Crafty Costume Party

Here are a few more ideas from Highlights for Children's 1963 book Jumbo Holiday Handbook that are so terrifying that they may cause madness!

Cucurbitophobes rejoice! If your fear of pumpkins fills you with dread every autumn, Jumbo Holiday Handbook has a few clever substitutions that will get you in the decorating spirit! Why not draw faces on some left-over oranges with a permanent marker and use pipe cleaners for stems? Better yet, marshmallows make the best jack o' lanterns of all! Daub food coloring to create dainty features, and then poke a toothpick in its head. Maybe it will be too small next to all the real jack o' lanterns. And maybe it will attract ants, but maybe Halloween could use a little more variety. What other foods would make good jack o' lanterns?


Highlights also has a solution for adults who wish they had a child or helpless pet to dress up for Halloween. Clothespins! Here the author's beloved clothespin is dressed as (from left to right) a French pierrot, a piñata, a phoenix, and a donkey who is also a pimp (just its head). What will you dress your clothespin as this year? (Click on picture for instructions!)

Curly Wurly will have plenty more craft hints for the rest of this fun-filled holiday week!