1. Tidy up my birthday mess from the end of October and find a new place for everything.
2. Make Bonfire Night Buns. I found an incredible recipe here that I'd love to put my own twist on.
3. Take some time to relax before I start my new job on the 6th.
4. Kick off my Christmas shopping by composing a list of what to get my nearest and dearest.
5. Finish Stranger Things 2 and get excited for Peaky Blinders returning on the 15th, I can't wait!
6. Check out the Essie Galaxy Metals collection. The entire collection looks completely dreamy, but I particularly like the look of Stardust and Stars Aligned.
7. Drink more water. Now that the cold weather is well and truly upon us, it's important to stay hydrated to avoid dry skin, chapped lips and help fight off the cold.
8. Snap up an advent calendar before they're gone. I'm torn between the ASOS Advent Calendar and the Tili Advent Calendar.
9. Start the hunt for beautifully embellished, cosy Christmas jumpers. So far I've found this pink sequin bauble one, this grey pearl penguin one and this black sequin dachshund one - all so cute!
10. Switch up my home decor and add more twinkling fairy lights, thicker, fluffier blankets and warm, comforting candles.

What's on your November to-do list? Let me know in the comments!

1. Indulge in a Lush Halloween bath. My favourites from the Halloween range are Monsters' Ball and Sparkly Pumpkin.

2. Bake some spooky treats. If you read my Halloween Treats post on Sunday or follow me on Instagram, you will have seen that I made meringue ghosts, iced witches hats and pumpkin biscuits and monster Oreo truffles.

3. Or buy them instead, the Cadbury pumpkin patch cakes, Mr Kipling fiendish fancies and toffee apples are always a good idea.

4. Give yourself a Halloween manicure. I tend to gravitate towards something like Essie's Wicked (a dark, nearly black red) or Bordeaux (a deep wine red) on my nails, but you could get really creative and experiment with some Halloween nail art, there's some amazing creations on Pinterest.

5. Snuggle down with a good series, I know that I'll be watching Stranger Things 2 (released on my birthday, yasss!) and American Horror Story: Cult.


6. Binge on some scary (or not so scary) movies. Some of my favourites for Halloween include The Conjuring, Insidious, Annabelle, Sinister, Mama, As Above So Below, The Visit, IT, Get Out, Don't Breathe, Lights Out, Hocus Pocus, Casper and of course Harry Potter.

7. If you're staying in, there's no reason why you still can't get into the spirit and dress up. I'm not talking about a full on outfit and make-up, but little accessories, t-shirts or pyjamas will get you into the Halloween mood. I've already picked up these glittery pumpkin socks, but I'm so tempted by this Boo T-Shirt and the entire Stranger Things range from Topshop, particularly the Raglan T-Shirt.

8. Get involved with a gripping, spine-tingling book. Thrillers, dramas, mysteries and psychological fiction are my favourite book genres. Some of my favourites include Gone Girl, The Girl On The Train, Big Little Lies, The Lovely Bones, We Were Liars, The Girlfriend, The Couple Next Door and Behind Closed Doors.

9. Try something new in your make-up collection. I'm sure all of us have a few pieces of make-up or a trend that we'd love to try but we're a bit afraid of, so why not give it a go at Halloween. If it goes wrong, you can always pass it off as being your Halloween look.

10. Whip up some Halloween cocktails. If you do feel like having a little drink on Halloween night or Halloween weekend but don't feel like going out to battle amongst the crowds, there's tonnes of recipes around for amazing Halloween themed cocktails. A few favourites of mine include Witches Brew, The Raven and Vampires Kiss. I'm allowed, it's my birthday weekend!


What will you be doing for Halloween this year? Let me know in the comments!

I absolutely love baking around Halloween time. I really enjoy getting creative to see what little creatures I can conjure up and using an array of festive colours such as blacks, oranges, yellows, greens and purples. Usually, I make one large bake, such as a cheesecake or cake, but this year I decided to go for three simple bitesized bakes that anyone can make. So, as there's going to be three recipes, I better stop rambling and get started.



First up, we have the Meringue Ghosts. This recipe uses very little ingredients, some of which you'll likely already have in your cupboard and they take no time at all to make. These little ghouls are definitely one of the easiest ways to get yourself into the Halloween spirit (geddit?) and would be a great addition to any Halloween party table.

Ingredients:

Meringues:
• 3 large eggs
• 175g caster sugar

Decoration:
• 50g icing sugar (sifted)
• 1 tbsp cold water
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• Food colouring (I used Wilton's Gel Food Colouring in black, although you could melt milk chocolate for a similar look)

Method:

Meringues:
• Pre-heat the oven to 120C/100C Fan/Gas ½. Line two baking trays with greaseproof paper.
• Put the egg whites in a spotlessly clean large bowl and beat with an electric whisk until stiff.
• Add the sugar gradually, a tablespoonful at a time, whisking well after each spoonful. The meringue should be form stiff peaks and be glossy.
• Place the mixture into a piping bag using a large round icing tip. Press the mixture directly down onto the paper, then lift up to create layers for your ghosts.
• Place in the oven for 1/-1 ½ hours or until they are a creamy colour and can be easily lifted from the baking tray without sticking.
• Turn the oven off, leaving the door ajar and leave the meringues until they are cold.

Decoration:
• For the icing, mix the icing sugar, cold water and lemon juice together until combined. 
• Add a few drops of black food colouring to the mixture, combining well. 
• Using a toothpick, dip into the mixture and use fine strokes to add eyes and a mouth to the ghosts. Alternatively, you could melt milk chocolate and use this instead of the icing sugar.



Another quick and easy recipe is for iced biscuits. You could make these at any time of the year using different cutters, but I found a set of Halloween cutters in TK Maxx and I couldn't resist picking them up. The set also included a bat and a cat shape, but I wanted to use the witches hat and pumpkin shapes because I'd be able to use more colours and sprinkles when it came to decorating them.

Ingredients:

Biscuits:
• 100g butter (softened)
• 225g self-raising flour
• 100g caster sugar
• 1 large egg (beaten)
• 1 tbsp milk
• A few drops of vanilla extract

Decoration:
• 100g icing sugar (sifted)
• 1 tbsp cold water
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• Food colouring (I used Wilton's Gel Food Colouring in black and orange)
• Sprinkles (I used white chocolate stars and green sugar crunch)

Method:

Biscuits:
• Pre-heat the oven to 190C/170C Fan/Gas 5. Lightly grease two baking trays.
• Rub the butter into the flour with your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the sugar, beaten egg, milk and vanilla extract, then mix to form a fairly stiff dough.
• Roll out (thinly) onto a lightly floured surface and use your cutters to create whatever shapes you want. Place onto the baking trays.
• Bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.

Decoration:
• For the icing, mix the icing sugar, cold water and lemon juice together until combined to create a spreadable consistency.
• Divide the icing into bowls (depending on how many colours you're using, I used 2 colours, so I needed 2 bowls) and add a drop of food colouring to each bowl, mixing well.
• Spoon or pipe a small amount of icing onto each of the biscuits and spread out using the back of a spoon or knife.
• Decorate the biscuits further by adding different shapes and decorations to the biscuits. I used white chocolate stars for the witches hat and green sugar crunch for the pumpkins.



Finally, we have the Monster Oreo Truffles aka Mike Wazowski's. Similarly to the other recipes, this is one you could carry out with your eyes closed. Now, you could be really experimental and make your truffles into your own little creatures. I've seen bats, pumpkins, spiders, whatever you like really! Or, keep things simple by coating the Oreo balls in white chocolate, then then drizzling them with an orange and black drizzle by adding food colouring to white chocolate.

Ingredients:

Truffles:
• 300g Oreo original biscuits (About 2 packs)
• 160-180g Philadelphia full-fat cream cheese

Decoration:
• 200g white chocolate
• White chocolate buttons (I used Milkybar giant buttons)
• 50g icing sugar (sifted)
• 1 tbsp cold water
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• Food colouring (I used Wilton's Gel Food Colouring in green and black)

Method:

Truffles:
• In a food processor, beat the Oreos until you have fine biscuit crumbs.
• Add the Philadelphia and beat until the mixture is smooth.
• Spoon a small amount of the mixture into the palm of your hand and roll into a neat ball. If mixture is too soft and difficult to work with, place in the fridge for 5-10 minutes to firm up.
• Place the Oreo balls onto a lined baking tray and place in the fridge until firm.

Decoration:
• While the Oreos balls are setting, melt the white chocolate, take it off the heat and gradually add the green food colouring until you reach your desired colour. Drain off the excess chocolate and place back onto the baking paper.
• Place a white chocolate button on top of the truffle and allow it to set.
• For the icing, mix the icing sugar and a tablespoon of cold water together until combined. Split the icing sugar between two bowls and add a drop of black food colouring to one bowl. 
• Finally, spoon a small amount of white icing onto the white chocolate button, followed by a small spoonful of black icing.

So there we have it, three super simple treats for Halloween, which would be ideal for parties, cosy nights in, keeping little ones busy or if you just fancy something sweet.


Would you make any of these sweet bitesized treats for Halloween? Let me know in the comments!

Next, we have the Nails Inc. Sparkle Like A Unicorn Set. While I'm not quite ready to jump on the 'unicorn everything' bandwagon quite yet, I do adore this sweet little duo from Nails Inc. The set contains two gorgeous iridescent duo-chrome nail polishes, 'Rainbow Wishes' and 'Dream Dust'. Rainbow Wishes is a blue/purple/pink shade, while Dream Dust is a beautiful pink with a gold shimmer. Plus, the Nails Inc. nail polishes are some of the highest quality on the market, so it's definitely worth checking out.

The shade 'Glastonberry' from Charlotte Tilbury has been on my wish list forever. Charlotte Tilbury is a brand that I only have a few pieces from as it is fairly expensive, so whenever I do have my heart set on something, you can be sure I've done an abundance of research on said product. The Matte Revolution is my favourite lipstick formula of Charlotte Tilbury, although I have yet to try the new Hollywood Lips collection, so it only seems right that I add this  beautiful shade to my collection.

Finally for the beauty picks, the Benefit Dandelion Twinkle highlighting powder has been on my radar for quite some time now. Similarly to the Benefit Dandelion Blush, the product is a gorgeous soft pink which is perfect for my pale skin. The majority of the highlighters that I own are super intense, which although I love, it doesn't make it that wearable during the day. I think this subtle highlighter would be the perfect addition to my make-up bag, as the shimmery nude pink will just catch the light without being too in your face for during the day.


One item of clothing that I begin to search for in the middle of October is a coat or jacket to see me through the cold Winter months. As you can see on my list, I'm torn between two coats and two jackets. The tartan coat and the tweed faux fur collar coat are both from River Island, while the green corduroy jacket and the knitted jacket are from Noisy May via ASOS. I adore them all for various reasons, but I can't justify buying two coats and two jackets when I have a decent enough coats and jackets collection as it is. Maybe just one coat and one jacket? I'd love to know your opinion to help me decide!


Jumpers are the items that I have the most of in my wardrobe, but that doesn't stop me from picking up a few more whenever the cold weather starts to creep in. Plus lets face it, I live in Northern Ireland and I wear jumpers all year around, so it's not as if I'm not getting the wear out of them. A colour that I'm really drawn to at the minute is a gorgeous, deep forest green, which is exactly as demonstrated in this Boucle Yarn Jumper. Another jumper that I love but will probably resist from buying (because I already have the same one in mustard and cream) is this Crop Cable Knit Jumper. This is my perfect jumper as it's so thick, I love the stitching style and it's supposed to be cropped, which means it's a normal jumper length on me and doesn't swamp me.

My bee obsession is getting a bit out of hand, every time I see something with a bee on it, I just zero in on it and this Bee T-Shirt was no exception. I just think this would be perfect underneath a pair of dungarees, or with a chunky cardigan and a pair of skinny jeans. The next t-shirt I have my eye on is not the most cost-effective t-shirt in the world because I'll only be able to wear it around Halloween time, but I found this Boo T-Shirt and it's just so cute. It would definitely make a good alternative if you want to get into the Halloween spirit (geddit?) but don't want to dress up.


Ever since Topshop started to carry their shoes in a size 2 around last year, my shoe wardrobe has expanded fairly quickly. Boots are my favourite type of shoe to wear as I get the wear out of them all year round, so I've been trying to decided between this sweet studded heart pair or this gorgeous bow knot pair.

Since I'll be starting my new job in November, I've started to shop around for some trousers. I've already picked up this pair from River Island, but I also spotted these Polka Dot Trousers and I need them in my work wardrobe asap. They'll be perfect paired with a white shirt or a fine knit jumper on chillier days.

I must have a thing for star prints at the minute, as I've also fallen for this Star Print Skater Skirt. Not only is it a sweet print, but it also has pockets. I own a few of the ASOS skater skirts and they fit really well. The only thing I can't decide on is if the skirt is black or navy going from the picture.


Pyjamas are something that I think everyone loves to get as a birthday or Christmas present. The quality of the ASOS pyjamas are incredible, they are super soft and wash really well. I've had my eye on this Moon & Stars Print Set for a while now, as the pattern is just so cute and would be perfect to snuggle down in on Halloween night. Another pair that I've recently discovered is this Polar Bear Set which is one of the cutest pairs on pyjamas I've ever seen. Cath Kidston pyjamas are expensive but oh so worth it as they are 100% cotton which makes them super soft and cosy. The Cath Kidston Christmas collections always blow me away as they are just so stunning.

Alongside their pyjamas, one thing I absolutely adore Cath Kidston for is their mugs. They do the most gorgeous mugs all year round, but there's just something so special whenever they release their Christmas collection. In the same print as the pyjamas, the Polar Bear Stanley Mug caught my eye immediately. The Stanley mug is my preference as all my Cath Kidston mugs are in the Stanley shape (they hold the most tea). As a mug hoarder, I really don't need any more mugs taking up space in my cupboard, but I need this. Just look how flippin' cute those wee polar bears and penguins are, I just adore this print.

Ever since I passed my driving test and got my own car, I've suddenly started to have more of an interest in keyrings. When I spotted this Flamingo Keyring, I knew I found the one. I'm not massively into the pom-pom keyring trend, mainly because I know my dog would eat it the minute he lays his eyes on it. Also, I'm not willing to spend a tonne of money on something to make my car key look pretty. Seriously, why are some keyrings £100+?

Another item I'm fully kitted out for in my wardrobe yet I still look at them anyway is bobble hats. Along with jumpers, coats and pyjamas, it's one thing I really look forward to seeing in stores when the Autumn/Winter stock starts to make an appearance. This pink velvet bow bobble hat is one of the cutest hats I've ever seen and I don't have any bobble hats with a bow on them, so I guess one more wouldn't hurt if it's different to all the rest, right?


Honourable mentions should also go to the Tarte Good For You Glamour Set, which my Mum managed to snap up for me before they were all sold out. The Glossier Body Hero Duo, which is next on my things to try from Glossier list. This Vero Moda Petite Check Blazer, which is always out of stock. The second that I notice it's back in, I'll be snapping it up as it will be perfect for my new work wardrobe. Some Lush Halloween goodies because I can't resist their limited edition collections. Finally, the Lily Collins - Unfiltered book because I'm a massive Lily Collins fan and I've heard such good things about her biography.