Eimear Hutchinson: Learning to lean into the spirit of Halloween

OCTOBER is upon us and, personally, it is my favourite month in the year.

In October, when you stumble upon a good day it is often the loveliest mix of blue skies and crisp air, the perfect antidote to a wet summer.

October also heralds the advent (or onslaught, depending on how you look at it!) of Halloween. I must it that, up until recent years, I strongly disliked Halloween. When the girls were younger it just seemed like a month-long debate over which costume to wear and whatever was eventually settled upon was rarely right by the time they went to put it on. So, when Halloween eventually rolled around my head was melted from all the debate.

For me, as a parent, I used to think there was very little fun in Halloween; dealing with the vast quantities of jellies and chewy sweets that come through the door always seems to result in arguments, and honestly, has it ever not rained heavily the moment it comes to trick or treat time?!

But then I I was once a child, many moons ago, and I still have fond memories of many a Halloween night; the fun of dres, the thrill of going out with your friends, and all the fun and games we played with my parents.

If, like me, you are dragged into the spirit of Halloween kicking and screaming by your children, the best thing you can do is learn to lean into the spirit of Halloween.

The girls are older now so they come to me weeks, if not months, in advance with their costumes decided, so we have everything ready for Halloween and I’m feeling pretty smug.

A couple of years ago, I decided to invest in some decent decorations, and it was the best thing I ever did because each year I haul the box out, throw up the decorations, and that’s pretty much the extent of my efforts - but it looks great.

I confine the decorations to the hallway, that way the girls are happy because they are greeted with a blast of Halloween when they come into the house, but it doesn’t creep into other rooms making me feel smothered by decorations and clutter.

I do like to mix it up a little though, so each year I make a few decorations for the house simply because it’s an excuse to get creative.

Without a doubt, my favourite Halloween decorating idea, and it’s a very simple and cheap one, is cut-out bats. I cut them on my Cricut, but the shape is so basic it is easy to find a template online to cut out with a scissors, or if you’re any way arty, draw out some bat shapes on black card and cut them out. I stick them to walls with the tiniest dot of blutack as if they are bursting out from somewhere and it is such an effective decoration that I do it every year.

Last year, I made some fabric pumpkins, these were simple to do with just a circle of fabric and a bit of hand sewing and some stuffing. I used old clothes the girls had grown out of or that were no longer fit for purpose, and for stuffing I used an old pillow that had gone lumpy and uncomfortable. I found bits of sticks outside, cut them to size, and used hot glue to attach them to the top of the pumpkin. You can make them in a variety of sizes and they are so cute around the house on a mantlepiece or windowsill.

This year, I made knitted pumpkins, I treated myself to a circular knitting machine last winter to make hats and headbands for myself and the girls, so it was good to get it making something other than hats because the house is full of them at this stage.

The other thing I love to do, and perhaps this is more along the lines of autumnal décor rather than Halloween specific décor, is to do a bit of foraging outside, either in the garden or the woods. I was walking the dog recently after the last storm we had and I spotted the perfect branch, if such a thing exists! I took it home, popped it into a plant pot, and there are currently several felt ghosts hanging off the branches. My smallest lady tells me it’s her favourite decoration.

My favourite flowers in the garden are hydrangeas so each year I take a few blooms off the bush before they start to dry out. Cut off any excess leaves, pop them in a vase with some water, and then leave the water to dry out and your hydrangea head will dry beautifully and last for years. They look good in wreaths at Christmas too. Sorry, it’s way too early to mention Christmas, isn’t it!?