To quote from "A Tale of Two Cities", our time in the Arctic was a little bit of both the best and worst of times. I know we endured the hardships of an extreme climate, as well as separation from our larger family, but we were also part of an amazing adventure. I know we kids took it for granted at the time, but looking back I can only admire the stamina and pioneering spirit of my parents. They not only endured, they enjoyed almost every minute we spent in the north, and nowhere was their creativity more apparent than in the amazing and unique homemade Halloween decorations they created each fall.

Though I will always admire Dad's paper mache pumpkins, my all-time favorite is still the "Paper Bag People"

The making of the Paper Bag People at my parents parties was always accompanied with much excited giggling and the snick-snack of many pairs of scissors snipping busily through the stash of colored paper. We knew the "Parade of Characters" was a success by the prolonged guffaws and shouts of laughter that woke us yet again from our slumbers.

We never minded, because when we tippy-toed out in the morning, we knew we would be greeted with a grinning row of these amazing creations. As well, we knew we were allowed to polish off any left-over snacks that had survived the adults predations, and there would usually be a few goodies on each of the plates stacked haphazardly in the fridge. Good times!

Though they weren't originally intended as Halloween decorations, these amazing creations quickly became a staple decoration. Born at a mid-winter house party as a party game (more about these in another Hub), I was quick to see their potential for kids parties.

Paper Bag People are not only an activity that will keep the kids busy for some time, they make great party favors. Kids love to decorate their Halloween cupcake with a spooky face. Add to that the caramel apple they dip themselves and a hard candy necklace, and you have a treat bag worthy of the best parties,

To create your very own Paper Bag People you will need:

• several large, brown-paper grocery bags, one for each child (or adult)
• scissors and glue - we used mucilage, but glue sticks work very well
• construction paper in a variety of colors, with lots of yellow, red, black and brown for the "hair" (for an adult party, you might want to add some grey as well, depending on the age of your guests)
• sparkles, felt pens, and other light-weight items to decorate the finished Paper Bag Person (remember- keeping it simple to keep costs down)

Pirate:

With a pencil, draw the following shapes on the colors indicated. Cut out the shapes as follows:

• Cut one oval shape for an eye in your color of choice
• Cut one eye-patch shape from black paper with two long strips for straps
• Cut a piece of red paper to cover the top of the bag
• Cut another piece of red to make a band across the forehead
• Cut a deeper piece big enough to cover the top half of the back of the bag
• Cut two pieces of red paper, one for each side. Cut the top and sides of each to fit the size of the paper bag. Cut the bottom at an angle so that it is the same depth on one side as the narrower forehead band, and the same depth on the other side as the bottom of the band for the back of the head
  
• Cut a snarling mouth shape, removing the paper from between the lips, then cut some white or yellow teeth to fit in it the opening
• Cut two ear shapes with tabs to join the to the bag
• Cut two eyebrows from the desired hair color
• Cut a flesh colored semi-circle to make an upper eyelid. Cut a narrower semi-circle to make the bottom lid
• Cut two strips from dark paper the same length as the straight side of the "eyelid" semi-circle, and about 1" deep. Cut part way into one side down the length of the strip. Be careful not to cut all the way through. Roll the fringes you have just made around a pencil so they curl slightly
• Cut two or three irregular small circles from brown or black paper - these will become moles or freckles on the pirate's face
• Cut another long strip - fringe and curl it as above. This will become the pirates hair. Cut four shorter pieces for the sides, and a few for the back.

Assemble your pirate as follows:

• Glue the red scarf pieces to the top, back, and sides of the bag.
• Glue on the eye shape and attach the top and bottom eyelid pieces over it so that part of the eye shape is still visible. Attach the fringed eyelashes along the straight edge of the upper eyelid.
• Glue on the eyebrows above the eyes. Experiment with the angle to create a funny or fierce expression.
  
• Attach one ear to each side of the bag below the red scarf.
  
• Tuck the long hair fringes under the back and front of the red scarf, securing them with glue stick or white glue. Tuck a short piece of the fringe in front of and behind each ear, and secure with glue.
• Glue on the eye-patch piece in place of the other eye and attach the strips to the patch, one strip leading up across the forehead, tucking in under the red scarf and hair fringe. The other strip will cross in the other direction, around the side, tucking in under the scarf and hair fringe just in front of the ear. Glue both ends under the red scarf.
• Glue on the mouth, fitting the teeth into the opening
• Add the moles, and decorate the "headscarf" with felt pens and glitter, if desired
  

Princess:

As with the Pirate, draw the following shapes on the colors indicated. Cut out the shapes as follows:

• Cut two oval shape for an eye in your color of choice
• Cut a piece of paper to cover the top of the bag in the hair color of your choice - cut another strip to fit across the front for "bangs" if desired
  
• Cut a three deeper pieces of the same color that are big enough to cover the sides and back of the bag
  
• Cut two more pieces for each of the sides and the back (six more pieces, in all) - make these pieces shorter than the first side and back pieces. Use your scissors to cut fringes into the bottom of each piece. Roll the fringes on your pencil to curl them. Fringe and curl the "bangs" in the same way.
  
• Cut a pretty mouth shape - if her lips are open in a smile, remove the paper from between the lips, then cut some little white teeth to fit behind the open lips
• Cut two eyebrows from the desired hair color
• Cut two flesh colored semi-circle to make an upper eyelids. Cut two narrower semi-circle to make the bottom lids
• Cut two strips from dark paper the same length as the straight side of the "eyelid" semi-circle, and about 1 and 1/4" deep. Cut part way into one side down the length of the strip, leaving the last 1/4" uncut for the length of the strip. Be careful not to cut all the way through. Roll the fringes you have just made around a pencil so they curl slightly
• Cut a longish triangle from pink or light brown paper for the nose, about 4" long and about 3" across the bottom. Fold over a narrow strip on each of the long sides - you will apply the glue there. Fold the triangle in half and crease it down the middle.
  

Assemble your princess as follows:

• Glue the longest hair pieces to the top, back, and sides of the bag.Arrange the shorter pieces over them in layers and glue in place. Attach the "bangs" across the front if using
  
• Glue on the eye shapes and attach the top and bottom eyelid pieces over then so that part of the eye shapes are still visible. Attach the fringed eyelashes along the straight edges of the upper eyelids.
  
• Glue the eyebrows on above the eyes
• Attach the folded nose triangle with the point centered between and just below the eyes so that the creased part sticks up like a nose.
  
• Glue on the mouth an inch or so below the nose, fitting the teeth behind the lips
• Decorate the crown with crayons and felt pens. Add glitter and other decorations if using, and attach the crown around the top of the bag, so that it covers the top 1/2" of hair

Once the Paper Bag People are completed, arrange them in a row so that they may be admired by all, and act as decorations 'til the party is over. They are great fun to make and are the kids will love taking them home as a souvenir of a great Halloween party.

One of the most fun couples costumes I ever created was one of the cheapest as well. We had just moved into our new-to-us home that summer, and discovered the window coverings were part of the package. We had already purchased new draperies for the living room, so down came the miles of elegant, dark green jacquard fabric.

When fall weather rolled in bringing thoughts of the upcoming staff Halloween party at my then-husband's school, I remembered the yards and yards of lush green fabric residing on a shelf at the back of the storage closet.

I don't know where the idea came from, but at some point in my ruminations, lightning struck. Arabian nights! I could outfit him as a Pasha but the thought of parading around in a skimpy belly-dancer's costume filled me with horror...but a saree... Just the ticket!

Fashioning the long, baggy pantaloons with elastic at the waist and ankles was a snap.

Next came the long, sleeveless vest. I used one of his suit vests as a template for general size and width across the shoulders, but cut the fronts and back much longer. Rather than sewing them together all the way down, I left the sides open from the waist down, hemming the seam allowance on each side for a nice, finished look.,

I shaped the vest-front neck opening like the suit vest. Rather than creating a placket for buttons and button holes, I cut the front panels long, about half-way to the knee, with a straight hem at the bottom, If I'd had any fancy rick-rack or braid, I could have trimmed the vest fronts up one side, around the neck, and back down the other. I opted instead for a couple of long chains for decoration.

The pantaloons and vest looked great over a collarless shirt, but a braver, well-built young fellow might like to impress the ladies by going shirtless.

We also managed to make him pointy-toed shoes using a trick of my dad's. Using a pair of pliers, we grabbed the center of a roll of adhesive tape and pulled it outwards and slightly upwards. We flattened one side of the resulting pointed and curved cone, and slipped it over the toe of his black shoes. We stuck it on with black duct tape, covering the curved toe extension to match. They were a bit tricky to walk in, but the effect was magical.

The turban was also simple to achieve. I hemmed a length of fabric about the size of a bath towel. When it was time to dress for the party, he simply bent forward and wrapped the fabric over his head, twisting it to the front like a woman wrapping up her long wet hair after a shower.

I tucked the twisted ends under the fabric at the back of his neck, secured it in place with several large safety pins. A large sparkly brooch pinned to the center front of his turban completed the look.

My saree was even easier. I cut off the pinch pleated top of one of the drapes so that the remaining length of fabric, already hemmed at the sides and the bottom, reached from my shoulder to the floor.

Donning a cap-sleeved top that looked pretty with the green drapery fabric, I tied a long thin piece of fabric around my body, forming a belt just under my arms and above my breasts. Tucking the cut edge of the fabric over the belt, I folded the soft cloth around my body like a saree - flat across the back and three large pleats evenly spaced across the front - .leaving enough to carry the end up over my head. Pinning a scarf veil-like across my face, helped to secure the head covering, keeping it in place.

Then I pinned a gold chain with a pendant onto the head covering so that the pendant hung down over my forehead, like an Arabian nights dancer. A few gold-tone bangles and a pair of strappy, flat sandals completed my costume.

I'd used a temporary dark rinse to disguise my ash-blond hair, and we were thrilled that no one had any idea who we were until we all removed our masks following the costume parade. We even took first place for our great couples costume!