As the temperatures drop around the nation, we can’t help but notice that autumn is in the air. And as the leaves on trees around our neighborhoods start to change and fall, it’s a daily reminder that Halloween is on its way. As we approach the last (and spookiest) day of October, it’s time to get ready for the scariest holiday with costumes, candy, and crafts. Here at Fred Lake, we love crafting, and we’d like to highlight a few favorite ideas that you can try out with your kiddo (or kiddos) to make the most of one of the funnest nights of the year. Here are our simple, quick, easy to complete crafts that your kids are sure to love — and as always, you can count on Fred Lake for everything from crafting supplies to office supplies!

Easy Paper Pumpkins

Gather some pipe cleaners (preferably black or green), some orange construction paper, a pair of scissors, and your kiddos favorite coloring supplies. You can always use our multi-color holiday stamps for this project too! If your child is old enough to safely handle scissors, let them cut strips of paper that are roughly 2 inches wide and the full width of a 8.5 by 11 inch sheet of paper. Stack all the strips, and puncture a hole at the center of the top and the bottom of the strips (the holes should go through all strips, and they should be wide enough for a few pipe cleaners to fit through). Then let your kiddo get creative with coloring, doodling, and whatnot. Once your child is done with the creative bit, stack the strips again, and run a bundle of pipe cleaners through both sets of holes. Push the ends of the strips together along the pipe cleaners until the strips form a U shape. Splay out the pipe cleaners to keep the strips in place, and then fan out the strips in a circle — and voila, the whole assembly should look like a little pumpkin! Feel free to bend the pipe cleaners as you’d like, to make them look like the leaves or stem of the pumpkin!

Cute Custom Candy Bags

Though parents may be opting to stay in this year, in light of the coronavirus epidemic, you can still make an at-home trick-or-treat experience with custom candy bags and a bit of creativity. For this one, you’ll need to gather coloring supplies, stickers, stamps, and any other creative touches that your kiddo can add to their bag. And of course, you’ll need the bag itself; we recommend using an old pillowcase or a paper grocery bag. Create “customization stations” in each room of your house for your kiddo to add something to their candy bag. You can have stickers in a bedroom, markers in the kitchen, et cetera. After getting creative at each station, reward your kiddo with a few treats to add to their bag. By the time you’re done, your tot will have had a fun time, they’ll have a cute candy bag, and they’ll have a bag full of delicious treats!

Spooky Coffee Filter or Newspaper Ghosts

Get some googly eyes, some glue, tape, rubber bands, string, newspaper, and coffee filters or newspaper bags. Have your kiddo create little ghosts by filling the coffee filters or newspaper bags with a wad of newspaper. Then have them twist the filter or bag, so that the wad is held in by twisting. Use a rubber band to secure the twisted part of the filter or bag — it should look a bit like a little ghost. Glue on some googly eyes to give each ghost a funny face. Then tape the head of each ghost to a string. Once you have a few ghosts whipped up, you can hang them on trees, in your home’s windows, or wherever your kiddo likes!

Happy Halloween, From Fred Lake!

We hope that you and your kiddo (or kids) make the most of the spooky season with our fun crafts! As always, we’re here to connect you with the supplies you need to leave a lasting impression. Fred Lake has proudly provided the best embossers, seals, stamps, and inks available for over a century, and we look forward to providing office supplies for years to come. Have a happy Halloween, from the team here at Fred Lake!