Monster Halloween boxes

[Hepcat]

I don't have any originals.

Here are some pics of an original Phoenix Frankenstein Candy box then:

[Mike Scott]

Here are some pics of an original Phoenix Frankenstein Candy box then:

Oops! I screwed up on the "ingredients" side of the Frank box. The text placement is a bit different than all the others.

[Hepcat]

So then you just corrected Phoenix's error, that's all.

[Mike Scott]

So then you just corrected Phoenix's error, that's all.

Maybe I'll get ambitious and fix it, some day. 

[ZaiDejrio]

Welcome to the UMA, ZaiDejrio !   

Thank you
I'm glad I stumbled upon this nice place.

[a71678]

It's time to resurrect this thread for 2019! This year's boxes are printed and ready for die-cutting and assembling. Right now I'm working on putting together the "stuffing," more of which is custom made this year and, hence, requires more time and effort than in previous years. I'll post previews soon.

In the meantime, I had the opportunity to travel to Chicago for a convention a couple weeks ago, and Svengoolie just happened to be signing autographs at a different event right across the street! Fortunately, I knew this in advance, so I had my box with his face on it that appeared on his show last year reprinted and asked him to sign it for me. He recognized it right away and said, "Are you the one who made these?" Then he called his handler over and said, "Remember when we had these on the show?" The whole exchange was filmed for his "Svengoolie on the Road" segment, but who knows how much, if any, will actually make the cut?

It was a really fun experience. I have the signed box in my vault, right next to the "Creature" box signed by Ricou Browning.

[a71678]

This thread is back from the dead (so to speak)! After spending a couple months literally not leaving the house (except to walk to the mailbox and back), I started thinking about what will happen if things are like this again (or still) come Halloween. Surely trick-or-treating won't be normal. Either areas are going to ban it altogether or parents are going to be too nervous to let their kids go. Which, of course, made me sad because I love designing Halloween candy boxes and fun packs to hand out each year.

Then I had an idea: What if someone came up with a sort of "trick-or-treat by mail" project that would send a free Halloween fun pack to kids who couldn't go trick-or-treating the traditional way? So that's what I'm doing! Here's a sample of what I plan the front to look like, plus a look at some of the things I've already designed for the inside and for use as donor incentives:









If anyone is interested in reading more about it (or supporting the initiative, which is 100 percent donor reliant), check out the project website: www.halloweenfunpack.com

Hope everyone here is having a monstrously good spring!

[Hepcat]

Oh that is fabulous! I particularly like the Wacky Plak tribute.

[a71678]

It's time for my annual Halloween box post! This year's boxes are poised to capture kids' interest in the presidential election with a monster twist:



And the backs:



Originally, I was going to use "Vote [INSERT MONSTER'S NAME] 2020" on the backs, but the town hadn't yet decided whether or not to allow trick-or-treating by the time of my printing deadline, so I left the date off so I could hold them until 2024 as a contingency. Thankfully, it looks like trick-or-treating will go ahead as planned this Saturday, with social distancing recommendations.

Inside the boxes will be "Vote [INSERT MONSTER'S NAME] pencil toppers, patriotic stickers (originally it was going to be an "I Voted" sticker, but I had some American flag and red-white-and-blue star stickers left over from July 4 project I worked on last year that I used instead), presidential trading card, monster eraser, plastic ring (spider, bat or skull) and a coloring card themed to the monster on the front of the box (recycled from my original Universal monster boxes in 2017).

I also designed these to go on H-stakes in front of the house with this year's Halloween decorations:



Happy Halloween, everyone!

[Mike Scott]

It's time for my annual Halloween box post!

Looks cool! I like the gags on the backs!

[Hepcat]

It's time for my annual Halloween box post! This year's boxes are poised to capture kids' interest in the presidential election with a monster twist:

Happy Halloween, everyone!

How did previous years' boxes go over with the kids? Did you receive any feedback? Did you notice any increase in visitations after the first year?

[a71678]

Eh, the kids never really understand what they are. I usually drop them into their bags with a couple snack size candies; otherwise, they're reluctant to take them. I like to think they enjoy them when they get home, but the only feedback I've ever really received was from my sister-in-law, who didn't realize it was from me. The first year she took my niece trick-or-treating, she discovered it while going through her candy and took a picture to send to my wife with a message along the lines of, "Found this in Bella's candy bag and thought it was pretty neat. Seems like something your husband would like."

But I have fun making them.

Actually, our trick-or-treaters have really dwindled in the past couple years.  We used to get about 200 each Halloween; now we're down to just under 100.  The complex next door has expanded exponentially, so what seems to be happening is, our development is sort of the "starter" neighborhood, where parents take their kids for the first couple years and let them trick-or-treat at 20 or 30 houses, then after they turn 5 or 6, they "graduate" to the development next door, where there are hundreds of houses handing out candy. Over there, they're usually able to get through only 2-3 streets during the two hours authorized for trick-or-treating in our town. A lot of them rotate so they can explore different streets each year.

We've actually started looking at houses there since we've kind of outgrown ours, but so far the ones in our price range have been snapped up before we could even look at them. It's definitely a seller's market right now.

[Monsters For Sale]

The kids take the boxes home and the parents get a kick out of them.

"The two hours authorized for trick-or-treating in our town"?  In the 1950's, when I was a kid, I went begging from sundown 'til all the houses were dark.

[Hepcat]

"The two hours authorized for trick-or-treating in our town"?  In the 1950's, when I was a kid, I went begging from sundown 'til all the houses were dark.

Indeed!

[Hepcat]

For whatever reason a71678 (a.k.a. Jason) has not posted on this board in 2 1/2 years.    He has nevertheless continued to put together ever more fabulous Halloween boxes. Here's a shot of the four different Creature Feature boxes and their contents that he's done for Halloween 2023:



The back of the boxes:



And the included puzzles assembled:



Incredible! Jason does a more and more fabulous job every year.