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Adult Halloween Games To Liven Up Your Halloween Party

Halloween isn't just for kids anymore. Plenty of adults celebrate the day as well. Halloween parties are a common event for many adults these days. If you're planning a party of your own, here are some fun adult Halloween games to liven it up.

Photo Scavenger Hunt

The object of a photo scavenger hunt is to get pictures of all the items using a digital camera or a Polaroid camera so the pictures can be judged right away.

Break your guests up into several small groups and give each of them a list of items they have to find. They can all get the same items or you can make each one different if you don't want them tripping over one another in their search.

They head out on foot or by car to find the items and take pictures of themselves with each one. I like to make them find someone to take their picture if possible - if the whole group isn't in each one, they get penalized.

You can choose the winner by the first team to finish, the team with the most creative pictures or whatever criteria you want.

Make the scavenger hunt items fit the theme of your party. You could use a tombstone, a hockey mask, red paint or a horror movie poster for example.

Pumpkin Bowling

This one is fun for any age, really, but adults can have a lot of fun with it.

Partially fill ten 2 liter pop bottles with water to weight them down, then decorate them to fit the theme of your party.

Set them up in the standard 10 pin layout.

Have your guests "bowl" with pumpkins. The smaller gourds usually work best, or at least smaller pumpkins. Round ones tend to roll better but the ones that aren't as perfect make the game a lot more challenging.

Pumpkin Carving

A lot of people have switched to painting pumpkins rather than carving, both for safety and for longer lasting jack-o-lanterns. But carving is still the best in my opinion. There's nothing that says Halloween like the light of a candle flickering through the face of a pumpkin.

You can buy carving kits at most craft and hobby stores around Halloween, with small tools for more detailed carving.

They usually come with stencils as well but for this game you'll probably want to leave it up to your guests to do freestyle.

You can judge the game in several ways - the first to finish their pumpkin, the most creative (in your judgement or the entire group's), the scariest, etc.

And there are plenty of children's games that are just as much fun for adults - bobbing for apples, Twister, musical chairs, etc. Don't worry about whether it's a "mature" thing to do - just worry about whether your guests enjoy themselves!

Are you looking for ideas for adult Halloween costumes? Check out the Get In Costume website for lots of fun & creative costume ideas. Plus, get a free copy of my special report "The Family Guide To Halloween Safety" at http://www.getincostume.com

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How To Make Your Own Captain America Halloween Costume

Captain America fans across the world have flocked into cinemas to see this year's release of the film, and with this surge in popularity it is expected that Cap will be arriving on doorsteps looking for candy. With this in mind, the Captain America Halloween costume should be easily obtainable.

Most costume stores should carry the outfit, but with the low price tag can come the low quality and some fans may not be content with the looks given. Superheroes typically have a high standard of looks, and an avid fan might want to emulate this, though specialist stores are often incredibly expensive.

In order to make your own costume, the first step is deciding which style to pay homage to. In the film we see the hero using a firearm, whilst in comics he was a hand to hand specialist. This is not only an aesthetics dilemma to consider, but also a legal one as the police patrol looking for deviant revelers.

Similarly, the shield Cap uses has typically been a circular type, but he has on a few occasions used a heater shield. The round shield measures at 2.5 feet wide, so plastic or something similarly light might be the preferred material to use rather than the vibranium-iron alloy in comics.

Decorated in red, blue and white with stars and stripes, the image is a patriotic one, topped off by the freedom wings at the side of the head representing the liberty eagle. The mask is blue, and has eye holes and a gap for the nose and mouth.

The torso in the comics was made of something akin to scale, but cloth should be a viable alternative. Light blue in colour, a five point star, in white, is across the center of the chest. Around the abdomen a circle of red and white vertical lines gives a girdle appearance to the suit.

The torso's blue stops at the arms as it approaches the elbow and is changed for a white, which seems to extend all the way to the hands. Red gloves cover the white, though, and stretches towards the elbow, making it difficult to determine. The trousers are blue, and boots are red, in a folded over design which may be difficult to acquire in stores.

The circular shield has three rings of red, then white, then red, and blue at the center with a white star similar to the chest. The heater shield has three stars at the top on a blue background, and vertical lines with blue in the center and edges, flanked on each side by whites, and two reds flanking those.

For more information about Captain America costumes make sure you visit the blog named adult Captain America costume.

Great Halloween Costume Ideas For Men

Are you tired of the same old Dracula, Elvis or grim reaper costumes? Perhaps you're looking to try something different this Halloween? Using your imagination and a few unique props you can put together, here are a few men's Halloween costume ideas that will make you stand out from the crowd this year.

Blackjack Dealer

Dress yourself in black dress pants, a black vest, white shirt, black bow tie, and of course a name tag. The blackjack table prop will take a bit of skill. Using heavy cardboard, cut out an angled U shape from cardboard. Paint the cardboard black and secure green felt along the top. Along the wider outer edge, draw rectangular shapes to indicate where the cards will be dealt. Closer to your body, add some information like "Vegas Casino", etc. in fancy script. Attach two long straps to the front and back of the table to slip over your shoulders. And there you have it... a portable blackjack table. Don't forget to carry a deck of cards with you!

Victorian Vampire

Instead of a typical Dracula cape, dress yourself in black pants and a long Victorian styled black coat. Line the collar in red velvet and stand it up. Attach a shoulder cape (some of these Victorian coats already come with the cape attached), add grey lace ruffles at the cuffs. Finish off with a grey lace cravat in place of a tie, and a black top hat.

Zombie Doctor

You'll need some doctor scrubs and a lab coat. Tear and rip the bottoms and cuffs of each clothing piece. Using fabric paints or dyes add blood stains to the garments. If you're feeling particularly gross, attach some fake "flesh" here and there. Cover your head with a surgical cap and zombie face mask. Wear "bloody" latex gloves to cover your hands. Don't forget your stethoscope doctor!

Chick Magnet

Cut out foam in the shape of a magnet and cover the magnet with a shiny gray material. Cover the last 6 inches of each end with black material. Glue or pin small toy baby chickens on the edges of the magnet. Place the magnet around your neck and shoulders.

(c) 2006. Rose Smith. Halloween Howl is your online Halloween party planner

We cover everything from spooktacular theme party ideas to how to decorate, what games to play, what food to prepare, unique costumes to wear, plus lots, lots more. It's Halloween fun for the whole family. Come visit us today.

Halloween Face Painting Ideas

Halloween is such fun for kids of all ages, and adults too. Here are some face painting ideas to get you in the Halloween spirit.

Halloween face painting idea 1: pumpkin

A bright orange pumpkin painted on each cheek. Black paint used to paint eyes, nose and mouth. A light grey would be used to show the ridges of the pumpkin as well as its outline.
An alternative would be to do a full face pumpkin with an orange face base (blending a darker orange shade over cheekbones), black triangle shape over the eyes (extending above and below the eye area), a black nose and a large black mouth (need to cover more than just the lips).

Halloween face painting idea 2: skull

A full face design. Has a white face as the base, large black 'panda' eyes, black and white vertical stripes on the lips (with the white stripes wider than the black ones) and a trickle of red from one side of the mouth (to indicate blood).

Halloween face painting idea 3: vampire

A full face design. A white face base, bright red lips, fangs coming out of each corner of the lower lip (outline is light grey, fill is white, and tip is red to denote some blood), eye lids are smoky grey (right up to and over eye brows), eye brow then exaggerated with black sweeping strokes.

Halloween face painting idea 4: bat

A full face design. A white face base, bat's face painted on forehead above the nose (it's in black with light grey for eyeballs, and for some definition in ears); the bat's body is painted in black on the nose and ends at the base of the nostrils (use different shadings of black; the bat's wings extends out from head and body and covers the eyes curving up towards the temple and down the outside of the eye to mid cheek (again use different black shadings and some fine dark grey strokes to paint some definition into the wings); the lips are painted in dark grey with an exaggerated upward curl at the corners.

For another 50 face painting ideas - click here to check them out.

If you would like to learn face painting techniques - click here to for more information.

From Penny Crane - http://GreatFacePaintingIdeas.com

Halloween Recipes - Icky and Gross Halloween Party Food

Halloween food can be great fun when dishes like Fake Mucus are served. Whether you use these Halloween recipes for a party or as scary snacks for your family, these creepy dishes will provide a spooky menu and ghoulish Halloween party ideas.

Eerie Eyeballs: Hard boil 12 eggs. Cool and peel each one. Cut them in half lengthwise. Remove the yolks and mix them with mayonnaise and mustard until your mixture is smooth. Scoop the mixture back into the white eggs. Now add one pimento stuffed green olive to the center of each egg for an eerie eyeball.

Fake Mucus: Heat one-half cup of water until it starts to boil then remove the water from the stove. Sprinkle in 3 packages of unflavored gelatin, let it sit for a few minutes, then stir it with a fork. Add light corn syrup until you have about 1 cup of thick liquid. Stir again with a fork until you have long strands of thick snot. Add water if you want your snot a little thinner.

Human Finger Food: Using 1 package of refrigerated biscuit dough, separate biscuits and roll each one out until good and flat. Take 5 hot dogs and cut each one of them in half. Lay each halved hot dog onto the center of a flattened biscuit and roll the dough around the hot dog. Placed the wrap hot dog on a cookie sheet. Using 10 sliced almonds, put an almond on each rolled up hot dog at the end so it looks like a finger nail. Now with a tooth pick draw knuckle lines and bake for 10 minutes (bake at the temperature listed on the biscuit dough package). Use ketchup as a bloody looking dip.

Little Witch's Broom: The little brooms are made with fruit roll ups and thin pretzel sticks. Cut off 2 inches lengthwise from the fruit roll up. Turn the fruit roll up so the short ends are on the sides. Now on one long end, cut little broom bristle strips almost to the top (leave about 1/4" uncut). Using a little water, wet the top long end of the fruit roll up and wrap that around the end of one of the pretzel sticks. You just made a witch's broom you can eat.

Gross Brains: Cut 2 very ripe avocados in half (lengthwise) and discard the pits. Scoop out the meat of the avocados into a large bowl, throwing the skins away. Mash the avocado meat until just a few lumps remain. Stir in 5 ounces of shredded cheddar cheese, 4 tablespoons of medium chunky salsa and 5 sprigs of chopped cilantro. Salt and pepper to taste. Gross, but so good!

Frog Guts: Start by melting 1 stick of margarine in a large pan. To the margarine, add 40 large marshmallows and cook over low heat, stir constantly until the margarine and the marshmallows are melted. Remove from heat. Now add 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla extract and 2 teaspoons of green food coloring and mix well. Next, add 5 cups each of corn flake cereal and M&M's and mix again. Mixture should be bright green. Using a tablespoon, drop the mixture on a sheet of wax paper and cool for awesome frog guts.

Berry Brains: Make a package of blueberry jello and chill until it's firm. Scoop a 16 ounce carton of small curd cottage cheese into a bowl. Drain a 16 ounce can of blueberries in syrup and save the syrup. Mix the blueberries into the cottage cheese and stir well. Add food coloring to turn the cottage cheese a grayish color. Serve by putting a few spoonfuls of jello on a plate, pour some the blueberry syrup on that, and a scoop of the cottage cheese and blueberry mixture on top of that.

Impress your Halloween party guests with more eerie food with this impressive collection of Halloween recipes. Don't miss the videos in our selection of recipes, including such delicacies as Baked Monster Knuckles and Puss Filled Pimples.

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How to Make a Dragon Halloween Costume For Kids

Making dragon Halloween costume for your kids this Halloween is a great idea. You can make it by using basic green clothing items and cutting dragon features from fabric, cardboard and felt easily. By using green tennis ball halves for eyes and creating a large nose with sculpting clay, make a whimsical dragon face. To make him fire-breathing creature, orange chiffon in the dragon's mouth.

Let's have a look at great ideas about making Dragon Halloween Costume. To make Baby Costumes, paint two ping-pong balls and two small pill bottles green. After that, use black paint to make eyes on the balls and outline the open edges of the bottles for nostrils of dragon. Then glue them at the top of a child's green hooded sweatshirt firmly. Now cut teeth shapes on a piece of white cardboard and paste it around the top edge of the hood that's under the nostrils. With saw-tooth cut a curved tail edges from brown cardboard and glue it to the back of the shirt. Then, cut a smaller saw-toothed piece and glue it to the center of the hood by starting it right behind the eyes. Next, cut sixteen small V shapes from brown cardboard and glue four each to the ends of a pair of green mittens and to the ends of the feet of green footed pajamas carefully.

To make Dragon Halloween Costume for Children follow these guidelines. Firstly use a green sweat suit in the child's size. Then with a paint marker, draw scallops all over the sweat suit to resemble Dragon skin. Afterwards cut a piece of yellow cotton for a belly of the Dragon. Sew or fuse it to the front of the sweat shirt carefully.

Secondly cut one leg off a pair of girl size large opaque green tights carefully. This is going to be the tail. Then, make a pointed cone shape from cardboard and slip it into the toe. Stuff the leg with fiberfill and sew the end closed tightly. After cutting upside-down V shapes from tan felt and paste them to the top of the tail firmly.

Now cut the feet off a pair of boys' socks for horns of the Dragon. Then, make two small pointed cone shapes from cardboard. Slip them into the toes of the socks and stuff the socks with fiberfill to the full. Now fold the heels over and sew the ends closed firmly. After doing this make a Dragon-face mask from your cardboard and paste the horns to the top. Don't forget to cut a rubber band apart and staple it to the sides. It's going to be a great Dragon Halloween Costume.

Now it's turn of a special Lady Dragon. You have to buy or make a long black sheath dress. For this a simple jersey knit will work fine. Find a Dragon silhouette on the internet or in one of pattern books. Enlarge it to fit the front of the dress ranging from just above the waist to below the knees. Now cut the Dragon from gold lame fabric and fuse it to the front of your dress.

Make small horns from sculpting clay and glue them to a black headband. Cover the rest of the headband with fake red jewels carefully. Now it's time to apply long claw-like nail tips to your nails and paint them bright red color. Just wear black shoes and carry a long black cigarette holder with you. You are going to rock the party with this Dragon Halloween Costume.

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10 Most Popular Halloween Costumes for Men

When men dress up for Halloween, they either want something funny, scary or ridiculous. If it's easy to buy or make, so much the better. This year's list of Top 10 Best Halloween Costumes for men includes some fantastic ideas for the hip Trick of Treater. Many of these ideas will work well with a spouse or date as well. Get ready for lots of belly laughs, tricks and treats when you show up in one of these costumes.

1. Shrek. The popularity of the Shrek movies has made dressing up like an ogre the cool thing to do. The mask for the ugly green guy will have everyone guessing your identity. It's a great idea if you've got kids who love the movies or if you've got a Fiona in your life who'll dress up as your better half.

2. Police Officer. Impersonate an officer for the night with a realistic-looking policeman costume. The ladies love a man in uniform and you'll have fun playing the role of a civil servant walking his beat. Bring a donut and a cup of coffee to the party to add even more realism to your costume.

3. Elvis. Rock it out this Halloween with the King. Go with the full-on white rhinestone leisure suit and black wig with sideburns. Practice a couple Elvis numbers before the party and bust them out to liven up the mood. The ladies won't be able to help falling in love with you!

4. Saturday Night Fever. No one's more recognizable than John Travolta and his Saturday Night Fever outfit. Show up in a white bell bottom pantsuit with dog eared collar. Get the moves down and you'll steal the show on the dance floor at the party.

5. Mad Hatter. Johnny Depp's take on the Mad Hatter from the new Alice in Wonderland movie has turned madness into a fashionable affliction. Go as this wacky tea party host complete with top hat and tricked out wig. Score extra points by bringing Halloween cookies to go with the tea.

6. Michael Jackson. A tribute to the late great King of Pop is hot this season. Grab your one white sparkling glove and get ready to thrill your audience. You can really have fun with this. Grab a black wig and hat and Sgt. Pepper jacket and you'll have all the Pretty Young Things eating out of your gloved hand.

7. Canned Spam. The meat everyone loves to hate is at the top of best-dressed lists this Halloween. This is a costume you can either make out of cardboard or buy. Either way, it's a hysterical take on tinned, pressed meat.

8. The Joker. All you need is some face paint to pull off the Joker look. Grab a buddy and have him play Batman to your Joker.

9. Santa Claus. Believe it or not, the big red elf himself is going to be hot on the Halloween circuit this year. Don a Santa suit a little early in the season and you'll be the merriest one at the party.

10. The M&M. What could be sweeter than you in tights and a big round candy shell? The M&M has delighted Halloween party goers for years and it's still going strong this year. Make yourself into a peanut or a regular M&M for a night full of wacky fun.

Barbara Petersen is a mother, wife and event planner. She enjoys the holidays and preparing for big events and celebrations. Watch for articles by her on Christmas gifts, party planning and other fun activities.

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Spooky Halloween

Halloween is an occasion to enjoy. Dressing up in a Halloween costume makes this night even more fun filled even if it is done just for a single night. But the most important thing to keep in mind while selecting your costume is that it should be comfortable and safe.

Along with New Year, come more and more ideas on dresses for the Halloween. While shopping for your costume, you might want to find out what costumes are 'in' this year. Only after that you decide about your purchase. Actually there is a wide range to choose from. There are different costumes for men, women and children.

It is your personal choice about how you want your theme to be. You can choose to masquerade as a movie actor or a pirate or some cartoon. In fact you can pick any costume you want and you need not worry about it.

Many people also design their own costume. It can reflect you as a person and also display your creativity. Designing and creating your own dress can be really entertaining. It allows your imagination to run wildly and reach its extreme ends. You can also opt for renting costumes. But if you are too late, then probably most of the good outfits would be gone. So the shopping should be done as early as possible.

While selecting your Halloween outfit, safety should be of prime importance. Do not wear any such thing that can hinder your clear vision. You should be able to see, hear and feel everything that goes around you. If you are into trick and treat, then make sure you carry some flash light along with you so that the passing automobiles are able to see you from distance. If the weather is cold, it is a smart decision to purchase a costume that is large enough to let you wear some warm clothes inside. If it is warm, then you may not like your costume to be heavy and thick. This might cause overheating and you may feel uncomfortable.

Halloween is a very interesting and exciting time that brings joy whenever it comes. Whether you are a kid or a grown up, you would like to enjoy it with the maximum zeal. Looking creepy, spooky and yet being safe is what this festival is all about. Be sure to buy your Halloween costumes and masks carefully. Have a happy Halloween!

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5 Great Costume Parties That Aren't Halloween

Everyone loves a costume party, but for some reason they only seem to pop up when it is Halloween. There are quite a few other occasions throughout the year that lend themselves to a costume party. Start thinking a bit more out of the box and just about every celebration lends itself to the donning of a costume.

The most obvious of all occasions is Mardi Gras. After all, if the city of New Orleans is throwing a full parade every day, why shouldn't the rest of the world! If you really want to step up the event, turn it into a black tie affair and relive the olden days when the ladies kept everyone guessing as the Mardi Gras mask hid their identity. This is the perfect way to spice up an otherwise boring month.

New Years Eve is another great occasion to dig out your favorite costumes. Choose a different theme for the party each year and literally turn it into the second Halloween. This is a night when everyone is ready to party, so just about any theme imaginable will go over well. Make it a competition among friends where the host gets to choose each year and everyone will get in on the action.

Birthdays and anniversaries offer another opportunity that is just too good to pass up. Instead of having the same old boring party where everyone talks about their glory days, make the dress of the party the year the person was born or the year they were married. Everyone will love digging out their parachute pants, mini-skirts, and getting their hair as high as they can. Talk about glory days!

When looking to break up the dog days of summer, why not throw a movie premier night. Wait until everyone's favorite movie comes out on DVD and then throw a DVD Premier Party where everyone has to dress up as a character in the movie. You will be amazed at how different the same character can look!

Christmas also lends itself to a costume party that can get very interesting with a bit of imagination. Instead of the usual costumes, use the idea above idea and pick a different movie each year to serve as the theme. With so many different Christmas themed movies, both old and new, it will be quite a few years before ideas have to be repeated. Whether they dress up as the Heat Miser or Frosty himself, everyone is sure to have a blast.

If you decide to have a Mardi Gras themed party, everyone is going to need masquerade masks to make it truly authentic. For a great selection of affordable masquerade masks, visit PartyOasis.com today!

Halloween is Two Holidays in One

With Halloween firmly established as the second-busiest holiday for commercial activity in the US, (after Christmas), and with its popularity growing worldwide, it is still regarded by most of us as a children's affair, most typically for toddlers and those in the early grades of elementary school.  At around age 10 or so, it tends to be less "cool" to the kids, and in fact some cities have an outright ban on "trick or treating" for ages 13 and up to avoid the inevitable mischief teens like to create. So we have a Halloween characterized by little Harry Potters, devils, witches, etc. etc. struggling up and down the neighborhood with bedraggled parents in tow.

The other Halloween skips right over the "tweens" and teens and goes right for the adult market. Back in 1999, an American Express retail survey indicated that as much as 28% of adults surveyed planned to put on a costume themselves, which was already significantly higher than the year before. And of course, because they're "adults", couples Halloween costumes and those for men or women can be as outrageous or controversial as one wishes, or as much as one wishes to test the boundaries of their crowd of friends and colleagues.

Some would posit that the adult enjoyment of Halloween is not because of the holiday per se, but is really a continuation of the popularity of the masquerade ball as a form of socialization, dating back to the middle-ages. Originating as elaborate costume pageants in the royal courts of the 15th century, masquerade balls were extended to the populace through large-scale public festivities such as those characterizing the Renaissance period in 16th century Italy. Costumed events have worked their way into literature (Edgar Alan Poe's story Hop Frog), opera (Verdi's A Masked Ball), modern musicals (Phantom of the Opera) and the cinema (Kubrick's Eyes Wide Shut). There are many more examples.

The masquerade event creates an air of mystery and intrigue - nothing is what it seems, you are not yourself. The rich man can play a hobo, the poor man a king. It is fun to see how people project parts of their "secret" identity into the costumes they wear. Couples in Halloween costumes can create a fantasy relationship for a short time, and explore aspects of one another that may be hidden in their day-to-day lives.

A full-blown masquerade ball would be hard to find or get invited to for most of us, but Halloween provides the perfect opportunity to experience some of the excitement and fun of one in an informal and inexpensive way.

R V Green

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