It is finally Fall and I couldn’t be more excited to wear boots and a cardigan while eating s’mores by a bonfire. I also love decorating the house with all the amazing colors that come with the season. This year we have a new house so of course, that calls for new decorations and creative tasty treats for all our guests.

We don’t have a ton of money to be spending on new decorations so I decided to be crafty (which sometimes can be pricey if you don’t have a plan). A quick search through Pinterest for Halloween decorations and recipes makes me feel totally lame. How on earth could I ever make anything like that? Does anyone else get that feeling? I am a below average crafter at best but I still want to make fancy holiday crafts like everyone else. So I came up with some fun ideas that anyone can reproduce. Let’s get started!

Food and drink always come first…

A Glass of Pumpkin Pie. A Fall cocktail is a must. I was inspired by this Autumn Sangria which looks delicious. But I am a beer drinker, so what to do? You mix beer and vodka of course!

Supplies: Schlafly Pumpkin Beer, Pinnacle Whipped Vodka, whipped cream, and ghost peeps.

Instructions: Grab a Schlafly Pumpkin Beer and a shot of delicious Pinnacle Whipped Vodka. I added some actual whipped cream and a cute ghost peep to spruce it up. The drink tastes like pumpkin pie – amazing!

Caramel Apple Bites. I love caramel apples but I hate the mess and running out of caramel and peanuts before the treat is finished. I desperately wanted to make an easier-to-consume version of this tasty treat. This is not the easiest to make, but totally worth it.

Supplies: Large apples, caramel dipping sauce, a melon baller, chopped peanuts, small pretzel sticks, festive sprinkles if desired, and tooth picks.

Instructions: Take your large apple and cut it in half. Use the melon baller to make small balls from the apple. It is ok if one side is a little flat – you can place it down easier that way. Use a knife to spread on the caramel apple dip. I also tried to use actual caramel that I melted and dipped the apples in but it melted off in the refrigerator because the apples no longer had skin on them to hold the caramel. After the ball is coated in caramel, dip it in to the mix of peanuts and sprinkles. I used a small pretzel stick at the top as well; just break it to make the piece smaller. I would also recommend putting toothpicks in them when you are ready to serve because they are slightly moist and not easy to pick up with your fingers. If you use sprinkles, the color starts to run by the next day. I would skip the sprinkles if you want to make these in advance for a party.

Rice Krispie Pumpkins. These are super easy to make and kids love them!

Supplies: Box of Rice Krispies Cereal, marshmallows, butter, sprinkles if desired, orange dye, wax paper, and stick pretzels.

Instructions: Follow the recipe on the Rice Krispie box for the squares but after it is all mixed in the pot, place the mixture on some wax paper. I actually put some butter on my hands so that it wasn’t too sticky. Make balls out of the mixture and add a pretzel stick to the top. You can add food coloring while you are mixing in the pot if you want them super orange. I decided to use some Wilton Color Mist (you can find this at Michaels) to just add a touch of orange and then added some orange sprinkles as well. After they cool, decorate them as you wish.

Now for Halloween crafts…

Fall Wreath. I loved adding leaves and sparkles to this item. It is really easy to make even if you don’t typically craft. It is also really versatile. If you want you could change out the decorations for different seasons.

Supplies: Black tulle (I needed three spools of it for this size wreath), a round foam wreath form, hot glue gun (or stick pins), ribbon, and leaves (or other items of your choice).

Instructions: Cut about 10 inch strips (test out the length before cutting all the strips) of the black tulle. Tie them each in a double knot around the foam wreath form. You may need to push them together to hide the foam underneath. Match up all the knots around the side so they are even. Add all the bling you want using a hot glue gun or stick pins (if you want to change it up for the next season).

Chalk Board Pumpkin. Your kids will love this. They can decorate their pumpkin as many times as they wish! And it’s great for parents because we can avoid the mess of carving and cleaning out seeds.

Supplies: Pumpkin, black chalkboard spray paint, and colorful chalk.

Instructions: This is self explanatory but make sure to put at least 2 coats (maybe more) of the spray paint on to make sure your child doesn’t rub it off when trying to decorate. Let it dry for 24 hours.

White Sparkle Pumpkin. My photo just does not do this justice. If you see it in person, it is white and has a beautiful sparkle to it.

Supplies: White spray paint, glitter spray paint, black acrylic paint, small paint brush, and ribbon. You can also use vinyl stick on letters or images if you don’t want to paint on it.

Instructions: Spray the entire pumpkin with the white paint – a couple coats, then spray the entire pumpkin with the sparkle paint. After it dries, paint on a letter or add a vinyl item. I also added a cute ribbon to the top. I would suggest finding a pumpkin with a larger stem to make it easy to tie on.

You can also use glow in the dark paint to decorate your pumpkin. Then trick-or-treaters can see your fun designs at night as well.

Overall, my house is ready to celebrate the season! Do you have an easy Fall or Halloween craft idea to share?

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