It’s Time for Some Halloween Fun in Alpharetta!
Planning on making the scene in Alpharetta, Georgia, this Halloween? Or are you getting ready for a party at your spacious and pet-friendly Collingwood Apartment Homes residence? Either way, this month’s blog offers all kinds of suggestions for some seasonal fun! Including and especially the info on some of this year’s most popular costumes (yes, of course we’re talking about getting’ your Tay-tay showgirl and Trav-trav Chiefs uniforms on!) Hocus Pocus First, for the grownups, there’s the Hocus Pocus Pop-Up Bar at Mercantile Social on Main Street. Whether you’re a fan of the Sanderson Sisters or just in the mood for some wickedly good cocktails complete with eerie vibes and a touch of witchy magic, it’s the place to be all month long. Downtown Scarecrow Harvest & Boo Bash It simply wouldn’t be October in Alpharetta without the annual downtown Scarecrow Harvest. This year the area will overflow with over 150 unique scarecrows, all brought to life by the creativity of local schools, non-profits, families, neighborhoods, and businesses. Winners of the Scarecrow Community Competition will be announced at Boo Bash on Saturday, October 18, 2025 (from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at The Grove behind the Alpharetta Community Center on Roswell Street). Plan for everybody to put on their best costumes and boogie shoes so all of you can strut your stuff in the Monster Mash Dance-Off. It’s sure to be a “fang-tastic” FREE and family-friendly evening —complete with bewitching carnival games, delicious treats and seasonal crafts from a variety of local vendors, and some Halloween-themed surprises! Costumes & Candy At Avalon You’ll get another chance to get your costume action going the next weekend, you ghouls and goblins, Travis Kelces and Taylor Swifts, KPop Demon Hunters, Wednesdays, and Capybaras!! Make plans to head on over to Avalon for another FREE Halloween celebration for kids of all ages—Trick or Treating! Grab a stroll map from Concierge and collect all of the candy from participating retailers for a chance to win a family fun prize package, specialty cocktails, and a live DJ. This event is rain or shine, from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, October 25. Scary-Good Party Ideas Brew up some sinister mock- and cocktails, prepare some frightful finger foods, and decorate with seasonal black and orange abandon—it’s time to have your very own howling good Halloween party! Both inside and out on your private patio or balcony, your Collingwood Apartment Homes apartment home is the perfect setting both for feting—and frightening!—friends and family. We asked * the Idea Specialists™ * for some tips and tricks to be the hosts with most. They pointed us to HGTV, which has some great ideas for decorating. One of their—and our—favorites is to use your fireplace as a focal point. Use a mix of mums and candles (unlit, for safety!) around it, and fill it full of pumpkins and gourds. So fun! As are these battery-powered holiday candles from Walmart, which come complete with their own remote control. For goodies for gobblin’ (see what we did there? 😎😎), the site comes through again with snack ideas like Hairy Eyeballs (polenta poppers topped with corn silk and a few dribbles of blood marinara sauce), Poisoned Candy Apples (get out the black food coloring!) and more. The Food Network isn’t any slouch, either, when it comes to yikes and yummies. You can make drawing “legs” with chocolate on the Scary Peanut Butter Spider Cookies a family affair, whip up a No-Bake Strawberry Cheesecake Brain in next to no time, and—of course—there’s no forgetting that all-time classic, a Dirt Cake topped with gummy worms! One More—VERY IMPORTANT—Thing! Did you know you can keep up with a lot of the events in our awesome city by signing up for Alpharetta Insider, the FREE email newsletter from the Alpharetta Convention & Visitors Bureau? Here’s the link: https://www.awesomealpharetta.com/blog/ Happy Halloween! * The Idea Specialists™ * The Idea Specialists™ is a group of design and inspiration professionals with a focus on communications for the multifamily industry, as well as custom lifestyle planning and more. They do not receive any sort of product or financial incentives for their recommendations in posts such as these.
Let’s Talk About the Tried & True—and Something Almost Brand New!
When you call the upscale Collingwood Apartment Homes community your home, one of the great things about it is all the tried and true places that make Alpharetta, Georgia, such a wonderful place to live—and the many new shops, restaurants, and venues that always seem to be opening! The Tried We asked * The Idea Specialists™ * to give Alpharetta fave Mama’s Pizza (on Northport Parkway) a try and report back in. They said it’s no wonder this family-owned restaurant has been in business in North Fulton County for more than 40 years—the pies are worth every penny and then some! (At least we think that’s what they said…..they were talking with their mouths full, LOL.) Thin New York crust, gluten-free options, and Italian ices and gelatos are just some of the things that make Mama’s a must if you’re in the mood for kid-friendly casual dining. The True Aisles and aisles of amazing antiques, collectibles, and interior decor await visitors at Queen of Hearts Antiques & Interiors, a fixture on Alpharetta’s North Main Street for more than 25 years. The Idea Specialists™ truly enjoy themselves every time they peruse the aisles of the Queen for treasures because they share the same philosophy: “Your home deserves stories.” New merchandise arrives daily, and workshops on all manner of crafts are offered on a regular basis. The New It’s been less than a year since Trader Joe’s opened its new location at Halcyon, near the Chick-fil-A at the Big Creek Greenway trailhead of Halcyon. Haven’t checked it out yet? Well, then—you are in for a treat! Originally a nautical-themed neighborhood grocery store in Pasadena, California, the chain has spread across the nation, developing almost cult-like followings in each of its communities! We love treating ourselves to some of the new-to-us affordable wines they carry, and while the frozen palak paneer may not be as good as what your amma used to make, it’s a close (and vegetarian) substitute! Oh, and don’t forget the flowers! And cheeses! And, and, and….. There’s No Shame In Our Dinner Game! We decided it just wouldn’t be a good blog post if we didn’t say something about prepared food to eat in the comfort of your cozy (and pet-friendly!) Collingwood Apartment Homes dining area, so we asked the Idea Specialists™ to suggest something fast and simple to get on the table now that school is back in serious swing. They immediately suggested taking advantage of the Little Big Meal at The Fresh Market at Old Alabama Square. Options change regularly, but all include a main course and at least one side and are meant to feed four for only $25. Enjoy! One More Thing Are your kids as obsessed as ours with MrBeast? If so, then you probably already know that the dude (aka Jimmy Donaldson) has 423 million subscribers on YouTube and a wildly popular unscripted show on Prime Video (Beast Games). But did you (and they) know that he and popular science YouTuber Mark Rober are now co-leading the new initiative #TeamWater, a crowdfunding campaign to change millions of lives around the world through access to clean water? Powered by the biggest team of content creators on the internet, the campaign has a goal of raising $40 million to provide 2 million people with life-changing access to clean water for decades. Something to talk about at supper for sure! * The Idea Specialists™ * The Idea Specialists™ is a group of design and inspiration professionals with a focus on communications for the luxury apartment home industry, as well as custom lifestyle planning and more. They do not receive any sort of product or financial incentives for their recommendations in posts such as these.
