National Costume Swap Day
September 30, 2010
Halloween is just around the corner and we’ve already got our costumes ready. It’s not hard at my house to come up with something. My daughter is HUGE into playing dress up. She wears a dress up outfit (or three) at least once a day. She has quite the collection from things I’ve passed on to her to the Halloween clearance section where grandma has purchased numerous costumes for a buck or two. Her imagination just lights up when she puts on a doctor’s outfit or lion mask. Playing dress up happened to be one of my most favorite games as a child, too, so I’m having a lot of fun playing with her, too.
A great way to get your Halloween costumes this year is to take part in the National Costume Swap Day. Find a local swap, pass along your kid’s old costumes and pick up a new (to you) costume. It’s a great way to make your Halloween ‘green’. If you can’t find a local swap, consider hosting one of your own. It can be as simple as one between friends or neighbors, or as large as a city-wide event.
What costumes will your kids be wearing this year? Are you buying new or getting creative with DIY?
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Pumpkin Recycling
October 20, 2009
So you’ve been to the pumpkin patch and have all these pumpkins sitting around. How can you use ALL of the pumpkin instead of tossing it in the garbage when Halloween is over? Pumpkins are a vegetable and a great source of vitamins. It’s low in saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium. 1 cup of raw pumpkin has 171% of your Vitamin A needs for the day. It’s also a good source of Vitamin C and Vitamin E.
USE THE SEEDS
1. TOAST THE SEEDS
Separate the seeds out from the stringy and gooey pumpkin insides. Throw them in a strainer and rinse them off. Spread them out on a cookie sheet in a single layer, spray them with olive oil, add salt and bake for 45 minutes on 300 degrees. Other options include sprinkling seasoning salt or garlic salt for more flavor.
2. MAKE A SWEET TREAT
Martha Stewart has an interesting twist on pumpkin seeds, make a Pumpkin Seed Brittle.
3. KID’S CRAFT PROJECT
4. RECYCLE FOR SPRING PLANTING
You can save the seeds, store them and use them in the spring. Dry the seeds for 7 days and then wrap them in newspaper or magazine pages until spring.
USE THE PULP
Don’t throw your pulp in the garbage and do not put it down the drain. According to Mr. Rooter, pumpkin pulp hardens in the drain and clogs it.
Compost or if you have chickens, you can feed the pulp to them.
USE THE PUMPKIN ‘MEAT’
There are TONS of recipes for using fresh pumpkin to make pumpkin pie, pumpkin cookies, breads, whatever suits your fancy. Different kinds (and sizes) of pumpkins are good for different types of food so you make sure you get the right kind of pumpkin if you plan to bake with it. Typically, smaller pumpkins are for baking. You can bake, boil or microwave the pumpkin to get it ready to use in your recipes.
ANYTHING LEFT OVER
If you have anything left over from your pumpkin or you carved your pumpkin and left it outside for decoration, the whole thing can be composted, just make sure to cut it into small chunks. If you don’t have a compost bin, cut it into chunks and bury it in your garden. Great nutrients for your soil.
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Homemade Halloween Costumes
October 7, 2009
Image Courtesy eHow.com
Today you can’t go anywhere without seeing an all-in-one Halloween costume for all ages ( and at all price ranges ). I can’t recall EVER buying a new Halloween costume when I was a kid. In fact, most of the pieces in my dress-up box ( yes, I still have one! ) have come from Goodwill or a garage sale collected over many years.
If you can’t fathom paying $40 for a costume (worn 1x ) or just want to keep the clutter out of your house – get your creative juices flowing and make one. How easy would it be to pull together a ghost, pirate or princess costume – all from stuff you probably have hiding in the closets in your house.
For lots of ideas, check out these sites:
100 Homemade Halloween Costume Ideas submitted by readers of The Daily Green
Homemade Costumes Gallery by About.com
1Halloween.Net Costume Gallery
Unique Halloween Costumes from Disney Family
Another way to avoid buying a new costume – borrow one! This year, I lent out 2 of my daughter’s costumes from previous holidays and I’ll be borrowing one from a friend. With a trip to Goodwill for one additional piece for my husband, our family will be ready for Halloween for a couple dollars!
This post may contain affiliate links, please see my disclosure policy.
