Halloween Highlights
We are happy to be in October, the time when we can unabashedly enjoy decorating for Halloween, put on a costume, throw a party and act a little silly. And we’re not checking to see who is sampling the Trick-or-Treat candy.
We checked several internet sites and found that costumes, decorations and candy are the three most popular categories you spend discretionary income on while celebrating the holiday. Almost 70% of all adults between 18 - 34 will celebrate the day. Are you one?
The Original Snow Village Halloween, first introduced in 1998 with the very popular “Haunted Mansion” (56.54935), has introduced many scary and ghoulish pieces as well as family-friendly frightful designs. We know that you all have your favorites and tend to buy in one line or another. Happily, the choices are many!
Make sure you browse all of the 2024 offerings to be sure that you get the pieces you don’t want to miss. You never know what pieces may unexpectedly retire – and then you’ll be disappointed.
One piece that we know will not be around for next year is “Feline Noir, 2024” (6014543), a new dated accessory. Get in on the ground floor with this new sub-series – and who knew how popular cats were going to be this year? Here is, “Kit E. Kat Tombstone” (6013656) which is lighted making it a little scarier. This product is currently out of stock, click here to find a retailer.
Another accessory set you may not have seen is “Ghouls & Goblins” (6013427). We are always getting requests to add general figurines to populate your Village display. And this set includes the very first warlock for the Village – it surely will not be the last!
Not into the spooky Halloween Village? We know that you will enjoy our new “Sleepy Hollow” pieces that will transition from early fall until Thanksgiving. This is based on American author Washington Irving’s 1820 short story “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow”.
While we have designed a few pieces with this theme before (one series available from 1990 – 1993 designed by the creative design team of Neilan and Barbara Lund that coordinated with New England Village, and a second darker series that was made between 2008 – 2010 by an artist who is no longer with Department 56) we feel that we this new series will fit in with New England Village, Dickens’ Village or stand-alone in a small vignette or tabletop display.
We have featured the main character Ichabod Crane in all three, but in the new series we also have Katrina Van Tassel with her bright blue eyes and Ichabod’s old faithful steed, “Gunpowder”. This series is being designed by our Halloween artists Scott Enter and Kiri Namtvedt and you can look for other important people and buildings from the story to be added in the future.
Have you noticed that the Werewolf has made several reoccurring appearances in the Halloween Village?
We think that the first werewolf escaped from the “Silver Bullet” train car that helped celebrate the silver (25th) anniversary of the Snow Village Halloween. Then in 2024, the “Silverback Bouncer” was introduced to keep law and order outside the new “Monster-tini Nightclub”. Word has it that he is doing a r-r-r-really good job. We can only guess where the Werewolf will turn up next!
We hope that you all put your personal touch on your Halloween and fall displays. Share photos to our Facebook page to share with others. Our next Facebook Live will be November 7th at 4:00 PM CT and we’d love to have you join us!