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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To think Halloween is just another massive marketing ploy we've all fallen for.

239 replies

Blwean · 31/10/2023 17:00

Reading this article today https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/oct/30/halloween-boo-basket-useless-clutter?CMP=fb_gu&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook&fbclid=IwAR1HhG1J-mqf1zU7ss8lxMCkNwsMJVTKudjgEt4auGVFrS8qwKuIUUUBmQc#Echobox=1698686636

Apparently Halloween spending is set to surpass £1bn in the UK this year for the first time and shops have been making a concerted effort since 00s to introduce more products and use social media influencers to push them.

Then there's pumpkin patches. Basically fields where people place pumpkins as there's none actually growing there and people pay silly prices to go and take pictures for Instagram. A friend of mine paid £50 to take her and DCs to one of these places then she's shelled out £20 on each of them for costumes and over £30 on decorations. It's her business what she spends on but just last month she was complaining about cost of living.

I'm all for celebrating Halloween but it's just about spending more and more money each year. The Instagramisation of it has ruined it and everyone just blindly spends loads on costumes they'll use once and other meaningless tat. Its the shops cashing in and we're all just like sheep who follow the marketing and influencers so we spend more

I was all for Halloween mania in the UK. Then I heard about ‘boo baskets’ | Amelia Tait

These hampers full of useless clutter have nothing to do with the true spirit of the season, says freelance writer Amelia Tait

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/oct/30/halloween-boo-basket-useless-clutter?CMP=fb_gu&fbclid=IwAR1HhG1J-mqf1zU7ss8lxMCkNwsMJVTKudjgEt4auGVFrS8qwKuIUUUBmQc#Echobox=1698686636

OP posts:
DwightDFlysenhower · 31/10/2023 18:33

Bigcoatweather · 31/10/2023 18:25

You do know that you can reuse all the decorations, yes?
It’s been a delight here - happy, giggling children and meeting lots of local parents.

I've just hung up some rubber bats that my DM bought for a Hallowe'en party when I was a baby! 30+ years of use and they still look fine (although the original elastic to hang them up with perished long ago, we just replaced it with cotton). They're only used for one night after all!

QuestionableMouse · 31/10/2023 18:33

There's plenty of farms where the pumpkins are grown on the land. We visited this one recently and they definitely hadn't be "plonked in a field".

https://www.spilmans.co.uk/pyo-pumpkins/

PUMPKIN FEST 2023 - Spilmans

https://www.spilmans.co.uk/pyo-pumpkins

bellamountain · 31/10/2023 18:40

It's been great up my road this evening, all kids have been lovely and polite. Some brilliant costumes, my little one has loved handing out the sweets.

We are getting excited for bonfire night this weekend and the lead up to Christmas.

ohtowinthelottery · 31/10/2023 18:50

When I was a child (late 60's to 70's) we 'celebrated' Halloween with a washing up bowl containing water and apples or with apples hung on string by their stalks. The object of the game was to take a bite out of the apples with your hands behind your back - in the comfort of your own home. No one knocked on doors to get sweets.
My youngest is now 27 and I took him trick or treating but it certainly wasn't as popular as it is now. We've probably had around 50 children knock here tonight and they certainly don't all live on our estate - some of them have come in cars.

Polis · 31/10/2023 18:56

Another who hasn’t fallen for it. I have spent nothing at all on anything Halloween related, nor have I done anything Halloween related.

I haven’t got a problem with anyone else enjoying it, although the orange plastic tat should be banned from sale.

notahappybunny7 · 31/10/2023 19:01

Badbadbunny · 31/10/2023 17:06

Yep, just commercialism to persuade the gullible to buy loads of plastic tat from China and loads of sweets/chocolates.

I’ll take being “gullible” over being a joyless, miserable twat anytime.

Celia24 · 31/10/2023 19:05

YANBU

For those of us with a bit of resourcefulness and imagination costumes and fun dont have to cost a fortune.

GrimGrinningGhosts · 31/10/2023 19:06

Can picture them Celts sat around their bonfire on Samhain discussing how they could make a bob or two off the back of it cant you? 😂

Meanwhile, some people exisit just to suck the joy out of everything. Don't like it? Don't participate. It's not difficult.

VanityDiesHard · 31/10/2023 19:07

What a miserable, moany thread. People are entitled to a little fun. I do agree that the 'boo boxes' are a bit OTT, but the rest is just fun! I adore the period of time between the equniox and the winter solstice, it is the most magical time of the year. I also love Christmas. I get very tired of all the grinches, if you don't like it don't celebrate it, but leave the rest of us in peace!

IHeartGeneHunt · 31/10/2023 19:08

I spent £1.50 on a costume from Vinted that she'll wear as a onesie in the house until she grows out of it, and we went round the estate and got a few sweets. That's it, apart from a £2 Asda pumpkin that's going to be curry tomorrow. I don't do decorations. We've had fun tonight. We knocked on doors that have decorations and pumpkins and they'd got sweets ready, so it's hardly begging.

museumum · 31/10/2023 19:13

It’s Celtic not American. I’ve had some form of Halloween celebration every year that I lived in Scotland since I was tiny in the 70s.
kids here still do a party piece at the door (usually a joke) and although most kids call it trick or treat now, adults still call it guising.
It’s a bit of fun and a nice way to distract ourselves from the fact it was dark by 5 today.

CraftyGin · 31/10/2023 19:21

I grew up in Scotland. For us, Hallowe'en was something you did at Brownies - apple dunking, treacle scones, etc, with a re-enactment of Tam O'Shanter. It didn't exist outside of this in our community.

I know some kids would come around to earn some money, but they would have to do some kind of turn to earn their 10p. There was definitely no tricking. My mother didn't allow us to go out on Hallowe'en (except to Brownies). There was a bit a class divide, I think.

The main celebration at this time was Guy Fawkes, which I always though Guising to refer to. Kids would come around the doors with a Guy in a pram, and would get their 10p. Again, this is not something we were allowed to do.

Ilovecleaning · 31/10/2023 19:23

Of course it is. What else did you think it was?

Lessstressedhemum · 31/10/2023 19:27

Samhain is thousands of years old. Guiding (disguising yourself to scare off malevolent spirits) is an ancient and venerable tradition. It's not American.

tinytemper66 · 31/10/2023 19:29

Not spent a penny on it.

Mumsgirls · 31/10/2023 19:35

Agree , anything in the USA we have to follow like sheep. Was revving up 20 years ago when mine were kids.
Wouldn’t it tone have something original in our culture for a change instead of just apeing the US all the time, with all the money making ploys

ACGTHelixA · 31/10/2023 19:38

Hope this analysis helps :

The evolution of Halloween from its ancient roots to its contemporary manifestation is an intricate tapestry, interwoven with traditions that extend beyond the realms of commerce. Delving into the motivations that propel individuals into Halloween traditions, one unearths a spectrum of reasons that transcend the boundaries of consumerism. Community bonding emerges as a pivotal aspect, with neighborhoods converging in shared celebration. The ritual of trick-or-treating, a time-honored tradition, symbolizes not only a quest for sugary treasures but also an opportunity for neighbors to connect, reinforcing the social fabric.

Creative expression, embodied through the donning of costumes, assumes a central role. Halloween provides a canvas for individuals to step into alternate personas, unleashing creativity and fostering a sense of playful escapism. Beyond the superficial trappings of commercial costumes lie expressions of identity, imagination, and sometimes even social commentary, reflecting the deeper layers of cultural engagement.

Moreover, the enjoyment of festive activities becomes a conduit for communal joy. From haunted houses to pumpkin carving, these activities anchor Halloween in shared experiences that transcend commercial transactions. Community events and fall festivals, steeped in tradition, underscore the endurance of customs that bind people together, offering a counterpoint to the commercial fervor that often accompanies the season.

GrimGrinningGhosts · 31/10/2023 19:39

Mumsgirls · 31/10/2023 19:35

Agree , anything in the USA we have to follow like sheep. Was revving up 20 years ago when mine were kids.
Wouldn’t it tone have something original in our culture for a change instead of just apeing the US all the time, with all the money making ploys

Futurama Squinting GIF

Not sure if serious.....

Robotalkingrubbish · 31/10/2023 19:43

PleaseBePacific · 31/10/2023 17:57

You only knock on doors with pumpkins or decorations obviously

We don’t participate yet our doorbell has been rung at least six times already.

mathanxiety · 31/10/2023 19:46

Yet another fun sponge.

mathanxiety · 31/10/2023 19:50

NigelHarmansNewWife · 31/10/2023 17:22

It may not have originated in the US but the way it's "celebrated" nowadays is definitely imported from the US. From the tat to the dressing up in all sorts of costumes to trick or treating where it's just begging for sweets.

You clearly didn't grow up in Ireland, where Hallowe'en has been a thing for unbroken centuries, and involved dressing up, masks, begging from house to house, etc.

Any objections to the current incarnation of Christmas? It's all a load of German tosh.

Desecratedcoconut · 31/10/2023 19:53

I can only hazard a guess how much fun kids are having in the homes of the misery-is-a-virtue contingent tonight.

Neodymium · 31/10/2023 19:55

It’s big in Australia. It’s a fun evening for the kids. The rule here is that you knock on doors with lights on. If there is no front light, you don’t knock.

never heard of boo boxes here.

as far as I understood it, it’s an old Christian thing, all hallows eve. As the 1st November is All Saints’ Day. Obviously not the same now but that’s the origin. I do find it amusing that one of dds friends who have very Christian parents said that it’s a festival of the devil. Even another poster on here said about how it’s celebrating witchcraft in another thread. Just shows the ignorance of some people.

if you want a witchcraft/pagan origin festival now, that would be Christmas, celebrating the winter solstice, there is no way Jesus was born anywhere near December as he was born during a census and the census wasn’t held in winter. The Christians just appropriated it for themselves.

mathanxiety · 31/10/2023 19:57

cardibach · 31/10/2023 17:32

The nights only ‘suddenly darken’ because of the hour change. Otherwise they’d just keep doing it gradually until mid December. Halloween is, of course, a Christian celebration knocked from a pagan one and going back centuries. The way it’s celebrated recently though - that’s based on the US version. It’s utterly divorced from both the pagan and Christian origins.

The way it's currently celebrated is actually the way it's been celebrated in Ireland for decades, with masks, costumes, party games and decorations, special baking, and going door to door looking for treats. When I was a child we asked for apples and nuts, though a good few neighbors gave out sweets. Sweets have edged out the apples and nuts at this point, but there's still a community bonfire, and since the end of the Troubles there are organised fireworks. Fwiw, the biggest civic Hallowe'en celebration in Europe is in Derry, in NI.

Meowandthen · 31/10/2023 19:58

supernoodletrain · 31/10/2023 17:50

My parents were guising 60 years ago, in costumes with carved turnips. It's absolutely nonsense to suggest it's a recent Americanisation and shows a total level of ignorance.

It was nothing like the American-style jolly Halloween we see now.

The traditions of Samhain are ancient but very different from this import.