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Original poster

Who bothers with Halloween?

158 replies

tigercub50 · 27/09/2018 00:20

I have friends who make a really big deal of Halloween ( big party, loads of decorations etc) but we have never done much apart from trick or treating. I make pumpkin lanterns. I prefer Bonfire Night. Anyone do much?

OP posts:
Willow2017 · 27/09/2018 11:20

Stypid ph9ne...
Bob just do it for yourself. Have fun and you will get people coming to see your decs and for sweets.

Willow2017 · 27/09/2018 11:24

Thclitetati
Sorry its not the first. There has been another thread with the usual ignorant stuff "American import we never had halloween in uk" "begging" etc ad nauseum.

gemdrop84 · 27/09/2018 11:31

We do! Me and the dc love Halloween. We pick decorations for the house. Our neighbourhood is quiet but on Halloween everyone really gets into the spirit for the kids. Dh helps the dc with the pumpkin. I normally do a buffet tea, go trick 'r' treating for about 30 mins then back to watch a film and eat. This year we're watching Hocus Pocus and a few Casper cartoons. We don't like fireworks so on bonfire night we tend to watch the local display from home (just over the road from us) sometimes we get sparklers in. But I always cook some jacket potatoes for dinner that night.

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Events & celebrations
PinkCalluna · 27/09/2018 11:33

We celebrate Halloween but then we’re Scottish.

We decorate the house and then one of us will stay at home to be in to hand out sweeties while the other takes the children guising round the neighbourhood.

Our area goes for Halloween in a big way. We’ll have hundreds of visitors between about 5:30-8:30pm all telling jokes, singing or reciting poems for their Halloween sweeties from the wee tinys in their batman costumes to teenagers who’ve spent time making their costumes and doing cool (and disgusting) things with face paint.

It’s a really lovely community tradition.

Elementtree · 27/09/2018 11:40

Yes, I think it's great. We are in an area where a lot of people go to some effort to decorate their houses and it adds a bit of theatre and occasion to another otherwise grey October day.

I love carving out pumpkins and seeing all the kids dressed up and handing out sweets.

I don't mind bonfire night either.

Elementtree · 27/09/2018 11:49

Also, I have a countdown calendar (that looks like an advent calendar bit with spooky windows and Halloween jokes) that I will break out on the first

I am a geek.

GinIsIn · 27/09/2018 11:56

Halloween is a BIG THING where we live - so much so that people destination trick or treat our neighbourhood. And my NDN's child has SN and is obsessed with Halloween so we always make an effort.

Keel · 27/09/2018 12:52

crochet monkey**. I'd love to go to Salem for Halloween. So envious. Have a great time and please report back! Me and dd love Halloween. In fact dd prefers it to Christmas!

krustykittens · 27/09/2018 13:17

I'm Irish and we always celebrate Halloween! It makes the start of winter for us and it feels wonderful to now Christmas is just around the corner.

PinkHeart5914 · 27/09/2018 13:22

Sort of. I do pumpkins carving with the dc, some spooky colouring in and the dc dress up and we do fun bits and pieces.

It’s good to have a day of fun

GETTINGLIKEMYMOTHER · 27/09/2018 13:25

IMO at least in the UK it's much more of a 'thing' now than in the very olden days when I was small, because manufacturers hadn't yet cottoned on to the fact that there was money in it! Now the shops are full of all sorts of plastic and other Halloween tat for weeks. There was sod all years ago - Bonfire Night was the big one.

However dds always enjoyed trick or treating, and though they're long grown up I still put a pumpkin in the window and stock up with sweets to dish out. (Often lots of mini packs of Smarties, in the hope that there'll be plenty left over for me to scoff.) Usually get a lot of little ones coming to the door here though.

morningconstitutional2017 · 27/09/2018 15:11

I never bother with it. It's just an American import and an excuse for retailers to get us to part with more cash. Ridiculous.

Notquiteagandt · 27/09/2018 16:15

I love Halloween. My aunt always had huge kids parties in the 80s. Highlight of the year.

Theres a few house locally that go all out and charge people to walk around for charity.

Horror films are my fave genre so always good to have a film feast.

All the best foods too. Bonfire toffee, toffee apples, bonfire lollies, parkin and anything pumpkin 😍

AnaChocolatte · 27/09/2018 16:24

I really like Halloween and we try to make it an event in our house - I like it a lot because there are no presents associated with it! It isn't very materialistic (like Christmas) and it feels like innocent fun. We go trick or treating, carve pumpkins, make sure we go to some events and a party.

Seafoodeatit · 27/09/2018 16:26

We carve pumpkins, the kids wear halloween tshirts ( from h&m which are a bargain!) and put up the same decorations on the window. We watch halloween specials of the kids tv shows - the toy story one and the cbeebies ones. We do halloween trails at NT properties too if we have time. The kids love getting trick or treaters so we get sweets in but have never done it ourselves as knocking door to door isn't something we're keen on.

Racecardriver · 27/09/2018 16:32

I like doing it for my children. Will spend it in America with American relatives one year if we can make the dates work.

Potentialpoochowner · 27/09/2018 16:34

Bloody love Halloween and always have a party. Much better than Christmas as if it all turns out a bit shit it doesn’t matter, makes it more Halloweeny in fact.

greendale17 · 27/09/2018 16:34

I don’t know anyone who does anything for Halloween apart from open the door to trick or treaters.

misskb100 · 27/09/2018 16:38

I’ve never celebrated Halloween but this year with it falling over half term decided to take DS to New York (luckily found really cheap flights!!) to visit my partners family. It’s such a big deal over there so really excited. Not sure how it works though, should I be dressing up too? Is anyone else planning to dress up?

LucheroTena · 27/09/2018 16:40

I love Halloween and always have, even when it wasn’t that celebrated in England. There’s something mystical about it all. We decorate the outside and have a pile of pumpkin lanterns. I much prefer old style witches, cats, spiders etc than the modern horror decorations though.

glintandglide · 27/09/2018 16:42

I love it but only in the last few years as I’ve had children. I love that it’s become “americanised” otherwise I wouldn’t really know how to celebrate it! I would love a huge party but alas not enough space

SenecaFalls · 27/09/2018 16:44

I'm American of Scottish and Irish descent, so yes, we celebrate Halloween.

PollyFlinderz · 27/09/2018 17:23

I’m 60 and Scottish and can well remember growing up with fabulous Halloween’s.

I’d no idea it was an American thing. 🙄

allyouneedis · 27/09/2018 17:25

I love Halloween 🎃💀👻

wendz86 · 27/09/2018 17:26

My eldest loves it , probably because she watches a lot of related YouTube videos . I’m off work this year when it falls so might do some decorations and will take kids trick or treating round our road .