Alice in Halloween Wonderland

Halloween is a holiday I haven’t been excited about for a long time. For more than ten years, I’ve enjoyed Halloween the boring grown up way… buying discounted candy on November 1.

Once or twice I carved pumpkins (for pumpkin seeds) or dressed up (for a party) but it’s not something I’ve looked forward to since I was a trick-or-treater.

Since it’s my first Halloween as a mom, and my munchkin’s first Halloween ever… this year brought renewed excitement…. And this is what we did for it….

If you follow our blog then you know I have big “mom shoes” to fill. My mom could make/do anything when my brother and I were young…. Cakes, clothes and costumes, pumpkins, etc…. And she still can!

While I share my mom’s love of crafting and creating, I’m not near as skilled at making things in the same way she did… at least not yet.

After finding an adorable Alice in Wonderland costume, I decided we would make a special backdrop for taking Halloween pictures. I love taking pictures, it provided significant savings compared to using a photographer, and it will give our little munchkin something fun to look back on when she’s older.

The project started with Cheshire Cat pumpkins. We picked up small pumpkins from the grocery store and I painted them to match the Cheshire Cat’s stripes. It took about four coats to cover nicely and then I did some touch ups.

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Next, my hubby and I used Bristol board to create a checkered backdrop. I used a large Scrabble piece my mom painted to trace the squares because it was the perfect shape/size… And it was easier than measuring and using a ruler.

I later added a “Happy Unbirthday/Halloween” sign and taped on some playing cards (with the Queen of Hearts on top, of course).

I also scrunched up fabric (from Dollar Store) and tied it with elastics for the base of the board. I taped them to the wall for the pictures.

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The final prop we made was a Mad Hatter Trick-or-Treat bin. We picked up a costume hat from Value Village, cut the top off and hot glued the fabric back together along the opening, sealed the bottom with the previous top of hat, and added a Bristol board handle.

We used a green table cloth for the base and then added a blanket, miniature tea set, playing cards, candy, and painted-red roses I had from an old craft.

It was fun to create, to share my love of all-things Alice with my little munchkin, and now, it’s amazing to see her smiling face in her own Halloween Wonderland pictures.

Wishing everyone a safe and Happy Halloween!

Kim