Something about a holiday gets me every time. I love celebrations. I think it’s because I love happiness, being positive and coming together with others.
Anyway. October is great for so many reasons but one huge reason being that is kicks off a whole season of celebrations. This first being Halloween, obviously. It’s the perfect time to throw a spooky get together or maybe even creepy crawly date night!
I took full advantage of an October Friday the 13th.. so spooky right!? We had a Halloween Housewarming party and I’m very pleased with how everything turned out! We had ‘Mummified’ Jalapeño Poppers, Shrunken Head Sangria, Vodka soaked gummy fangs, jello shot worms and more. I’m sharing some decor inspo photos below as well as recipes!
Most of our Halloween decor came from Target, Dollar Tree, Hobby Lobby or Amazon! I’ll link what specifics I can at the bottom. My biggest tip when it comes to decorating for the holidays is storage. Make sure to organize and properly store everything, so you can build a collection up year after year. The foam bats are from Hobby Lobby! I’ve gotten a lot of questions about those. 🙂
Once all the decor was ready (aka a flood of pumpkins in our house), it was time for the main event.. food and drinks!
I wanted to comprise my menu of things I could prep the night before. I also wanted to make sure everything was either adorable or spooky and obviously Halloween-ish. I decided on a Pesto Pasta Salad, Mummy Jalapeño Poppers, Krystals (always a favorite when late nights are involved), a Halloween S’Mores station, Jello Shot Worms, Shrunken Head Sangria and Vodka Soaked Gummies. As well as a few other dips and snacks brought by sweet friends!
Shrunken Head Sangria // Make these ‘shrunken head’ apples + prepare Sangria of your choice (I did this one and it was a HUGE hit, so so yummy). Place heads in sangria right before serving.
‘Moldy’ Pesto Pasta Salad (not really moldy but pesto fits the spooky part ya know?) // Cook cheese tortellini according to directions. On a sheet pan, bake tortellini, diced zucchini, squash and cherry tomatoes tossed in drizzled olive oil, garlic powder, salt and pepper + juice from 1 lemon for 15-20 minutes at 375 degree F. Toss in pesto & store in fridge until ready to serve.
Vodka Soaked Gummies // I found the vampire gummies at Target and soaked them in a bottle of strawberry vodka. These weren’t the best but they looked so cute!
Jello Shot Worms // This and the sangria were my favorite! I was SO happy with how they turned out. They were pretty easy to make, but very annoying to get out of the straw. You could definitely make these far in advance. I followed this worm recipe but added 2 cups rum when I added the water.
Halloween S’More Station // In addition to the traditional s’mores stuff, I added Halloween peeps and Reese’s pumpkins!
In addition to our Halloween decor, I snagged these fun skeleton hand glasses & skeleton funnel from Amazon. Both are on Prime so if you order now, you can get it in time for this weekend or Halloween!
If you have any specific questions about our party or food comment below and I’ll be sure to answer! If you try any of these recipes or decor, tag me on Insta (@YesPleaseDaily)! I love seeing y’all recreate everything. xo
Legit copying most of your food and beverages ideas from this post for a get together tonight! Made the sangria and pasta salad last night, and prepped the jalapeno poppers too! Love this post SO much!