Halloween haunts China as popularity grows

A display of plastic jack-o'-lanterns creates a festive mood in Shenyang, Liaoning province.

"But when you face-paint for 36 hours straight, you get even better at it. At the end of it, you either love the job or hate it."

Griffee is just one of hundreds of people, most of whom are expats, making the most of the holiday that inspires gruesome faces and creepy-crawly art. Fatface caterer Hsu Li will serve up macabre munchies at a "Death From Heaven" party on Friday night, where guests will be invited to eschew the usual black garb of Halloween, dress in white and dance the night away.

Beijing Moroccan bar owner Badr Benjelloun will team up with the Four Corners restaurant on Saturday night to combine fig-infused rum, salsa dancing and Brazilian capoeira performances with party fare. Carol Chow's bakery crew is churning out custom cupcakes topped with spooky faces as fast as muffin pans can clear the ovens.

"Believe it or not, I'm swamped by orders placed by Chinese customers this Halloween," says Chinese-American Jennifer Yeh, an artisan baker in the Beijing suburb of Shunyi.

Her Halloween treats are gluten-free cake lollipops with orange or white fright-mask faces.

Her daughter Nanda, meanwhile, will get to dress up twice. Her school doesn't promote Halloween but designated Friday as Autumn Harvest Day.

"Families are encouraged to bring in food and small items so kids can bring home some harvest," says Yeh.

"Costumes are welcomed from book characters or historic figures only. Nanda will be the Statue of Liberty for one day－an old bed sheet comes very handy for this task," she says, laughing.

"But Friday evening she will transform into a Gothic-looking vampire!"

Meanwhile, no one with WeChat has escaped the flurry of creepy masks, ghastly makeup and blood-curdling audio clips that have been flying over the Internet all week.