2008 Halloween Gift Ideas
Halloween Gift Basket from That Certain Gift
Well, we aren’t going to come up with and publish two thousand and eight different Halloween gift ideas because it’d be awfully time-consuming, but we will bring up 8 great unique gift ideas for coming up with that great present for Halloween!
It seems as if Halloween season begins earlier and earlier each year. We had barely begun to enjoy our Labor Day Weekend when stores began putting up black and orange decorations and selling Halloween merchandise. But perhaps this is a good thing, because it’s never too early to start thinking about what Halloween costume you’ll want to wear or what to give friends and family members for this holiday!
Here are our (non-comprehensive) guide to Halloween gifts!
8). A trip to see a haunted house
Take the time to take out someone close to you for a fun and spooky haunted house! Many big cities have professional haunted houses, while public community groups in smaller towns put on pretty elaborate productions as well. If you don’t have the time to take your friend out, maybe a great gift would be to give tickets to the event or Halloween haunted house. In this same vein, many theme parks across America have wonderful Halloween-related events.
Disneyland in California has Halloween Time, while Walt Disney World in Florida has Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party, an after-hours celebration that includes a special parade and fireworks show that’s not included in regular admission. These make great treats for children. For older Halloween fans, Knott’s Berry Farm in California has Knott’s Halloween Haunt (Knott’s Scary Farm), and Universal Studios and Six Flags Magic Mountain also have Halloween events with characters from their affiliate franchises, scary mazes, and ghoulish entertainment. If you live close to a theme park, you might look into what fun Halloween activities they might have!
7). Scary Halloween Movies!
Another great Halloween gift to give is a DVD of a scary movie! Whether it’s horror, suspense or mystery, some movies tap into our deepest, darkest fears and basic emotions. Check out these great Halloween hits recommended by Reader’s Digest magazine. If you’re in the mood for scary, how about Dracula, Frankenstein, The Exorcist, or the Halloween horror movie series? For something lighter, try the “Scary Movie” spoof movies or Tim Burton’s “Nightmare Before Christmas.”
6). Create a Halloween party kit.
A great gift is to give a Halloween party kit, which could help a friend or neighbor put on a delightful Halloween-themed extravaganza. This could be a delightful gift basket, filled with decorations, supplies, and candy.
Go to your local party supply store or drugstore and find Halloween-themed cups, plates, napkins, and cutlery. They are usually in black and orange, the colors of Halloween. They might have Halloween-themed images on them, including images of bats, witches, vampires, and of course, lovable Jack O’Lanterns. The recipient of this gift will be able to throw his or her own Halloween party using these themed party accessories.
Your Halloween Party Gift Kit could also include a pumpkin carving set. These include several Halloween patterns that you simply place on your pumpkin and carve using the effective but not dangerous carving knives. Some kits even include an ingenious pumpkin seed scooper, so you don’t have to touch the slimy pumpkin insides.
5). Decorations
These are widely available in craft stores, thrift stores, gift stores, and drugstores. Remember the traditional Halloween colors of orange and black, as well as other colors such as green, purple and brown. Give a delightful Halloween decoration for your favorite acquaintance, friend, or family member.
Some fun Halloween decorations include hanging ghosts that make sounds and shake when people walk by. Other decorations include fake tombstones for a front yard, a witch who has slammed into a tree trunk on her broomstick, hanging bats from the roof, fake cobwebs and spiderwebs, bunting and wreaths made from colorful autumn leaves, glow-in-the-dark ghosts, and random monster statuettes or figurines. Think haunted house chic. Imagine what would go inside a house of horrors, and come up with decorations that would befit the setting.
Speaking of creating the right setting, no Halloween would be complete without great lighting:
4). Lighting
You could give a friend or family member great lighting effects for Halloween. Consider giving a gift of a black light that gives everything white a ghoulish glow. Or, perhaps a great set filled with pumpkin-scented candles, black votives, and seance-appropriate glowing white candles. And, in this age of technology, you can find flameless candles — fake candles that glow through the power of batteries and LED lights. These are safe to leave unattended because they do not use actual fire, and some are even rechargeable, freeing you from the need to purchase many batteries. Candles create the perfect Halloween mood, so consider giving Halloween candles as a gift.
You could also give spooky lanterns just right for Halloween. Some are shaped as pumpkins and Jack O’Lanterns, while others are shaped like ghosts. Place one on your porch to show that you are in the Halloween spirit and welcome trick-or-treaters. It lights up the place and sets the right mood!
3). Costumes
What’s Halloween without costumes?
Know a youngster who loves Halloween each year for a chance to trick-or-treat? Give them a fun costume! It makes a great gift for children. Are they a fan of Batman or Spider-Man or any other superhero? Give them a costume of that character!
Check in with the child’s parents first to make sure they haven’t planned a costume already, but otherwise, a delightful costume that is loved by a child makes a wonderful Halloween gift. Popular characters this year include Indiana Jones, Batman, Hellboy, and Hannah Montana.
Adults can also benefit from a costume gift, because many take this holiday as an opportunity to go to a fun party. They’ll have to dress up, of course, so giving a costume gift would be a great idea and help ease the annoyance of having to decide what to be for Halloween!
2). Trick-or-treating bags
Everyone loves trick-or-treating, so a great Halloween gift is a trick-or-treat bag. You can make one using a fabric pattern by stitching together two pieces of cloth from the fabric store or crafts store, or you can buy a generic bag and decorate it with paint and scrapbook decorations to turn a drab cloth or paper bag into an exciting trick-or-treat bag!
Children will love using a festive bag to collect their mounds and mounds of candy on Halloween night. Speaking of candy… our top Halloween gift idea:
1). Candy, of course! Most everyone loves sweets, and Halloween, among other things, is a celebration of candy! From candy corn to candy apples, from M&Ms to Sugar Daddies, from Nerds to Tootsie Roll Pops, there’s no shortage of Halloween candy.
Candy is a long-running tradition associated with Halloween, and it puts people in the right mood when they receive a delightful candy gift for the holiday. Whether it’s gummy fruit, chocolate truffles, or gourmet chocolate bark, or even just candy corn from the supermarket, candy is a great gift to give. Candy runs from the cheap to the super-gourmet. Find out what kind of sweets your gift recipient loves and give them some of that candy!
If you create your own Halloween gift basket, you’ll have to be sure to include tons of candy inside!
Remember to stay safe this Halloween season! Check your children’s candy if it’s from strangers to make sure the candy is still in the wrapper and has not been tampered with. Don’t eat anything that’s not sealed or fully wrapped unless you trust the person who gave it. And stay safe while trick-or-treating in the darkness of night! Stay on brightly-lit roads and only visit homes with lots of lighting and Halloween decorations.
Halloween can be a great gift-giving season. We at The Gift Ideas Blog hope that these Halloween gift ideas have been helpful. If you have any gift suggestions, let us know! And Happy Halloween!!!
