Celebrate Halloween for less!

Create a scary environment

Buy several small, glass candleholders and write a Halloween phrase―such as Boo or Beware―on them with black permanent marker. Light a votive inside each and line them up on your windowsills.

Liven up your Halloween bash

Kids will love spooky hand ice cubes in punch. Freeze water in unpowdered surgical gloves. (Wash them first and unglove the ice.)

Hit dollar stores and wholesale clubs

Stock up on plastic spiders, fake cobwebs, candy and treat bags from a local discount store. If you expect a lot of trick-or-treaters, go to a warehouse club for big bags of candy.

Check your closets for costume ideas

Have your daughter look through her dress-up trunk―maybe she can go as a princess or a 1950s girl. If you do need to hit the Halloween store, buy just the accessories rather than the whole costume. For example, purchase a pair of angel wings and a halo, and have her wear the plain white T-shirt and white pants she already has in her drawers.