Halloween is the evening of 31st October and it was originally referred to as "Allhallows Eve". In times gone by, it marked the beginning of a new year. Today it is an excuse to decorated your home, get dressed up and have a party. Kids love Halloween, not just because they are off school but because they get to go "trick or treating". In this article we will introduce you to the idea of making your own Halloween decorations and turning the activity into quality family time.

Perhaps you have visited friends and been impressed with the home made decorations or have visited a craft fair and watched a demonstrator make things in an instant, but beware. Before you suggest to the kids that they make Halloween decorations make sure you are comfortable with the idea. Not everyone has the time or the talent to make decorations. It is just a matter of sticking to what you enjoy. If you prefer preparing food then there are plenty of Halloween recipes that younger folk can get involved in preparing. Stick to what you are good at otherwise nobody will enjoy themselves.

Before rushing out to buy the bits and pieces you will need to assemble your Halloween decorations and accessories make sure you look around your house. Generally all homes with children have an endless supply of markers, glitter, balloons and coloured card. The hard part is locating it all. Look in all the "nooks and crannies" and you are sure to find most of the craft supplies you will require.

Once you have selected a Halloween party theme, for example scary spiders, you can then start thinking about specific designs. This is where the internet comes in handy. Just do a quick search for Halloween templates and you will get a huge selection of designs including spiders, bats and ghosts. It should take no more than half an hour.

Outdoor Halloween decorations can transform a home, so if you are planning to use the decorations you make outdoors make sure they are weather proof. There is no point expecting decorations made with light crepe paper to last if it is windy or it rains. To avoid disappointment it is probably best to focus on making items that are used indoors and buy any lights or decorations you intend to use outdoors.

Now to some actual suggestions. The one we most enjoy and seems to be very popular is pumpkin decorating / carving. If your children are young then carving a face on the pumpkin is definitely not a good idea but there are plenty of other options. Drawing a design on the pumpkin is just as enjoyable as well as been an activity that even toddlers can participate in.

As you grab a pumpkin and place it in your shopping trolley stop for a few minutes to make sure you are choosing one that is not damaged. This does not usually happen but the last thing you want to find when you get home is that drawing a design on the pumpkin is not possible due to bumps and dints.

Pumpkins do not have to last a long time. They are usually prepared the week before Halloween and are left up for a few days after Halloween night. Even so it is a good idea to apply a base coat of orange paint. This is not so important if you are carving a face on the pumpkin but if you are drawing a design then having a well prepared and smooth surface will help make you design stand out.

When choosing a design to trace onto the pumpkin stick to something simple. For example a basic outline of a ghost or a bat. Older children may want something a little more complicated but start with the assumption that simple and easy is good and anything complicated should be avoided.

Another activity that is very similar to carving a pumpkin is candle decorating. For this activity you will need nice thick pillar candles. It is then just a matter of tracing a design onto the candle using a template and colouring it in. For added effect some people dig down into the candle in the shape of the design.

When planning to make Halloween decorations try not to focus on the "perfect outcome". When young children are involved don't worry about how the decorations look. As long as everyone enjoys themselves you can consider the activity a success. More than likely you will end up doing most of the work yourself.

Perhaps after reading this article the whole process of making Halloween decorations seems like too much work. If that is the case don't worry. There are plenty of other options. Buying decorations online is very easy and relatively cheap. Hanging spiders, scene setters and tombstones can all be used to transform you home.