Charlie the superdog is the only member of the King family to have two Halloween costumes this year. Her other outfit is a donut.
Joelyne King
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Joelyne King
Charlie the superdog is the only member of the King family to have two Halloween costumes this year. Her other outfit is a donut.
Joelyne King
Charlie doesn’t want to stand still for the photo.
The Chihuahua-terrier mix in a Superman cape is perched next to some pumpkins, turns and sniffs the decoration. Joelyne King, behind the phone camera, raises her voice to remind him that he’s a good boy. Then, he holds up a dollar bill, and his crinkle takes his canine focus long enough.
“We thought Superman would be a good costume because he’s just a big all-around dog,” King says on a recent visit to a Maryland farm for a fall festival with his family. One of his two children is about to celebrate his first Halloween.
“I usually have several costumes for the kids, but I think this year we just went with one for each. Charlie was the only one who had two,” says King.
When Charlie is not a superhero, he will be dressed as a donut.
This Halloween, American shoppers are expected to spend $700 million on pet costumes, according to the National Retail Federation. In all, Halloween spending in the United States will likely exceed $12 billion, a new record. HA National Retail Federation The survey estimated that the average shopper spends $108 on candy, costumes and decorations.
Bailey the Shih Tzu doesn’t like costumes, but he does his best to impersonate a tiger anyway.
Alina Selyukh
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Alina Selyukh
Bailey the Shih Tzu doesn’t like costumes, but he does his best to impersonate a tiger anyway.
Alina Selyukh
The survey found that the top pet clothing choices are pumpkin, hot dog, bat, bumblebee and spider.
The survey did not seem to ask the opinions of the animals on the matter. Not even Alyssa Peters and Mike Namaiandeh, dressed as Jasmine and Aladdin, who lead Bailey, a cheerful Shih Tzu dressed as a tiger.
“When I pulled the dress out of the package, she looked at me like, ‘Are we really going to do this?'” Peters says, laughing. “You have to be a part of the team here.”
Candy may be $500, but emotions are priceless
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Halloween spending was actually down in the United States. But the lockdowns brought more people home for the holidays, and we’re not stopping.
The Denchfield family expects 400 to 500 children to walk through the haunted maze that has made the family home a Halloween destination in Bethesda, Maryland.
Alina Selyukh
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Alina Selyukh
The Denchfield family expects 400 to 500 children to walk through the haunted maze that has made the family home a Halloween destination in Bethesda, Maryland.
Alina Selyukh
“This is like a universal party that everyone can enjoy,” says Kurt Denchfield, standing next to a plastic blood case: fake blood, loose severed limbs and bleeding brains.
Every year, his family transforms their front yard into a haunted maze that becomes a major Halloween destination in suburban Bethesda, Maryland.
To get the treats here means breaking through the fog and evading glowing skeletons, glimmering electric tentacles, screaming monsters – and at least one of the six chainsaw-wielding Denchfield children.
Kurt and Heather Denchfield, with their son Jake, pose in their front garden, which is about to turn into a haunted maze.
Alina Selyukh
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Alina Selyukh
Kurt and Heather Denchfield, with their son Jake, pose in their front garden, which is about to turn into a haunted maze.
Alina Selyukh
Heather Denchfield is the purchasing department for the operation. She confirms one of the reasons why holiday spending is on the rise: everything is more expensive. Cheaper sugar, cotton, and building materials mean more expensive candy, costumes, and decorations.
To keep costs down, the Denchfields reuse a spooky stash of supplies from year to year. They purchased cornstalks and pallets through Kurt’s landscaping business. But there’s one Halloween luxury they won’t sacrifice: the full-sized candy bars that await the maze’s survivors.
“We go from full-size to fun-size by the time the night ends,” says Heather.
“It’s after the 400th candy bar,” Kurt said. They estimate they shelled out $500 for all that chocolate.
Kurt Denchfield works on the haunted maze, which is expanded larger every year.
Alina Selyukh
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Alina Selyukh
Kurt Denchfield works on the haunted maze, which is expanded larger every year.
Alina Selyukh
And the number of visitors to the haunted maze seems to increase by 50 children each year, Kurt adds, though he doesn’t know if it’s word of mouth or the hyper Halloween spirit.
“We’re going to need a bigger front garden soon if we’re going to keep expanding,” he says. “Maybe we can annex the neighbor’s garden for a night.”
Talk about ramping up your Halloween spending. Step 1: Get a bigger lawn.
