Oakland County Safe and Fun Halloween
Create Kid-Safe Jack-O’-Lanterns
Oakland County Safe and Fun Halloween is a great time of year to let the creativity go wild, and when decorating for this fun and family-oriented holiday, it really wouldn’t be complete without a jack-o’-lantern or two! While carving pumpkins is the traditional way to create a jack-o’-lantern, if you have young children or kids who want to create jack-o’-lanterns without adult supervision, then it can be a dangerous and risky craft idea. You would be surprised at the number of kids, and 
even parents, who end up in emergency rooms each year from pumpkin carving related accidents. So to prevent this from happening to your family, here are some safe carving tips and alternatives to keep little fingers safe!
Alternatives To Carving
While carving a jack-o’-lantern is the traditional way, more and more people are choosing to paint their pumpkins as a safe and kid-friendly alternative to pumpkin carving. The easiest method is to use stencils similar to ones that you would use in carving, and simply paint the image in black paint rather than cutting it out. This can include things like simple faces, or more complicated images such as a silhouette of a witch flying on a broom or even a skeleton. You can also get really creative with this idea and use other colors! Try painting an entire pumpkin silver or gold, or even just let the kids go crazy and create a one-of-a-kind pumpkin masterpiece.
For The Jack-O’-Lantern Purist
If the idea of painting your jack-o’-lantern doesn’t appeal to you, and you want the effect of the glowing light shining through on Halloween night, there are a few steps you can take to prevent injury. Be sure that you always have an adult supervising any children who will be carving, and purchase a special carving knife that is safe for children to use. Also, you may want to do the actual carving yourself, and just have the kids draw on the stencil and scoop out the pumpkin. Also, if you are going to light your jack-o’-lantern, be sure you use a flashlight, or even better a battery operated tea light, rather than a candle. It will prevent accidents, and you won’t have to re-light it throughout the night.
Fabulous Homemade Halloween Costumes
Halloween is the time of year when you can dress up as just about anything you want to be. While store-bought costumes certainly offer convenience, a costume made at home is more fun, often more affordable, and can look just as good if not better. You probably have the components of a great costume in your house right now—take a look at these simple ideas for great homemade costumes.
Fairy Tale Princess
Every little girl in Oakland County wants to be a princess, and it’s one of the easiest costumes to put together at home. Remember that bridesmaid dress that you had to buy but never want to wear again? It could be the perfect ball gown for a little Cinderella. A cocktail length dress makes the perfect floor length gown on a younger girl—you will probably have to take in the waist a little, but even if you can’t sew, a wide band of ribbon tied around the waist will pull it in. Safety pins can fix any other areas not fitting well.
All you will need to finish it off is some costume jewelry and of course a tiara. Make your own by using a basic headband and some cardboard: cut out a piece of cardboard in the shape of the crown portion and then decorate it with paint and rhinestones!
Rock Star
Who doesn’t want to be a rock star? This one is among the easiest to put together at home! A pair of torn blue jeans (use an old pair!) topped with a black t-shirt are a great start. Paint the name of your child’s “band” onto the t-shirt with crafting puff paint. Then add some hair gel and give your little rock star a rockin’ new ‘do. Girls can add some makeup. A toy microphone, available at most dollar stores, will finish the look.
The Robot
This classic homemade Halloween costume is as much fun to make and wear as it ever was. Create the robot’s body from cardboard boxes, and then add arms made from flexible tubing. You can use paint to decorate the box however you like. A metal colander is the classic robot hat, but you can also use a silver baseball cap as a more comfortable choice.
There are many fun homemade Halloween costumes you can put together easily. If you enjoy crafting and think a unique homemade look is better than a store-bought costume, then take the time to make something special!
Halloween really is a great time for the families in Oakland County to get creative together, and keeping everyone safe while having fun will make the season most enjoyable for everyone!
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