COSTUMES

• A-1 Express Rental Center 2515 Mall Dr., Eau Claire • 834-2727 • www.a1expressrental.com • What’s better than dressing up for Halloween? Not having to pay full price or hold onto a garment you will never wear again. A-1 Express Rental Center offers over 200 costumes from the current trends to all the classic options. Renting a costume means you could afford to get something different every year. Not to mention, at A-1 you can try on everything before you pay, unlike buying stuff sealed in a plastic bag. Reserve yours today, but make sure you bring it back when you are done! 
• Goodwill Eau Claire 3605 Gateway Dr., Eau Claire • 835-0532 • Tap into your creative side and make your own costume from tons of (locally) used clothing and accessories. Not only used items are available if you need a mask or make-up.
• Goodwill Menomonie 2500 Hills Ct., Menomonie • 235-8488 • Check out their seasonal selection of donated costumes and props. You’ll also find brand new decorations and costumes.
• Grand Rental Station 402 W. River St., Chippewa Falls • 720-4957 or 723-8002 • Getting your costume early so that they are not all picked-over is one major fear when it comes to Halloween. You don’t want to be the third person at a party dressed as a hotdog, right? Why not come in a few days ahead of time and reserve exactly what you want? Pay a one-time rental fee, have a blast, then return it when you are done. Easy as pumpkin pie.
• Hope Gospel Mission Bargain Center 2511 W. Moholt Dr. Eau Claire • 839-9498 • www.hopegospelmission.org • Take advantage of donated clothes and eccentric accessories to make a costume no one has ever seen before! Well, except maybe the person who sent in the plaid slacks …
• JoAnn Fabrics 4045 Commonwealth Ave., Eau Claire • 836-7132 • www.joann.com • Come find more than just fabrics for your Halloween this year. (Although they still have loads of it if you feel like making a costume from scratch.) They carry make-up, costumes, decorations, home décor, even activities and crafts for kids. Since everything is pretty much always on sale, look for some good deals! Don’t forget to use their coupons, either.
• Savers 2833 Mall Dr., Eau Claire • 835-8500 • www.savers.com • Oh Savers, you truly are the hot spot for all needs Halloween. Going out on the town in spooky style or just looking good on a budget – now that’s a treat. Check out their website for costume and makeup ideas and get inspiration for what you might want to look for in the store.
• Shopko, Wal-Mart, Target, etc. As you Halloween fanatics might know, there is not a store at the mall dedicated to all things gory and glorious this year. So what are you going to do to get your fix? Looks like you will have to stick with the tried and true, reliable chain retail stores. They usually have pretty good prices on masks, costumes, make-up, and other accessories. They also sell some pretty nice Halloween home décor, so stopping to get bags of candy might not be the only reason to go there this year.
• Halloween Bootique 4068 Commonwealth Ave, Eau Claire • 831-6010 • This shop offers a wide variety of goods from costumes for infants, adults, and pets, to accessories/props, makeup, jewelry, shoes, wigs, and hats. Perfect location to get all your costume needs in one stop. Open Mon.-Sat. 10am-9pm, Sun. 11am-6pm.
   

DÉCOR

• Halloween Express Oakwood Mall, 4800 Golf Rd. Eau Claire • 379-0086 • Located in a huge orange tent in Younkers’ parking lot, Halloween Express is open through Oct. 31 and provides everything you need to decorate and dress up for Halloween.
• 50/50 Factory Outlet 3315 State Road 93, Eau Claire • 833-0019 • www.5050factoryoutlet.com • Having a Halloween party? Make it a good one and get all kinds of festive stuff from 50/50. Party decorations, cups, plates, napkins, table clothes, balloons, and even some costumes might be what you need to party like it’s Halloween, 1999.
• Country Treasures 216 N Bridge Street, Chippewa Falls • 723-8883 • 4625 Keystone Xing, Eau Claire • 839-9415 • Both locations offer autumn/Halloween ceramic decorations, candles, figurines, dolls, village sets, novelties, dishes, candy bowls, and more.
• Factory Card Outlet 3755 Gateway Dr. Eau Claire • 834-9663 • www.factorycard.com • With a huge seasonal selection, the shop offers Mylar and regular Halloween balloons, themed napkins, tableware, indoor and outdoor decorations – even fog machines. Peruse the costumes, masks, and make-up, or check out their website to shop from home. They sell over 3,000 costumes from trendy looks to classic witches and ghosts.
• Michaels 4084 Commonwealth Ave., Eau Claire • 832-5582 • www.michaels.com • Get your crafty skills into high gear at Michaels and turn your home in a fall scene. It’s fun and easy with festive decorations like fake foliage, dried flower arrangements, wall hangings, and much more. They also have children’s activities, make-up, and Halloween resource guides.
• Dollar stores So, money is tight, but that doesn’t mean you can’t afford to celebrate Halloween this year. There are all kinds of dollar and value stores in the area that should not be overlooked. You can get decorations, party supplies, candy, costume accessories, and other treats at a price that’s hard to sneer at.
• Bottom Dollar Outfitters 4800 Golf Road, Eau Claire // Dollar Tree 2615 London Road, Eau Claire • 552-7869 / 309 E Prairie View Road, Chippewa Falls • 720-2382 / 2421 Hwy 25 N, Menomonie • 233-1248 • www.dollartree.com // Dollar General 2109 Cameron St, Eau Claire • 852-0422 / 905 Main St., Eau Claire • 852-0422 / 1512 9th St. E, Menomonie • 235-3770 • www.dollargeneral.com // Family Dollar Store 2621 N Clairemont Ave., Eau Claire • 830-1312 / 2745 Birch St., Eau Claire • 552-3581 / 3015 E Hamilton Ave., Eau Claire • 832-2239 / 25 W Central St., Chippewa Falls • 720-6162 • www.familydollar.com
   

PUMPKINS & MAZES

• Fields of Pumpkins Route 1 Box S15966, Mondovi • 9am-5pm and by appointment • 834-7556 • Their name says it all. It’s all about pumpkins! And they have fields of the crazy orange things. Pick your own out of a massive five-acre patch. Also get some organically grown produce: the corn, squash, and hordes of gourds are just waiting for you. Hayrides and bonfires are also available (call ahead to schedule an event).
• Hawkins’ Hollow 8966 County Hwy X West, Chippewa Falls • Fridays 1-5pm; Saturdays and Sundays 11am-5pm • 720-0192 or 726-9926 • Get lost in the Hawkins’ 10-acre corn maze, but not for too long, or you will miss out on building your own scarecrow, the petting zoo, and more. Whether you come just for the activities, or specifically for a prize-winning pumpkin to turn into a jack-o-lantern, they have it covered. They also have a variety of country gifts, corn stalk bundles, gourds, and straw bails. Horse-drawn wagon rides are offered on Saturday and Sunday, starting at noon. Call to make weekday group appointments.
• Pleasant Valley Tree Farm N7240 810th St., Elk Mound • 879-5179 • www.pleasantvalleytree.com • Have you ever seen a pumpkin get shot out of a cannon and fly hundreds of feet to its doom? If not, get to the Pleasant Valley Fall Harvest ASAP! They also have a sweet corn maze, petting zoo, kid play areas, wagon rides, the Spooky Ridge Trail and more. Get a pumpkin to carve, or any other kind of gourd you could think of. They offer other kinds of fall produce as well. Also check out home décor and gourmet foods in their country store before you leave.
• Schultz’s Country Barn 50996 N. Main St., Eleva • Corn maze open daily 10am-5pm; Store open Tues-Sun 10am-5pm • Adults $7, children $5, 4 and under FREE • 287-4684 • www.schultzscountrybarn.com • Get back to your roots with some fancy fall gourds! The Schultz’s Country Store offers a variety of festive fall decorations, a bundle of pre-picked pumpkins and much more. If you still feel like picking your own, the horse-drawn wagon rides will stop by the patch on Saturdays from noon to four. The giant corn maze is reason enough to visit; find the 6 checkpoints throughout the maze and take a stab at their Wisconsin trivia questions.
• Farmers markets & roadside shops When looking for the perfect pumpkin, sometimes you don’t need to go out and find it; it may just come to you. Check out local farmers markets and roadside stands when you can, because they will be selling all kinds of fall produce throughout the Chippewa Valley.
• Fanny Hill throughout October • 345 Frenette Dr. • 726-9094 • fannyhill.com • The outside of this restaurant and dinner theater is annually decorated with hundreds of pumpkins for the Great Pumpkin Festival. Other than the loads of pumpkins carved by local organizations, there’s always The Great Pumpkin, which requires you to guess its weight for a prize. (Previous years have been up to 600 pounds.) None of the pumpkins are for sale.

Other piles of pumpkins and fall produce...

• Bushel and a Peck Market 18444 Hwy OO, Chippewa Falls • 723-0133 // Class Apple 5198 Sunset View Drive, Eau Claire • 834-9060 // Connell’s Orchard 19372 Hwy OO, Chippewa Falls • 723-5119 // Eau Claire Orchards 6470 Balsam Road, Eau Claire • 839-8370 • www.eauclaireorchards.com // Hillview Farm E6198 Hickory Road, Eau Claire • 878-4526 • www.apples4u.net // John McIlquham Orchard, LLC Corner of County Hwy J & County Hwy K, Chippewa Falls • 720-1663 • www.autumnharvestwinery.com // Lowes Creek Tree Farm S9475 Lowes Creek Road, Eleva • (888) 878-4166 • www.lowescreektreefarm.com // Schaefer’s Orchard Run 1726 County Hwy K, Chippewa Falls • 723-8865 // White Oak Farms W2369 Maple Road, Eau Claire • 834-0998