Countdown to Halloween - Oct. 31st: Legend of Sleepy Hollow Party

Sat. Oct. 30
Nancy Drew Halloween Party

This year, for our Halloween decorations and the annual Nancy Drew Halloween party that I throw, we decided to go with 2 mixed themes. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and the classic Nancy Drew book #15, The Haunted Bridge.

The setting for Haunted Bridge is at a mountain resort with a haunted bridge in the woods and this meshed well with the setting for Sleepy Hollow and the frightful ride of Ichabod Crane being chased by the Headless Horseman across the bridge.

I created a 2 page story booklet for the guests with a tale I wrote combining the characters from Haunted Bridge and those of Sleepy Hollow where Nancy Drew and her chums attend a masquerade party with Nancy masquerading as Katrina Van Tassel, her boyfriend Ned Nickerson as Brom Bones, and the pest from Haunted Bridge, Mortimer Bartescue, as Ichabod Crane--and the same fateful ride befell Mortimer as it once did Ichabod.

I took the cover of Haunted Bridge and superimposed the Headless Horseman silhouette where the usual "ghost" haunting the bridge is. I set the scene with spooky tree silhouettes on the walls of the porch and a few pumpkins including my Nancy Drew silhouette pumpkins.

A larger scene of trees going up to columns on the edge of the porch and the "haunted bridge" complete with a ghost haunting it at the end.

Spooky Ghost. Brown artist paper was used to make the wood planks, buckets filled with sand held wooden fence posts and rope was stapled between planks.

Mortimer Bartescue/Ichabod Crane's hat and the smashed pumpkin found on the ground near the bridge...

Setting the scene at night--much more spooky!

The Headless Horseman Silhouette

Sleepy Hollow Sign

The gang on the "haunted bridge."

Short Story to Set the Scene

Goody Bags For All

Pumpkins filled with treats

Tootsie Pop Ghost Suckers

Nancy Drew Cupcake Picks

Costumed in front of the Nancy Drew Collection

The story of Nancy Drew and The Haunted
Bridge of the Headless Horseman

The Mystery To Solve

Treats...

Tricks...

The Gift Exchange Table

& Gift Exchange Gifts:

Sherry Picked First--Nancy Drew Decoupaged Book

Book with Treats inside

Nancy Drew Haunted House

Nancy Drew Tin

Nancy Drew Journal

Old Attic Journal

Nancy Drew Trunk

Nancy Drew Basket - The Cat Caper

Nancy Drew Treat Jar

More treats!

The Whole Gang

Goody Bags for the Trick or Treaters
On Halloween

On Halloween, we had 140 trick or treaters--a bit down from last year. We gave out goody bags to the kids with treats and toys. I loved getting goody bags as a kid so I like to do that each year for the kids. Everyone loved the decorations and the parents took pictures from time to time.

Jenn:)

Countdown to Halloween - Oct. 8th: Tootsie Roll Ghost Pops

I loved making the Tootsie Roll Pop Ghost Suckers at Halloween each year! So nostalgic and I still make them from time to time--will be doing so this year. This is a great craft for kids too and so easy to do. Here's a Tootsie Ghost Pop 101 How To.
You can use tissue paper, crepe paper, cloth, actual Kleenex tissues and whatever else you have handy. Other ways to mix it up are to use orange paper to make Jack O' Lantern pops, green paper to make witch pops, and black paper to make cat or bat pops. Add embellishments like ribbon, ears, eyes, and even hats, capes, and outfits.

Did you think when you were growing up that if you found a Tootsie Roll Pop wrapper with the Indian shooting a star you got a free bag. Turns out it's an "urban legend." If you mail them into Tootsie Pops, you'll get this letter in return with a clever story.

Jenn:)