Summer is over, kids are back in school, and the fall is starting to show its signs outside – This is a great time to start planning for your yearly Halloween party! If you have a child celebrating an October birthday you might consider a Halloween-themed Birthday as well.

Planning a party may sometimes seem like a big and overwhelming project, with lots to do and think about. You know I like things simplified, so I use 4 steps that help to get organized and plan a great party the easy way:

1. Choose a theme and send out invitations.
2. Themed party food.
3. Favors for guests.
4. Party decorations.

In this post, I will focus on the first two steps and in the next one on the other two.

Step 1: Halloween Party Theme

Yes, your theme is of course – Halloween. But the way I see it there are two main options you can choose from as your Halloween party theme. I’m sure there are more options but I chose these two as I think they are the most common ones, and it will be much easier for you to plan your party in terms of finding lots of themed decoration and food ideas.

The first one is an Autumn/Harvest Festival Theme – this is a more traditional Halloween party design, in a color scheme of orange shades combined with black:

The second one is a more “Scary-Monstrous” Halloween theme which also adds purple and green to the mix of orange and black and makes it more playful:

Choosing one of these themes is really up to you and what you envision for your party. Everything else – party invitations, food, and decor – will match the colors and design of your main theme and complement it.

Once you’ve chosen your theme, you can start setting the mood for the party in the Halloween Party Invitations you send out to your guests. Even though you might send your invitations well in advance, if the design and colors in the invitation match the ones you chose for the party it will help put your guests in the right mood, creating excitement and expectation towards your party.

Step 2: Halloween Party Food

There are so many cute ideas online for Halloween party food. You can see some of my favorites in my Halloween Party Ideas Pinterest board.

Although I adore themed party food and admire those who can create food that’s shaped like a Halloween creature, I prefer simplicity. Some of the recipes and ideas you’ll find will be absolutely adorable but might seem overwhelming, especially if (like me) you’re not used to cooking and baking. Don’t worry – I really don’t think everyone needs to be an excellent cook in order to through a ‘wow’ party. A simple solution I often use to make impressive-looking party food without complicated cooking is printable party decorations!

Most of the time I can cut and glue better than I can cook, and using cute themed Halloween party printables can make a great impression on your guests as they walk into your party.

I like to use simpler recipes for cupcakes or brownies, which don’t require icing or edible decorations, create mini bite-sized or personal portions, and decorate each with a cute printable. Like these ghost and “Boo!” brownies for example:

Or these Halloween cupcakes:

Or these chocolate mousse decorated spoons:

Check out the second part of this post for Halloween treats & favors ideas and party decoration ideas.

All Halloween party printables and invitations can be found in my shop.