Homemade Halloween outfits

We had a bat outfit - black tights, top, black hat and half an old black umbrella for wings. subsequent years we had a table tennis bat, (ping pong balls) a cricket bat, a tennis bat - etc etc!!

Oh dear-it's absolutely the last thing I would ever "celebrate"! What is "happy" about Halloewen? I (and DDs) avoid it like the plague. Cannot understand why anyone would think it appropriate to dress children up in such evil outfits? And to allow "trick or treating" leaves me speechless!

Trick or treating is modern input, but the tradition of celebrating Halloween is a very old one. It originated in Scotland and permeated down to the NE. My children used to visit a chap in his eighties who talked about what he did as a child. You had to sing a song or recite a rhyme for your treat.

Newquay - have you not seen the happiness of a 3 year old pumpkin when a neighbour gives them a treat? Or of giggling ten year old witches and wizards when told they look great and given a handful of sweets.
I guess you're not a Harry Potter fan either.

You're right there Elrel?
In a world that's so full of evil I just can't understand why anyone would encourage children to celebrate it? Honestly it's just lost on me altogether.
There was a lady I knew who always used to go over the top on Hallowe'en. Her life was such a mess-I'm not suggesting COS of that I hasten to add! I asked her why on earth she "celebrated" bad stuff. She looked aghast-it had never crossed her mind. I suspect many folks are like that-just don't realise quite what they could be messing with. I do all I can to protect my lovely DGC-as, of course, I'm sure you all do too so I would never encourage them to meddle in these things. We try to concentrate on the good not the bad. Don't be deceived by lovely giggling youngsters who, in their innocence, have no idea what could lie behind this.

Children are fascinated with ghosts and such. Dressing up helps them to see this as a bit of fun, there is a fine line between horror and excitement. With the addition of a load of sweets it’s easy to understand the popularity of Halloween.

Each year local children, accompanied by their parents, visit their neighbours to "trick or treat" them. They only visit houses that have a lit pumpkin on display, as this is seen as a sign of welcome. Last year, I was visited by several groups of children, aged from about 3 to 15 years old. Every child was dressed in a fancy dress costume and very excited to be out. Without a single execption, every child was impeccably polite and a pleasure to meet and I really enjoyed seeing their costumes. They said that they would not knock on any door that had no visible sign of wanting to take part in Halloween. Kids can get such a bad press; but the vast majority just want a bit of fun and make believe. If putting on a witches hat and carrying a broom stick is the worst they'll do.... bring it on.

I have always tried to dress my DC and DGC in original home made costumes for the many events for which they are requested. Sadly these days parents do tend to rush out and buy expensive outfits instead, though I accept that many of them are working and have very little time.

My DGS recently had to dress up as a woodland creature at the end of a school project. It was at very short notice so I used an old rucksack and a silver plastic bag from an Amazon purchase stuffed with the contents of an old pillow case and rolled up to represent a snail shell. It was finished off with a pair of comic antennae on his head ... quick, simple and effective.

When I picked him up he told me everyone had laughed at him and was fighting back tears! I saw that most of them were dressed in bought fox, bear, or rabbit onesies. I had looked online previously and found at £25 to £30 each these were ludicrously expensive! I was furious and mortified for him. This is normally a good, caring, family orientated school and |I could not believe this had happened especially as they had been told not to buy anything specially. I have asked his father to have a word with the school as it is not my place.

I believe in originality and creativity and won't bow down to commercialism but I am now worried that it may well have an adverse effect on my DGC. They have asked for Halloween costumes and where normally I would make them cheaply now I am not so sure. What do others think?