October's Party Reel

Vintage postcard

Oct 18

October Parties Month

Other Scottish Country Dances for this Day

October Parties Month

October's Party Reel

Today's Musings, History & Folklore

"Ghosts and goblins take the floor,
Witches whirl and spirits soar;
Pumpkins glow beneath the moon—
Dance on, dancers, to the tune!"

It’s Party Time! 🎉 🎃 👻

Scottish Country Dancers are lucky that there are still plenty of opportunities for fancy dress and costumed dance parties, particularly around harvest time and Hallowe’en. A Harvest Ball can celebrate the season with dancers in rustic autumn attire, surrounded by pumpkins, hay bales and twinkling lights, with tunes to match the cozy fall atmosphere.

For a spookier twist, a Hallowe’en Dance Party gives everyone an excuse to arrive in creative—but preferably danceable!—costumes, with eerie lighting and a playlist mixing traditional tunes with a few classic Hallowe’en surprises. Some unexpected choices that work remarkably well at reel or strathspey tempos include “The Addams Family Theme,” “Ghostbusters,” and even “Thriller.”

Or go a little more elegant with a Phantom of the Opera Masquerade Dance Night, where mystery, masks and Scottish Country Dancing meet. Masks may make identifying one’s partner slightly more challenging, but that is surely part of the fun!

This easy-to-learn 32 bar reel devised by Hallenbeck and fits the season particularly well, with a different “non-widdershins” (clockwise) chase every eight bars—plenty of opportunities to look over a shoulder for ghosts, goblins, or dancers who go bump in the night on the dance floor!

Whatever the reason, whatever the season—dance on, dancers! 🕺 💃 🖤 🧡 🖤 🎉 🎃 👻 🎃

October's Party Reel

Vintage Halloween celebrations were rich in tradition and charm, featuring handmade decorations, simple costumes, and community-centered activities that have become timeless. In the early 20th century, Halloween was marked by homemade paper mâché masks, black cats, witches, skeletons, and grinning jack-o’-lanterns. Children often dressed in costumes created from everyday items like sheets or fabric scraps, while neighborhoods gathered for parties filled with classic games, rather than the commercial trick-or-treating we see today. These celebrations were fun, mysterious, and full of playful superstition.

Party games played a big role in vintage Halloween festivities.

One of the most iconic was bobbing for apples, where participants tried to grab apples floating in a tub of water using only their mouths. It wasn’t just a game; catching an apple first was said to predict future romance or fortune. Another game, snap apple, involved apples hanging from strings, which players attempted to bite without using their hands. Fortune-telling games were especially popular, with participants peeling apples or dropping chestnuts into a fire to uncover hints about their futures.

Adding to the fun was the Scottish tradition of pulling kail. In this outdoor activity, blindfolded participants would pull up a stalk of kale to predict details about their future spouse—whether they would be tall, short, wealthy, or poor. The condition of the kale stalk revealed these fortunes, and the amount of dirt on its roots signified the spouse’s wealth. The pulled kail would then be hung over a doorway, and the first person to walk under it was said to resemble the participant’s future partner.

Along with lighthearted games like Pin the Tail on the Donkey and spooky mystery boxes, where players reached into bowls of "eyeballs" (peeled grapes) or "intestines" (spaghetti), these activities brought laughter and a bit of eerie fun to vintage Halloween. Combined, these games and traditions created an atmosphere that perfectly balanced the spooky and the playful, making vintage Halloween parties a beloved memory for generations.

For a collection of Hallowe'en themed tartans and vintage Scottish Hallowe'en postcards, click the vintage postcard below!

Click the dance cribs or description below to link to a printable version of the dance!