The 5 Quickest & Unique Ways to Step Up Your Halloween Party

So you’ve decided to throw a Halloween party this year. But not just any old Halloween party with a few decorations and a “witch’s brew” punch bowl. You want to throw a unique Halloween party, one that steps up the game and has everyone saying “Man! We can’t wait until your shindig again next year!”

Never fear, elevating your boo bash doesn’t have to be too extravagant or expensive. We’ve rounded up a few key elements that will take your All Hallows Eve-nt to the next level.

Mood Lighting.

The quickest way to set the Halloween party ambiance is to adjust your lighting. Change out your normal light bulbs for colored ones: orange, red, green or purple are all good options. You could even have different colors for different rooms, should you choose to go with the themed room option. Black lights are another fun idea for a spookier take.

Haunted Photo Booth.

While changing up your lighting is a great quick way to step up the spooky and unique aspects of your Halloween party, it also can make it difficult to get good, well-lit pictures of everyone’s Halloween costumes. There’s a simple solution here as well: set up a photo booth area.

Pick an area of your party to keep brightly lit and hang a spooky backdrop on the wall. Most Halloween stores have spooky backdrops of graveyards, crooked trees or houses on haunted hills that would be perfect. Add some props for even more fun, and encourage your guests to share their shots on Instagram and Facebook under a party-specific hashtag of your choosing.

Last Minute Costume Bin.

Raise your hand if you’ve thought about skipping a Halloween party because you didn’t have a costume, and you ran out of time to put one together. *Raises hand.* Sure you want people to dress up for your party, but make it SUPER easy on them - create a last minute costume bin.

Tell people if they don’t have a costume to just come as they are and you’ve got them covered. Then throw in all the old pieces of costumes you have - those devil horns, cowboy hats, random plastic weapons and tutus - and let people accessorize themselves upon arrival. You can encourage other people to contribute to the bin as well. Voila! Now no one can use the “I don’t have a costume” excuse to not come.

Involve Dry Ice.

Come on, you know you remember playing with dry ice as a kid in science class - it was always the best day. The coolest Halloween parties have some dry ice to step up the mystery and magic of the event. Many grocery stores carry dry ice, and you can use it in planters on your front porch to welcome guests in, or in a bowl under your witches brew to up the dramatics.

Of course make sure you follow all dry ice instructions carefully and never touch it directly to any part of your skin or mouth! Here’s some good safety instructions to follow when using dry ice at your Halloween party.

Plan for Safe Rides Home.

Halloween is a very popular night for drinking and having a good time with your friends. As the host of the party, it is your responsibility to ensure that your guests have a great time, but that they also make it home safely - and this isn’t always an easy task.

Convincing people that they should call a Lyft or Uber, or allow someone who hasn’t been drinking to drive them home, can be tricky, but there is now a super handy device that can help you do it: a BACtrack. These personal breathalyzers are small and sleek, and can estimate your BAC within seconds. They have police-grade accuracy, and even come with an app that can let users know when their BAC will return to 0.00%.

Whether your hosting the 2020 Halloween party this year, or for any party you may host in the future, you definitely want to make sure you have a BACtrack in attendance so you and your guests can have the best time possible, while still making responsible, informed decisions.