Thread: Open House - anyone ever done one?

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I searched the forums and didn't really find much. My husband has decided that we just plain put too much work into our Halloween parties (he's right) and he doesn't want to do that any longer - too much work and time commitment. We haven't had one for the last couple of years because of that. However, I am just itching to have....something! So, I thought, why not decorate the house and yard (simple stuff only) and then just serve snack type foods and have an open house? That way, we can enjoy more of the Halloween decor we have accumulated (bunches) and get to mingle with other families socially (we have a 10 year old ourselves that we want to include) without such a grand undertaking. Any advice out there on how to pull this off without much ado? Is this something that you would be willing to attend if invited? I am still thinking that some activities for the kids would be necessary, but I would handle that anyway (not my husband). Any input?

I think it depends - are you having this before Halloween or on Halloween night? For example, I do this almost every year on Halloween night. My inlaws and grandparents come over (since they want to see the kids anyways) and I pretty much have the house open to my neighbors (who I know pretty well) and have food, drinks, and arts and crafts for the kids.

Halloween night can get hectic since you have TOTers coming to the door constantly, kids need to go TOTing, etc. Otherwise, the night turns out to be a lot of fun!

I was thinking before Halloween....like when we would normally have the party for the kids...a couple of weeks ahead of time. Only this time, include adults and do it open house style. You think it wouldn't go over well?

I think if you have friendly neighbors, it would go over very well!

I like the idea of having a little "station" set up for the kids to do arts and crafts. You could have mini pumpkins for them to paint, masks to make, Halloween cartoons and movies to watch. You could also have a little snack table set up for them with spooky drinks and snacks and send them home with goody bags. That way, they're entertained and the adults can mix and mingle on their own.

You can still have spooky finger foods and cocktails/punch/cider set up for the adults to help themselves to. Spider-webs are cheap and go a long way, as does lighting and sound effects.

As long as everything is set out in advance in large quantities, you won't have to worry about much except for having a good time.

As I mentioned, I usually do this on Halloween night but it can get hectic since I'm running to the door every other minute to tend to the TOTers. I think another night would work very well and will allow you to enjoy your guests.

I love all of v_gan's ideas. If you're friendly with your neighbors I would invite them over too -if you don't know them very well, they're probably wondering what goes on in your house this time of year - LOL!