Have a Frugal Halloween

Allison at Frugal Mania had a great post the other day on Frugal Halloween Ideas. I was inspired to share what I did last year for Halloween. We were not planning on going out last year because it seemed too cold, though at the last minute we did go out and had a great time. However, I wanted to do something better than just piles of candy and yet still not spend an arm and a leg. Apples and pennies, two Halloween treats I remember getting as a child, were certainly out. Unless I wanted the house toilet papered.


Just before Halloween I went to my local dollar store. I picked up a package of fun Halloween goodie bags, some cute stickers, Halloween themed pencils, a bag of bubble gum, and a case of small boxes of raisins. All together I spent less than I would have on giant bags of candy and I managed to keep the kids happy enough that no one came back to trash my front lawn. Plus I felt good knowing that I was not contributing to the sugar overload of the night.


This year we will be going out and collecting huge bags of candy of our own. But I still have a few plans for frugality. Candy and goodies after Halloween are often slashed down to sale. You can store candy in your freezer until next year when you can give it out then. The trick also works if your children bring home tons of candy. Store it in your freezer and bring it out in small amounts to last the entire year. You can also buy up goodies from Oriental Trading Company to use, often at a huge discount from what you would find at other stores.