Halloween: How to Save Money on Trick or Treat Bags

With so many different and expensive types of containers that your child can use for trick or treating, why not save yourself some money and make one yourself? All it takes is a paper grocery bag, or a plain, colored gift bag, some raffia ribbon for handles, some foam shapes for decorations, glue, stapler, scissors, and markers or crayons. They are going to want a different trick or treat bag to use each year as they grow up and their tastes change, or you can simply put one together to match their costumes.

For instance if they are going to be costumed as a pirate, you could decorate their trick or treat bag with foam or construction paper cut-outs of a Jolly Roger with skull and cross-bones. Or if your little girl is going as a princess, you can use a cheap pink boa and glue it around the top with glitter or jewels glued on the bag. The possibilities are as endless as your or your child's imagination.

TIP #1 HOW TO SAVE MONEY ON TRICK OR TREAT BAGS

The first thing you will need to do is decide what color or size of bag your child will need. You can use a plain brown paper grocery bag, or buy a plain, colored gift bag. Some stores sell these paper bags in packages of three or more. You can buy these and put the rest aside for Halloween next year. Or if you have to make more than one trick or treat bag, you will save money by buying them in multi-packs.

If you use a paper grocery bag, then you will need to attach a strip of raffia ribbon to the bag on each side for handles. Don't untwist the raffia, use it as it is to make it stronger and last through the night. Once you have the bag, then you and your child can decide how you want to decorate it. Jewels, construction paper, or foam sheets for cut-outs, can all be purchased very cheaply.

TIP #2 HOW TO SAVE MONEY ON TRICK OR TREAT BAGS

When you and your child have decided what you will need for decorating the trick or treat bag, pay a visit to your local Dollar Store or Craft Store. Here you can find inexpensive items such as a book of construction paper, boxes of crayons, sheets of colored foam, and glue for as little as a dollar each. Whatever you have left over you can store away with the rest of the bags, or give them to your child when the decorating is finished for rainy day play.

TIP #3 HOW TO SAVE MONEY ON TRICK OR TREAT BAGS

To give your child's trick or treat bag more "personality", or if you don't want to make it match their costume completely, you can still jazz it up and make it look more "halloweeny". Simply attach the handles and then, using a pencil, draw a Frankenstein or Pumpkin face or whatever you choose on the front of the bag, centering the mouth about two inches above the center of the bag. When you draw the face, make sure that you draw it with the mouth open; either with a large, goofy grin, or a scary, wide-mouthed scream. Once you have the face drawn to your liking, then cut out the inside of the mouth making sure that you don't cut through the back of the bag.

Reinforce the area that you cut by making a foam cut-out to glue around the mouth on the outside. After that dries, use crayons or markers to color in the rest of the face and add whatever decorations you might want. Once it's colored in you will fold in the top of the bag by cutting a small slit on either side of the handles and folding them down and staple them once or twice to hold it. Glue on strips of foam over the staples so that no one gets cut or scratched by them. Going through the cut-out mouth section, open the bag up. When your child goes trick or treating, your neighbors will drop the candy in the bag by putting it into the mouth. Your kids will get a kick out of this, and so will everyone else. Plus it is an inexpensive way to have a unique trick or treat bag for your kids to enjoy.