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Original poster

To greet trick or treaters in a scary costume...

54 replies

Millymills · 31/10/2017 13:45

We've recently moved in to a new area - a large cul de sac with lots of family homes, lots of children play in the area etc. We noticed yesterday most homes have Halloween related decorations outside and we thought it might be nice to join in with the fun, though we don't have any children ourselves. DP and I got a little carried away in our local supermarket and have purchased allsorts to go outside the house. In addition, DP has bought a brilliant full faced zombie mask and outfit, along with fake blood and some other props. He tried out the costume last night and admittedly he looks rather terrifying!

Chatting to some friends today who have pointed out that the outfit is very scary and could well traumatise the children coming to our door and that this wouldn't really be appropriate. Perhaps I'm being totally unreasonable here but I always thought scary outfits was all part of the fun and to be expected if you go around trick or treating?! The majority of the children I've seen around are aged 8 + I'd say but that's not to say we wouldn't get younger children knocking..... Opinions please?!

OP posts:
Original poster
Millymills · 31/10/2017 15:12

Hmm some mixed responses... still not sure what to do! Last thing we want to do is upset anyone but I’m sure some of the kids would love it... a door sign might be a possibility then

OP posts:
Evelynismyspyname · 31/10/2017 15:20

If it's totally terrifying please don't. If it's a nice friendly family cul-de-sac the kids over 8 might be trick or treating alone. You can see by looking through the window whose coming to the door but they can't. You'll make enemies of the parents if you properly terrify the kids with really convincing adult zombie make up.

You could tone it down though by you answering the door in more child friendly costume or normal clothes, and him lumbering up behind you on your signal if the kids look old enough, and you can add lib and laugh and make it funny if the kids look about to wet themselves, or ham it up if the kids seem to be up for a bit of Zombie scaryness.

Ifearthecold · 31/10/2017 15:25

I would wear the non-scary part of the costume at the start of the night and go for the full effect later on if you are desperate. There will be small kids early on and the idea isn't to scare them! I'm sure teenagers would love it. If you have just moved you don't want to be known as the people you caused terror to the primary school in year one!

BucksFrizz · 31/10/2017 15:32

Taratill I didn't suggest that Halloween is about frightening children.

However, if random kids knock on my door dressed spookily, they take the risk that I might answer looking equally as spooky.

PoisonousSmurf · 31/10/2017 15:40

I would dress up, but after lets say 7.30pm. By then the little kids will be gone and only the teenagers will be daring to knock on doors late at night.
Then they'll be fair game! Bwa, ha, ha!

PoisonousSmurf · 31/10/2017 15:43

What Evelynismyspyname said! My Dad used to do that in the 80s, not as a zombie but as Dracula. When my mum gave his cue, he'd come out of the shadows and look as if he was going to bite her neck.
The teenagers used to scream so loudly, but they loved it!

Original poster
Millymills · 31/10/2017 15:44

Yes we could easy answer the door in our normal clothes during early evening and let the zombie out for the older kids later! Is aged 10 plus considered appropriate for the zombie greeting? Not having children myself, this sort of thing is difficult to gauge

OP posts:
tiggerbounce77 · 31/10/2017 15:44

Is it possible for you to see out of a window who is knocking at your door? I would go for it when older children knock but not the younger ones as they will probably be terrified

Orangealien · 31/10/2017 15:49

It's completely fine.

I wonder if those saying they'd be furious have actually considered the reality that they're knocking on a complete stranger's door. I mean they can answer naked if they please - it's their home!

Fruitcorner123 · 31/10/2017 15:50

I agree with puttin the costume on later. Mjy kids are 4 and 6 and would be scared but they will be back home by 6.30 so I would say put it on at 7/8 then only slightly older kids will be out. Or can you look out your window and only have him answer the door to older ones?

Ifearthecold · 31/10/2017 15:56

orange I reckon that if kids are knocking on a decorated Halloween door there is a basic social understanding of what comes next. Anyone could open their door while naked at any point during the year but I can't help thinking the local police would be having words with you if you set your house up to show you were available for trick or treating and them exposed yourself to children who did so!!!

BucksFrizz · 31/10/2017 16:06

Ifear You don't have to have your house decorated though, they knock anyway so I can answer it dressed however I please me naked is more scary than any Halloween costume Halloween Grin

Ifearthecold · 31/10/2017 16:13

Round here only decorated houses get knocked on and I think OP said they had decorated theirs. Frankly it's too chilly for nudity either way in my view.

Evelynismyspyname · 31/10/2017 16:35

Round here the kids only knock on decorated houses and people they know well.

One poor lady decorates her house with the world's biggest carved pumpkins but nobody goes to her because they don't know her. Sometimes she actually comes out and gives kids sweets on the pavement and admires their costumes as they pass. I tell my kids to go to her now and used to take them there when I went with them, as she so obviously loves Halloween. She lives alone and has no kids and I assume works full time so isn't known as well as the parents/ grandparents/ retired people/ farmers / people who were born here themselves who form most of the population of our village are.

My kids go when it very first gets dark and would like dressed up door answerers but not full on Walking Dead special effects zombie adults they weren't expecting without a mitigating less scary zombie handler! Agree the time kids choose to go and how scary their own costumes are signals very different attitudes and expectations.

Almost no trick or treaters (none around here) are in terrifying costumes, they are rarely meant to be convincing and are usually in some tongue in cheek, cute or funny version of spooky which it's fine to let a toddler come with you to answer the door to.

Original poster
Millymills · 31/10/2017 16:35

Yes our house is decorated with some Halloween bunting outside and some “DO NOT ENTER” Halloween tape all over the door and windows etc. I feel a bit boring answering in my normal clothes as the outside of the house looks a bit spooky! But earlier on in the evening we could do that to avoid scaring the little ones

OP posts:
WorraLiberty · 31/10/2017 16:48

It sounds perfectly fine to me

Even if some kids do get scared by it, they'll just turn and run back down the path I expect.

Anyway, you'd have to be an idiot to take your children out trick or treating if they're scared of scary costumes.

SparklyMagpie · 31/10/2017 19:04

How've you and your ZH got on OP?

hazelnutlatte · 31/10/2017 19:41

I wonder if you live near me OP? Someone has gone to town with a walking dead themed house! I fully expected the door to be answered by a zombie but it was someone in normal clothes

HamSandWitches · 31/10/2017 19:51

A street near me has semi detached houses, 2 together with a gap between the garages. One of the houses is all done up and the other one is in darkness, the kids go to knock on the lit up house while a man dressed up on the garage roof of the dark house sneaks over and jumps over the gap. The kids all get a huge fright, they love it.

FlouncyDoves · 31/10/2017 20:05

What did you do? I hope you did dress up.

halloweenzombie · 31/10/2017 20:11

This is me this year and my youngest is 4 he knows it's not real Halloween Smile

To greet trick or treaters in a scary costume...
Love51 · 31/10/2017 20:36

Someone up thread said DH should only wear that to an adult party which kind of misses the point that it is dh's house and the level of scary needs to suit the people who live there! I was uncomfortable with trick or treating as a concept even as a child (I was a very literal child and thought people shouldn't say trick or treat if they had no intention of tricking, but if they did trick they were mean people, ergo only mean people with malicious intent do trick or treating) but if you do partake it seems a bit wet to complain that the scary is too scary!
I may be biased because until this year I lived somewhere that didn't observe the 'decorated houses only' rule. Or the '31 Oct only' rule. So all through October til bonfire night you had people knocking on your door demanding sugar with menaces. So i may have a bit of schadenfreude at the idea of people who encourage their kids to behave like this getting pissed off (don't want the actual kids to be upset tho!).

TheWhyteRoseShallRiseAgain · 31/10/2017 21:29

I think it sounds brilliant my 2 year old would have loved it (if we trick or treated) she's bombproof (7 year old a bit of a wuss that way but has got the ideas that some people like scary costumes more this year and was quite disappointed that her friends mum didn't do their party her costumes were amazing)

RavenWings · 31/10/2017 21:33

@halloweenzombie , love the makeup!

OP you've probably made your choice at this stage! But I think I would have gone with costume but no makeup for small ones, and costume for the older. Or have a look (upstairs window?) first if you can, and then decide who to send to the door.

Original poster
Millymills · 31/10/2017 22:06

Well just to update you, for the younger children who came round early on, DP was dressed up but without the mask - we just painted his face instead. Still looked good but not quite as menacing! Around 7pm the older kids were coming round and loved the mask! We had a severed hand hanging out of the letterbox on our front door and that went down a treat too Grin

OP posts:
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