byronreese
Halloween parties for children:pumpkin party favor bags
Now you kids can help you get ready for their Halloween party with this fun and easy craft project!
Photo Credit: Gisele Wright
By Angela McKendree
What child doesn’t love to have their parents throw them a great big Halloween party, complete with creative and spooky decorations, eerie music playing over the stereo, and of course tons of Halloween candy?
Many adults love planning a Halloween party too because it is the one holiday where adults they can allow their craftiness and creativity to shine. But there are some years when adults just don’t have enough time to pour all of their energy into planning a Halloween party, no matter how fun it would be to do so.
When an adult is struggling to pull it all together, but the invitations are already sent out there is no going back. Instead of throwing a sloppy party, consider relinquishing control of some aspects of the party planning to your kids. This might be a hard thing to do for some parents, but after all, it is their party and you are catering to their friends. And when you make their party planning assignments into fun and easy craft projects such as the one below, your kids are sure ask you for more party assignments!
Materials:
Orange washable tempera paint
Large paintbrush or sponge
Green or brown washable tempera paint
Black washable tempera paint or black marker
White or brown small paper bag (such as a paper lunch bag), 1 per party guest
Table cover
Separate bowls or containers for each different color of paint
How to: Step by step instructions
1) Start this project by covering the table of work station with old newspapers or an old table cloth to protect the surface from paint and markers. This also makes cleaning up into a much easier task.
2) Pour the orange paint into its bowl or container
3) Dip the large paintbrush into the orange paint and coat just the tip in paint. The whole brush does not need to be covered in paint. If you are working with a small amount of paint, this will help conserve paint. This also helps avoid excess mess.
4) Have the child paint just the palm of their hand with the orange paint. The fingers should not be painted.
5) Stamp the hand down onto the front and center of the paper bag firmly. Press the hand down firmly for two or three seconds before lifting it away. Lift the hand away carefully so as not to smudge the paint. The orange palm print is the pumpkin.
6) When all of the bags are stamped with orange palms, have the child wash the orange paint from their hand (or hands if they were using both) with a little soap and water. Wait for about 30 minutes to allow the orange paint to dry before continuing on with the project.
7) Pour the green or brown paint into its bowl or container; it will be used as finger paint.
8) Finger paint stems, leaves, and vines on to the top of the pumpkins.
9) When the orange paint from the palm print pumpkin is all the way dry, pour the black paint into its container. It too will be used as finger paint. (if you are using markers skip this step and continue on to the next.
10) Use the black paint to finger paint on the pumpkin’s face to turn it from a palm print into a jack o’ lantern. If you are using a black marker, draw on the face instead.
When all the paint is dry the bags are done and are ready to be filled with candy and toys!
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