Guest post by: Jennifer Crawford, Founder & Owner at Gaia’s World Fun Center (www.gaiasworldfuncenter.com) and host of a National Costume Swap Day event in Federal Way, WA

I found Green Halloween^® on my own journey with Gaia’s World (a seed company working to build the first Eco-friendly children’s play center in our region).

When I learned of Corey and Lynn’s concept for a costume swap, I believed this was an awesome project that followed the Gaia philosophy of reducing waste, reusing and recycling items to improve wellness and our impact on the environment.  So I JUMPED at the opportunity to help in the National Costume Swap Day campaign.

With Green Halloween promoting the event nationally, all I had to do was register my own swap, find a location, and then tell lots of people about it.  I found the Federal Way Farmer’s Market was a perfect spot at The Commons Mall, and the owners of the market graciously donated booth space for our swap.

I was so excited about the concept I made fliers and handed out at networking events, elementary schools (after getting permission), anywhere that would take them.  I also posted on all my social media outlets, advertised in our community paper and calendars, notified local PTA’s, Girl Scout troops, and other organizations.

The day of the swap came and despite the weather, we had a great time and a great response.  Most families found this program beneficial financially and loved the ‘green’ education that complimented the swap.  My troop helped with our booth signs and made a board showing all the healthier choices parents can use to promote a greener Halloween.  We had crafts and handed out treats for every swap, and the joy on children’s faces to see their next ‘character’ they will portray this year was simply priceless.

People were so excited about this event I was asked for an encore the next two weekends.  I plan on meeting that demand and doing the same thing next year since this was such a success.  Even my own children, who helped at the booth, couldn’t make up their mind what they wanted to be this Halloween when they saw all the options they had. My daughter swapped her costume four times and my son twice as their imaginations lead their choices.

My only recommendation to others interested in hosting a swap would be to make sure if you can get help to get the word out, do so.  I was able to do much of this alone, yet I still needed others to share and spread the benefit of this event.  I can only imagine how much more we could have done for the families in our community if I was able to reach farther and truly saturate our area.  It does take time and some money to make fliers, the boards, and coordinate games or crafts, but if you are creative to find a means to do this without expense to yourself, the better.

As for Gaia’s World, we hope to continue to partner with Green Halloween in the future as we both believe our children can “Grow Green through Laughter, Knowledge, and Play.” :-)

Green Halloween® is a nationwide non-profit initiative started by mother-daughter team Corey Colwell-Lipson and Lynn Colwell. In 2010, Green Halloween became a program of EcoMom® Alliance and has events in cities across the U.S.

I came across this wonderful how-to while reading The Storque, Etsy’s handmade blog and thought to myself.. that’s a perfect craft to do for Halloween! Who wouldn’t want to play with these awesomely spooktacular puppets during a Halloween party? Turn all the lights off and have a fun and frightful time as partygoers wave these puppets around.

The idea was conjured up by the talented crankbunny (her etsy shop) and the instructions on how to create your very own shadow puppets are located here. There are two templates you can download and use, but you can also come up with your very own designs! Just follow the instructions and you’ll have an army of these badboys in no time!

We’ve also embedded the video how-to as well for your viewing pleasure!

Green Halloween® is a nationwide non-profit initiative started by mother-daughter team Corey Colwell-Lipson and Lynn Colwell. In 2010, Green Halloween became a program of EcoMom® Alliance and has events in cities across the U.S.

Guest post by our AMAZING 2010 Green Halloween sponsor: Surf Sweets!

Halloween is a spooky time of year, but spooky in a fun sense with goofy costumes, ghoulish jack-o-laterns, haunted houses and scary movies. All things fun. What about candy, though? We like to think it’s is all fun too. It’s sweet, delicious, makes us feel warm and fuzzy – maybe a bit giddy after too many pieces. But have you stopped to think about what’s REALLY in that candy? If you did, you might be spooked in a not-so good way, and think twice about indulging and sharing with our little ones.

Many conventional candies contain artificial dyes like “Red 40”, “Blue 2” or “Yellow 5 Lake”. Colors that have been artificially created to make Watermelon Jolly Rancher Pink or Skittles the color of the rainbow. However, these dyes have been linked to hyperactivity and other disorders in children. In fact, the European Union recently asked food manufacturers to remove most food dyes from their products and now require warning labels stating that the food “may have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children.” You’ll also find many candies are loaded with corn syrup and hydrogenated oils. Both of which have been linked to health problems, like obesity and heart disease. In the end, conventional candy doesn’t pan out to be the feel-good, yummy treat you thought it was. And after knowing this, how can we share this with all the little ones this Halloween season? Shouldn’t we be encouraging them to make better choices?

Well, we can! There are delicious, all natural and organic candies that satisfy the sweet tooth. Like Surf Sweets! Surf Sweets is passionate about making delicious candy using all natural pure ingredients. Our motto is “if it doesn’t exist in nature, you won’t find it in Surf Sweets.” So there’s NO artificial dyes or flavors. You also won’t find any corn syrup or hydrogenated oils. And to add to the benefit, Surf Sweets candies supply 100% of your daily vitamin C per serving. It’s candy you can feel good about sharing.

Choosing products made with organic ingredients is more than just good for you, it’s good for the earth too! Organic ingredients require organic farming. So there’s no pesticides, harsh chemicals or artificial fertilizers used. This means no chemical run-off and an enhanced biological structure and nutrient level for the soil, resulting in high-quality harvests and long term sustainability of the farm. It’s a win-win for everyone.

So make a change this Halloween. Try something new. Try something that’s good for you and for the earth. Try a delicious candy that’s all natural and organic and share it. The more we share, the more we can encourage others to make better choices and the happier our bodies and earth will be.

Learn more about Surf Sweets at www.surfsweets.com

Green Halloween® is a nationwide non-profit initiative started by mother-daughter team Corey Colwell-Lipson and Lynn Colwell. In 2010, Green Halloween became a program of EcoMom® Alliance and has events in cities across the U.S.

CBS (San Francisco) – Story here

Good Day Atlanta – Story here

Fox 59 Indianapolis – Story here

NBC Charlotte, NC – Story here

The CW11 St. Louis, Missouri

WUSA Washington DC

Bloomington, MN – Story here

EVEN MORE media buzz ca be found here.

Guest Post by Jonathan Collins. Jonathan is the grown-ups community manager for www.minimonos.com, a virtual world for kids, focused on sustainability, generosity, community and fun!

We love Green Halloween^®. Love the engagement. Love putting the eek! into being eco-friendly. And love building healthier, planet-friendly communities by mainstreaming green thinking.

Our connection with Green Halloween came about after one of the kids on MiniMonos (a virtual world for kids) wrote a blog telling us about making a recycled costume as part of a school wearable art project.

Using discarded felt-tip pens and other found objects she created a truly fantastic costume  and learned a lot in the process.

Then another of our MiniMonos kids posted a photo of a robot he’d made from recycled materials. Very cool stuff.

These kids showed such initiative, and got great feedback from other kids on MiniMonos we were inspired! We wanted to follow up and build on the idea. So this Halloween we’re holding a huge Green Halloween costume competition on MiniMonos. There’s already a buzz of excitement about it.

In our Green Halloween^® costume competition kids are encouraged to get creative, use swapped costumes or create their own recycled masterpieces. They can then post photos of their Green Halloween costumes online and there are some wicked prizes up for grabs for the best of them.

Makes good sense on so many levels. Once we’d tuned in to GreenHalloween.org and discovered that $6 billion is spent on Halloween costumes, candy & accessories each year (most of which is either unhealthy or made from unsustainable materials and winds up in landfills afterwards) we wanted to do our bit to help green up the spooky season.

Not only is it better for the planet, it’s loads more fun making your own costumes anyway! We’re using Halloween as an opportunity to think again, and to get creative.

I can’t wait to see the photos that come in. Go Go Green Halloween!

Green Halloween® is a nationwide non-profit initiative started by mother-daughter team Corey Colwell-Lipson and Lynn Colwell. In 2010, Green Halloween became a program of EcoMom® Alliance and has events in cities across the U.S.