Halloween party with fire

[LovelyBath77]

I've been invited with my seven year old to a Halloween party with a 'fire pit' to cook marshmallows on. To be honest I'm a bit worried about it, as the children will be dressing up, in case they could catch fire. AIBU? They usually just go trick or treating with their cousins.

www.goodhousekeeping.co.uk/news2/how-safe-are-childrens-halloween-costumes

I have mentioned it, now.

It doesn't matter if its a covered pit. A plastic vampire cape could easily melt onto the skin if it touched hot metal or even if a child got too close. Its a really awful idea. Plus if its wood burning then as the logs crackle sparks can and will be given out!

Please don't go OP.

For matters of clarity, I am not actually Claudia, I just love her a lot.

It is the fact children will be very near the fire trying to toast their marshmallows. Maybe the answer to this (other than fencing off the fire) is to have an adult doing the toasting and handing the skewers back to the children. I must admit, I'd enclose the flames in some way to give a clear margin. What with modern costumes made of rubbish.

We always had bonfires on hallowe'en as I think this probably had been the tradition with Samhain. In Britain, the bonfires seem to have been moved back a bit for Guy Fawkes night. Maybe for political reasons at the time and a disassociation with the past.

We didn't get close to the bonfires though, and there weren't full of things like tyres or other horrible toxic things. They weren't enormous either. Like large camp fires, really. You did have to throw your orange peel into them. Maybe that was so the adults didn't have to clean up.

Loved the apple dunking. We had to try and bite an apple hanging from a string too. Eating more than I wanted to try and get the ring in the báirín breac.

The only places I'd be buying mine would be legitimate places and not cheap from a pop up shop or online. Most places by law have to test all the costumes and make sure they are non flammable before they can even consider selling them.

Nope. Costumes are classed as toys and don't have to fulfil the fire safety requirements for other clothes. It doesn't matter where you purchase them.

The only places I'd be buying mine would be legitimate places and not cheap from a pop up shop or online. Most places by law have to test all the costumes and make sure they are non flammable before they can even consider selling them.

Sadly that isn't true. Children's clothes are tested for fire safety but dressing up costumes are classed as toys and are not covered by the same legislation. Some of the supermarkets agreed to include dressing up outfits in the children's clothing rules as a gesture of goodwill after the BBC campaign last year, but it is not legally enforceable.

So, I got a reply to my email about it. They are going to have some buckets of water and that is why they invited the parents to help. Hmm. We can't go anyway but feel it is a bit of a difficult one for parents.

What we've done before is just put clothes under the costume. You usually need to anyway as it's so chilly. Whip the costume off before going near the fire. Job done.

Terrible idea. I was at a halloween party with a fire yesterday. Lots of DC is a small garden with a fire doing marshmallows on sticks in flammable costumes.

Terrible idea. No one got hurt but I was nervous throughout. The party organisers didn't have anything like water or a fire blanket to hand either. I briefed DS to stay away from the fire and spent the time sizing up various parents coats wondering which would make the best fire blanket should we need one.

People are really ill informed about this shit, as this thread shows. And some of them throw Halloween parties.

7 year olds perfectly capable of toasting marshmallows in a fire with supervision, I do it semi-regularly with brownies (age 7-10).

BUT Halloween costumes likely to be flammable, have trailing bits and loose accessories make it a much higher risk. Plus over excited children are less than sensible, sweets, costume, Halloween and fire all exciting.

Depends on the adults supervising as well, are they used to being in charge of other people's children? Comfortable dealing with fire itself and fire safety?

Most places by law have to test all the costumes and make sure they are non flammable before they can even consider selling them.

Unfortunately not. As others have said they aren't considered clothing and so don't need to meet the more stringent testing criteria that nightwear would normally be tested against.

Some retailers have volunteered to meet a more stringent testing criteria but it's by no means universal even in the larger more reputable high street stores.

After reading about Claudia Winkelman's daughter a few years ago, I get nervous if my daughter is within 10 foot of a pumpkin with a candle inside, never mind near an open fire with potentially tipsy adults around! I'd either turn down the invite or go but with no dressing up (and run round the fire pit like a loony keeping kids away!) I also now keep our pumpkins on the inside sill of our front window in our generally empty dining room, than outside by the door to keep other kids safe! I am perhaps a little neurotic but I think it would surprise most people how easily & quickly those nylon costumes can catch...