, enjoy a piece of candy to stay in the Halloween spirit.

• Try it on! Then snap a pic to send to friends.

Home, Sweet (and Spooky) Home

Halloween at home? Don’t be dismayed. 80 percent of adults believe they’ll find creative, fun and safe ways to celebrate this year, according to the National Confectioners Association. For example, try this at-home scavenger “haunt”:

• Make a plan. Find goofy — or spooky — places in your home for hiding candy. Like in a sock drawer, behind window blinds or on a bookshelf.

• Write a list of clues that lead to the hidden treasure. If you need help, here are a few:

  • Time to find your first treat! It’s hidden somewhere with a view of the street.

  • If you’re wondering now, “Where should I look?” Your next piece of candy is inside a book.

  • Wow! You’re becoming a candy-finding pro. You’ll find the next piece of candy near a family photo.

• Hide the candy. And for extra fun, decorate your home with fake cobwebs, spiders, bats and more.

• Hand the list of clues to your kids (or help them read through it), and enjoy an afternoon of treasure hunting. Celebrate when all the candy’s been found!

For a virtual scavenger hunt, try to find all 13 hidden pieces of candy in the above illustration!

Boo! Did I Virtually Scare You?

Even without costume parties or parades, you can throw a virtual Halloween party that’s just as bone-chilling as IRL.

• Use virtual backgrounds to bring costumes to life. Think mermaids under water, princesses in a castle or cowboys in the desert.

• Share scary stories around the (virtual) campfire. Take turns reading — or imagining — terrifying tales.

• Test your knowledge with a round of candy-themed trivia. For example: Which color do most people say is their favorite flavor of candy? (The answer is red!)

• Master the element of surprise. Invite a friend to drop into your virtual hangout unexpectedly, dressed to scare!

Chasing Away Cabin Fever

Don’t have your costume figured out yet? What are you waiting for? Three-quarters of young parents say that Halloween is more important than ever this year and can provide a much-needed sense of normalcy, according to The Harris Poll. Here are a few more activities to keep the spirit alive before and beyond Oct. 31:

• Consider making your own Halloween piñata. It could become a new and exciting candy-filled tradition.

• If you don’t already make your own costumes, this Halloween might be the time to try. “I love to create epic costumes,” Sewer says. “This year there will be several costumes for my children … and the dog.”

• Write your own silly story using the brand names of chocolate and candy, suggests Cotter, the author and illustrator. “Write the text out on a big poster board, leave a few blanks for words, and then tape the candy into the spaces,” he says.

• Go candy craft crazy. Carve a candy-themed pumpkin. Bake cupcakes with candy ingredients. Or make a haunted gingerbread house. Caramel cobwebs, anyone?