The leaves are changing….somewhere, not it Nevada. But, it’s almost Halloween time and there are some activities that we all need to participate in! I’m talking caramel apples, pumpkin carving, tea drinking and, of course, scary movies! I made a printable Halloween Bucket list to help you keep track of the many fall-themed things you need to partake in this year. Or, you can use it as an idea starter! Check them all off, and you’ll be the Queen or King of Halloween!
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Free Printable Halloween Bucket List Download
Alrighty, before we get into it, you probably need the list, right? You can click on the button below, for your free download. it comes with the Halloween Bucket List I made as well as a blank copy for you to make your own! Read on for some ideas!
Watch Hocus Pocus or Hocus Pocus 2!
Hocus Pocus is a Halloween classic! You know it will be on TV about one million times between September and October, so you’ll have plenty of opportunities. And, I’m sure it’s streaming all over, as well. So get your Hocus Pocus on! If you’re looking for some fun Hocus Pocus items for movie night, check out my Hocus Pocus gift list here. You can also get some popcorn inspiration with my Hocus Pocus popcorn recipe in the Halloween Movie Night Post.
Dance to Thriller or Monster Mash
Thriller is great for all ages, and Monster Mash is a favorite among kids! Crank up your radio bluetooth speakers, and get to dancing!
Make a Spooky Cocktail
I have a post for this! I rounded up some amazingly spooky cocktails perfect for Halloween-time. They’re from all over the internet and have many moods from fun, to creepy. Check out the Halloween Cocktail Round Up here.
Dress Up in a Costume
Costumes can be fun, and aren’t just for kids or parties. Bust out that costume creativity and get your Instagram modelling on! Or, be really fun and get a contest going. Check out this idea in my Instagram Costume Contest here. Beyond fun on the internet, if you need some costume inspiration, Studio DIY has some amazing DIY costumes that a super unique, so you don’t have to bust out the age old standards. You can see an example below.
Carve Pumpkins or Melons
Yeah I said it, carve melons! For whatever reason (probably procrastination), my sisters and I carved Honeydew melons one year instead of pumpkins. The grocery store was all out and we just winged it. I will tell you, not only does it smell better to carve melons, you get to eat fruit……and…..they glow so amazingly. The skin of the melon is not as thick and gives off a translucent glow. It’s perfect. But, you can also go traditional and carve pumpkins. Nothing wrong with that!
Create a Halloween Grazing Board
My favorite things on any bucket list, involve food. This is no different. If you haven’t seen a grazing board, boy are you missing out! It’s basically a large charcuterie board with different foods. Halloween is a great opportunity to get your snack board made. One of my favorites is from Play Party Plan. I love the unique color scheme and great variety of food items! You can see the full tutorial on her blog, Play Party Plan here. Check out some other Halloween Food ideas on the EventOTB Pinterest Board here.
Decorate Your House
Decorating is fun and can be as simple or detailed as you want! Pinterest is another great place to find inspiration for this, or just head over to your local TJ Maxx/Home Goods/wherever you buy decor!
Drink or Eat Pumpkin Spice Something
Pumpkin spice everything is around starting in September. You name a coffee shop and there is some pumpkin spice something. Grab a bestie and head out for the pumpkin spice!
Have a Harry Potter Movie Marathon
Something about wizards, owls and magic screams Halloween! Grab your friends and family and have a Harry Potter Movie Marathon. I know some of you hardcore people will watch all of them (soooooo long). But, you don’t have to! Watch two, watch three, or just watch your fave and check it off of your Halloween Bucket List!
Make a Halloween Freakshake or Soda Float
I love a freakshake. Bascially, I love sweets and a freakshake is a milkshake with more sugar piled on and around it, so not much can go wrong here. The Halloween shake below is featured on The How To Home’s website, with a full tutorial about how to make your own Halloween Freakshake. You can see The How to Home’s blog post here. Check out some Pinterest Inspo and start shaking!
Have a Halloween Photobooth
It’s photo time! Photo props are one of my favorite things to make for the Etsy shop. You can find all different holidays and themes there. Halloween is no exception. Grab some props from the Etsy shop, print at home, doll them up and get to snapping!
Host a Halloween Party (Virtual or in Person)
Parties are ever changing nowadays. Whether you’re together or far apart, we have wonderful party options! Start prepping and planning a fun Halloween party. I have a few ideas for you: Harry Potter Theme Party and Halloween Movie Night.
Visit a Haunted Place
You may or may not live close enough to a haunted place to go see one. It would be cool to travel a bit and see one in person, but if you can’t, there are tours on Youtube of haunted places as well! Some ideas for haunted places are:
The Blue Anchor – Delray, Florida
Eastern State Penitentiary – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Turnbull Canyon – Whittier, California
The Clown Motel – Tonopah, Nevada
Poveglia Island, Italy
The Tower of London, England
Read a Scary Book (or Kid’s Book)
I was and am a giant book nerd. I worked at Barnes & Noble full time for over a decade. So, I have plenty of book suggestions for you, old and young. These are some of my favorite scary (and not so scary) books for Halloween.
Kids: Bunnicula Collection by James Howe, The Hallo-Wiener by James Pilky, The Witches by Roald Dahl, Goosebumps Books, In a Dark Dark Room by Alvin Schwartz
Adults: The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving, Button, Button by Richard Mathieson, Stephen King books.
Watch Nightmare Before Christmas
This can go on your Halloween Bucket List and your Christmas Bucket List! It works for both holidays. This movie is iconic and A LOT of people love it, so it had to go on the list. Check out the new Nightmare Before Christmas Cookbook too and make a night of it!
Send a Trick or Treat Package
I love to get mail. It hardly ever happens (except for bills, yay adulting). But, how fun would it be to put together a package and mail it off to someone as a surprise. My mom did this not too long ago. She sent me a bunch of fun little Halloween crafts she picked up at Michaels Craft store. It was the best!
Print Some Halloween Activities
There are Halloween printable activities out there to download and have fun with! Download a coloring sheet, a word search, or any kind of fun paper printable to check off of your Halloween Bucket List!
Make a Halloween Playlist
Get your Halloween playlist ready for the month of October. If you’d like some help, I have some printable playlists you can download below, already themed for you!
Paint Pumpkins
Not unlike carving pumpkins, you can decorate your house with another pumpkin activity. Get some paints at the craft store and start your pumpkin masterpiece!
Create a Halloween Tablescape
Maybe you don’t want to decorate your whole house. Maybe it’s too much time, or money, or effort, and that’s totally cool. But, an easy way to get festive, without going too deep into your pocket book, is to create a Halloween tablescape! One of my favorites is from Peachfully Chic below. Check out some ideas on Pinterest.
Send a Halloween eCard or Physical Card
Halloween can still be a holiday that we send cards! Grab one at Walmart or Target, or find an ecard online to send. Punchbowl has some great free ecards. I’ve got some great eInvite ideas for your Halloween parties on Greenvelope here.
Host a Halloween Happy Hour
Halloween happy hour could be the perfect way to host a party, without hosting a whole party. I have a great roundup of Halloween themed cocktails here. But, get your friends together, or get on Zoom and drink some spooky cocktails! You can add some fun to your cocktail party with these cheeky photo props.
Create Halloween T-Shirts
Have you seen the Tik Tok that shows the Dollar Store method of making Halloween shirts! Seriously, look it up. It involves some bleach, some wood pieces and T-shirts. That’s it!
Make a Rice Krispie Graveyard
This is a classic. It’s basically a bunch of Rice Krispies and some marshmallow Ghost peeps! It’s a great activity for adults, kids, or both. This example below is from Simple Joy. It’s adorable and super simple!
Search Pinterest for a Halloween Craft
Pinterest is a go to for crafting. There are so many creative ideas for craft ideas and holiday ideas as well. Check out some inspiration on Pinterest.
Color a Halloween Coloring Page
A quick Google search will turn up a bunch of Halloween themed coloring pages for your fall festivities! Or, you could get this amazing Adult Halloween Coloring Book on Amazon. It has over 100 pictures of jack-o-lanterns, witches, black cats and more!
Go to an Escape Room or Get Escape the Crate
Escape rooms can be a fun way to get a group together for a Halloween themed activity. There are scary ones, or fun escape rooms. I even saw a “Saw” themed place. You know, like the horror movie! SCARY! Anyways, if you want the stay at home version, Escape the Crate is an awesome subscription box that is like having an escape room in your house! You can see it on Cratejoy.
Make Caramel Apples
Caramel apples are a Halloween staple! You can find caramel this time of year at the grocery store, usually by the produce. Grab some apples – Granny Smith work best! And, you can get sprinkles, chocolate chips, or other toppings!
Trick or Treat
I mean, duh! It’s candy time! Go out and trick or treat with the kids, or do a trick or trunk. Any kind of candy gathering will do!
Make a Halloween Popcorn Recipe
Halloween movies can be funny, serious or totally scary! This blog post I wrote has some of my favorite Halloween movies/tv shows and coordinating popcorn recipes! You can read that post here.
Wrap Up
So, that’s probably enough to keep you busy this Halloween season, right? Download your free printable Halloween Bucket list and get to celebrating pumpkins, ghosts, cocktails and crafts! If you have any fun Halloween activities that you love, that aren’t listed, feel free to comment below and share your ideas with everyone! Happy Halloween!
