If you're the kind of person who fires up the grill in July and immediately wonders how you could make it more Halloween — who looks at a long summer evening and thinks it's practically begging for candles and something a little eerie — this one's for you.
The summer 2026 fun size issue of Spooky Little Halloween—The Magazine was built for the season that Halloween lovers navigate better than anyone: that long, golden stretch of heat and light when October still feels far away but the itch never really left.
Summer is not a waiting room for Halloween. It's its own kind of magic, and this issue leans into that fully.
Because here's the thing: summer has a dark side. The nights that go on forever. The particular pleasure of something spooky when the world outside insists on being bright and cheerful. The feeling that a backyard BBQ would be significantly improved by some black plates and a cauldron of lemonade. This issue is about finding all of that — and celebrating it.
Inside, you'll find a Minnesota-inspired Summerween BBQ spread that proves spooky season belongs at the cookout. We're talking Bloody Beer Cheese Dip served alongside brats, a Poison Apple Caramel Salad that bridges summer and fall in the best possible way, and a Witches' Honeycrisp Lemonade made with a true Minnesota original — the Honeycrisp apple, developed right here at the University of Minnesota. It's a full backyard spread with a haunted twist, and it photographs beautifully on black plates.
There's also a full tutorial for ice dyeing a T-shirt in Summerween colors — black, orange, and purple — using a technique that lets melting ice do all the creative work for you. The results are painterly, moody, and completely one of a kind. Plus a sidebar of everything else you can ice dye once you catch the bug.
Then there's 7 Ways to Have a Practical Magic Summer — a love letter to the 1998 film and its particular brand of warm-weather witchcraft, timed perfectly ahead of the sequel arriving this fall. Midnight margaritas, overgrown gardens, chocolate cake for breakfast. Consider it your summer homework.
This issue also features a Q&A with Lauretta Wong of Lady Moon Co., one of the spooky small businesses quietly doing something really special. Her answers are the kind you'll want to read twice.
And finally: a letter from the editor that opens with the only Summerween philosophy you need: Summerween should be fun. Because it should. It really should.
Because this is a fun size issue, it's a focused read — but that's part of what makes it special. It's exactly the right length for a hammock afternoon, a slow Sunday morning, or a little seasonal recalibration when the world insists on being too sunny and you need a reminder that the dark side of summer has been here all along.
If you love Halloween year-round, spooky small businesses, DIYs that actually work, and finding the eerie in the everyday, this issue was made for you.
Ready to embrace Summerween?
The summer 2026 fun size issue of Spooky Little Halloween—The Magazine is available now through my 2026 subscription OR as a single print issue. You can also purchase a digital copy.
Fire up the grill. Buy the black plates. Make the lemonade. Summer is that season.
Want spooky magazines in your mailbox all year? Subscribe now for my 2026 publications!
