Have Yourself a Green Halloween

Although most people associate Halloween with ghouls and goblins, did you know that the holiday is actually rooted in a celebration of the harvest season?  So why not green your Halloween by paying special homage to the planet?

There are plenty of ways to make your Halloween celebration as green as they get.  Here are some great ideas from Kim Carlson, eco-expert and founder of EarthSmart Consumer Certified.

• DIY Trick-or-Treat Tote – Make a trick-or-treat container out of an old empty and washed out non-toxic brand paint can.  Cover with construction paper or a collage of bats, pumpkins and witches.  Or you can sew a Halloween motif fabric onto a re-useable cloth grocery store bag.  Either of these can be used year after year.

• Earth Inspired Costumes – This Halloween, try making your child’s costume instead of buying a one-time use. Try creating a nature inspired costume like a caterpillar from a matching green sweatpants and a hoodie with pipe cleaner antennae.  Or make wings from old scarves stitched together and attached to the underarms and side of brown or black hoodie.
• Non-Toxic Face Paint and Pencils – Instead of a plastic or rubber mask try a non-toxic brand of face decorating, Nova Naturals Face Pencils.  Made from plant oils they are easy to apply, wash off and you can use them over and over. Or make your own face paints with plain yogurt and a few drops of food coloring.  It will dry shiny with some texture.

• Edible Scary Show – Hang a white sheet from the ceiling with audience seated on one side and a table that is backlit on the other so the scene is projected by shadow on the sheet.  One person (the surgeon) stands and another person (the patient) lies on the table.  With the audience side of the room dark the surgeon pretends to do surgery removing body parts that are made from organic and local food – linked sausages for intestines, cold spaghetti noodles for brains, etc… .
• Party and Home Decorations – Use LED candles in pumpkins rather than candles.  They burn cool and you can use them for other things throughout the year.  Corn stalks and hay from decorative hay bales can be dismantled and spread on garden beds to help protect plants and shrubs from snow and ice.
• Pumpkins – Use up every part of the pumpkin that you can – make salted and roasted seeds.  Keep the meat of the cut outs for soup or roasting like squash.  If you do have pumpkin leftovers from jack-o-lanterns that are past their prime, compost them in your backyard.  It will turn into nice black nutrition rich dirt for your spring gardens.

So whether you’re out trick or treating or preparing to decorate your home for the festivities, keep the three R’s (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) in mind while being kind to the environment.

And if this is not enough, there are plenty of other ways to create your own Green Halloween celebration. Click here for more ideas.