With the approach of Halloween each year, smart merchandisers are working
their magic to lure us into stores not just for trendy, pricey Halloween
costumes, but the complete get-up which naturally includes trinkets and
props, such as wands, lanterns, swords, crowns or lightning bolts. Does
this sound familiar? The pressure from companies and the kids to
buy new Halloween apparel and accessories year after year can be
emotionally exhausting, making us feel like we are bad parents if we don’t
spring for the newest released shiny objects.
Additionally, the kids will also covet a new, cool bag/bucket/basket to
accommodate the stash of candy they will be collecting. In order to get
around some of the pull for the current year’s latest and greatest, I put
my kids to work on designing their own trick-or-treat bags.
Supplies
:
- Small paper shopping bags. Ours happened to be from Starbucks. The
important thing is that each of your young designers have the same size of bag to work with to eliminate any arguing about who
has more candy at the end of your trick-or-treating night. - Crayons, markers, colored pencils, pens, pencils, highlighters (Pull out
everything you’ve got!) - Scissors (Decorative scissors are a nice addition, too, if you have
them.) - Stencils
- Glue
- Any and all types of construction/craft paper, scraps of wrapping paper,
tissue.
Steps
:
- Completely cover the outside of the paper bag with your thickest paper.
For starters, this will block out the logo of the store your bags came
from. It will also provide a stronger base for the weight of all that
candy. Tip: Don’t forget to cover the bottom because this will further
strengthen the bag. - This is where you sit back and sip your coffee as you let the kids come
up with their personal designs. Pumpkins? Ghosts? Candy? Text with cheery
Halloween sayings? A little comic strip? These were some of the ideas my
kids came up with using lots of cutting and pasting to layer paper objects
into place, a bit more interesting than simply drawing on the design. - When your trick-or-treat bags are complete, they should feel sturdy.
This is because your kids likely went through a bottle of glue and thus,
the result could feel closer to a paper mache project. Put these original
works of art somewhere safe, up high, where they can dry completely before
they are put to use.
