{"id":4986,"date":"2024-10-11T16:12:21","date_gmt":"2024-10-11T20:12:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.syr.edu\/the-peel\/?p=4986"},"modified":"2024-10-16T12:09:55","modified_gmt":"2024-10-16T16:09:55","slug":"halloween-hosting-101","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.syr.edu\/the-peel\/2024\/10\/11\/halloween-hosting-101\/","title":{"rendered":"Halloween Hosting 101"},"content":{"rendered":"
Hello, Spooky Season! Bring on the tricks and treats. If you\u2019re throwing a ghoulish gathering, here\u2019s a guide to ensure your guests have the most spooktacular time!<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s be real\u2014unless you\u2019re a die-hard Halloween fan, you probably don\u2019t want to be spending your limited funds on a whole new set of accessories for your place. Here’s some creative, but minimal effort, decoration ideas using items that are likely lying around your home.<\/p>\n
Bringing it back to the good old days, instead of snowflakes, try making some paper spiderwebs! Throw on one of your favorite shows or podcasts and craft away.<\/p>\n
I know a fair amount of you likely have some fairy lights hanging around. To spook-ify them, try using Command hooks or tape to arrange them into Halloween-themed shapes or words, such as a ghost or \u201cBOO.\u201d A more crafty idea is to grab a couple of spools of yarn and make an orange and black pompom garland. If you\u2019re feeling daring, you could even try shaping them into some pumpkins or ghosts.<\/p>\n
Lastly, bring out the orange! As ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ students, I\u2019m sure you have an excess of orange accessories in your closet or under your bed\u2013you\u2019re practically set. It\u2019s like Halloween was made for us. While you could always just buy your decor, these are great options for jazzing up on a budget.<\/p>\n
Hosting Priority #1 should almost always be the food. While I\u2019d consider myself a foodie, I don\u2019t think many people would disagree with me! My favorite place to look for inspo for just about everything, especially recipes, is Pinterest. Lucky for you, I\u2019ve already scoped out a couple of Halloween-themed winners. First on the menu is mini peanut butter cup and pretzel stick witches\u2019 brooms<\/a>, making the perfect mix of sweet and salty. For those big sweet tooths, try white chocolate-dipped strawberry ghosts<\/a>. Another fan-favorite is crescent mummy dogs<\/a>. They\u2019re super easy to make and very festive! Personally, I\u2019d suggest a caramel apple charcuterie<\/a> that you can load up with all sorts of toppings\u2014M&Ms, chopped peanuts, sprinkles\u2014the sky\u2019s the limit! Pro tip: the key to a killer party starts with the menu.<\/p>\n Depending on your crowd, it might be necessary to plan some fright-tastic activities. If crafts or games sound like your kind of night, I\u2019ve got some suggestions for you! A simple paint-and-sip night using pumpkins as your canvas and a mug of cocoa is the perfect cozy night in with friends. If you\u2019re looking for something more adventurous, try planning a murder mystery night. Instead of framing the plot points around \u201cClue,\u201d create a storyline that involves your favorite Halloween figures (witches, goblins, you know the drill). For competitive folks, or anyone who is in need of a good laugh, spend the night playing Halloween charades. Compile a list of Halloween-related characters and topics, turn on your acting skills and bring on the competition!<\/p>\n To pair with your tasty goodies, serve some sweater weather drinks. Starting out with a classic: good old apple cider. To spice things up a bit, try it mulled<\/a>. All you have to do is add some cinnamon and citrus fruits, then simmer. It\u2019s completely customizable and guaranteed to be delicious!<\/p>\n A cherished childhood beverage that never fails to satisfy those sweet cravings is hot chocolate. Set up a hot chocolate bar<\/a> with loads of toppings\u2013marshmallows, sprinkles, crushed Oreos, whipped cream\u2014the works. For a more elevated approach, gather different kinds of chocolate and milk and make the base from scratch<\/a> on the stove.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re trying to soak up all the pumpkin you can before winter hits, try making warm pumpkin chais<\/a>. You\u2019ll need chai tea bags, milk, honey and some pumpkin puree. To boost this already lovely latte, froth some milk and top it off with a garnish of cinnamon.<\/p>\n Sometimes a simple movie night is the way to go, especially if you\u2019re feeling wiped out from the week and just want a cozy night in with friends. While you could always throw on a Halloween classic, here\u2019s some atypical suggestions to add a twist: \u201cKnives Out,\u201d the \u201cTwilight\u201d series and \u201cSaturday Night.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cKnives Out\u201d is your run-of-the-mill murder mystery (think \u201cClue\u201d). With a storyline that will keep you second-guessing the whole way through and a spotlight on Chris Evans, this movie is a great choice.<\/p>\n Next up, \u201cTwilight.\u201d Throwing it back to middle school, Halloween is the perfect occasion to rewatch this guilty pleasure. Vampires, Taylor Lautner and a steamy romance\u2014talk about trick-or-treat!<\/p>\n Last but not least is \u201cSaturday Night.\u201d This newly released film features the chaos that was the 90 minutes before the first-ever \u201cSNL\u201d episode went live in 1975. Starring celebrities like Dylan O\u2019Brien and Willem Dafoe, this movie is likely to be a hit amongst any crowd!<\/p>\n Congratulations, you\u2019ve successfully passed \u201cHow to Host Halloween for Mummies.\u201d May all of you have a witchin\u2019 Halloween!<\/p>\n Written By Maggie Anderson<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span>\u201925, S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications<\/strong><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Hello, Spooky Season! Bring on the tricks and treats. If you\u2019re throwing a ghoulish gathering, here\u2019s a guide to ensure your guests have the most spooktacular time! Dreadful Decor Link Let\u2019s be real\u2014unless you\u2019re a die-hard Halloween fan, you probably don\u2019t want to be spending your limited funds on a whole new set of accessories…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":374,"featured_media":4987,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wds_primary_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[206,205,98,473,336,405,406,86],"class_list":["post-4986","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-campus-life","tag-fall","tag-guides","tag-halloween","tag-how-to","tag-mocktails","tag-recipe","tag-recipes","tag-tips"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.syr.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4986","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.syr.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.syr.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.syr.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/374"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.syr.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4986"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/news.syr.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4986\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4997,"href":"https:\/\/news.syr.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4986\/revisions\/4997"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.syr.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4987"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.syr.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4986"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.syr.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4986"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.syr.edu\/the-peel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4986"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Frightening Festivities Link<\/a><\/span><\/h2>\n
Murderous Mocktails Link<\/a><\/span><\/h2>\n
Wicked Watches Link<\/a><\/span><\/h2>\n