Hi, Erin here! Happy October to you all.  This is my family’s first October in Oregon and the Pacific Northwest of the United States and I must say, it has been cold and rainy.  I have been looking for things to keep my active children busy again, since going outside is not in the cards at the moment.  I love how easy digital scrapbook supplies make DIY projects.

This last week we decided to start gearing up for Halloween.  Being our first fall in the US, we have nothing for this holiday, but thanks to all the fun Halloween kits that have recently come out by Digital Scrapbook Ingredients, we are changing that.

Today I am going to show you two quick and easy treat ideas for Halloween parties, or even for passing out on Halloween night.

To do both of these projects, I used some of the cute and fun journal cards from Boo to You and Halloween Cuties.

I also used a few items from the dollar section of our local department store: Halloween treat bags, holiday twine, and themed pencils.  Really you can go as fancy of as simple as you want with both of these.  I stayed pretty simple since I had “kid helpers.”

Treat #1: Halloween Pencils

Lately there has been a lot more awareness of food allergies and how difficult it is for kids who have them to deal with treats on Halloween night.  The whole Teal Pumpkin project has really got me thinking about this.  Since we have some food allergies in our family, I try and make an effort to have non-food items for treats as well as the more traditional things.  That way everyone can have fun.  This year I found some fun pencils, and I could have just left them as is in the treat box, but where is the fun in that?  Plus, jazzing these pencils up just a bit was super easy! Here is how you do it!

1. Print and cut out the journal cards you want to use for your treat. HINT: Try to use cards that have a bit of space for the pencil holes.
2. Choose where you want to thread your pencil through the card, then cut small slits (or use a hole punch to punch a hole) for your pencil to slide through.
3. Carefully thread your pencil onto your card.
4. Secure the pencil to the back of the card with a wee bit of washi (or any tape really) to keep it from falling out.
5. If for a party, you can personalize the cards, or write a message on the back.

You could use this same technique for anything that is long and skinny – a Lolly, a silly straw, or even flowers could easily thread through the card.

Treat #2 Halloween Goody Bag Toppers

For my daughter’s class party we needed to make a small treat bag for each student.  We found some simple bags in the dollar section, but she really wanted to make them a bit more special.  Journal cards to the rescue again!

NOTE: Some journal cards are perfect for this as is – the eyeball card, for instance, we simply printed and cut out.  Other journal cards need a little manipulation in PS or another photo editing program first.

1. Choose journaling cards that can either be printed and folded over as is, or can be easily manipulated for such use. Do any manipulations needed first, then print and cut out.

(Note: What I did for these toppers was simply use the rectangular marquee tool to copy and paste certain sections of the card.  I then rearranged them back into a rectangle that could be tent folded. Each card is different, so how you do this will depend on the card, but for the most part it is pretty easy to figure out)

2. Once your goody bag is filled, fold over the top once, and then fold the bag topper over this.
3. Punch holes through both the journal card and the bag fold in such a way that you can tie the bag closed with the twine.
4. Thread the twine through the holes and tie closed. In some cases, you can do this with one long piece, in others, you might need two smaller pieces (see image).  The key is to keep the decorative part of the card visible.  Just play around with it to find what you like.

We placed a clementine in each of our bags, but you could put candy, a home-made treat, or even a small toy.  You can also experiment with using washi, stickers, or more decorative ribbons to really dress up your goodie bags.

And there you have it – quick and easy Halloween goodies from a few of our digital supplies. Honestly, you could use both of these ideas for any holiday, celebration, or even just everyday fun!  I really do love how much use I get out of these goodies, and how versatile journal cards really are!

Go ahead and give it a try, then post back here with some pictures so we can all enjoy your handy work!!