Halloween is here again! I don’t know about you, but we are so looking forward to having a slightly more normal season this year and we all can’t wait! In our house, Halloween generally translates as fun and kooky rather than scary, so as well as all the spooky stuff, we embrace all the seasonal goodness this time of the year offers, darker evenings, but all those gorgeous orangey, red autumnal colours and delicious warm drinks and comforting foods.

Is there anything cosier than a rainy day crafting session? Set up a blanket and a few essentials and create your own little Halloween/autumnal crafting area. The Cotton Twist Halloween kits are fab as they are small enough to slip into your bag to take out at places like grandparents, friends, or simply perfect for an impromptu craft sessions as everything is included and there’s no waste or mess. We love the new spider web kit as the winding of the web is wonderfully mindful and once finished, you can hang it in your home as a gorgeous piece of festive decor.

The new bat keyring is great for older children and looks super cool looped onto bags, belt loops and pencil cases. It’s also fantastic for making at parties as the results are so quick and you can wear it straight away!

Here are a few other crafty things our family love to do around the Halloween/autumn season that you might like to have a go at too.

Witches potions: we make potions all the time, but mainly in the summer months, but potions are not just for the summer! Making them outside is such a fun thing to do with kids - this season offers all kinds of bountiful ingredients for potions such as the vibrant leaves and berries, tiny acorns and all sorts. I usually add a shake of biodegradable glitter for the magic, but you could add a tiny drop of green food colouring for extra witchiness!

While toffee apples may be the traditional option, my kids tend to favour the chocolate dipped variety and I can’t say I blame them! Insert a lolly stick into the centre of an apple, then simply melt some milk, white or dark chocolate in a bain-marie or in the microwave using short bursts. Dip in your apples and sprinkle with your choice of toppings. We’ve gone for a mix of chopped hazelnuts and sprinkles, but you could use crushed honeycomb, popping candy or diced dried fruit. Refrigerate to set.

And finally, these quick and easy ghost lollies are just the thing for giving to eager trick or treaters - they’re also a fantastic party favour as well as a fun little make. Take some plain napkins, some white yarn, lollies and a black pen. Place the lolly in the centre of the napkin, then gather up the napkin around the lolly head and tie with the yarn. Then draw on the face. They look great as a collection or ‘fright’ all lined up in a basket.

Have a fabulous spooky season! If you wanted to check out any of the previous ideas for things to do at Halloween like pumpkin painting, yarn ghosts and pumpkin satsumas, you can check them out here. And our Halloween collection with all kinds of activities and gifts can be found here. Happy Halloween!