*Halloween Party Ideas

Images from Pinterest

Halloween is almost here! I used to go to so many Halloween parties as a child *and Halloween discos were a thing for me as I grew up in the 90's*. I was always a cat for some reason even though I don't really like cats but I did love Halloween discos and dressing up. In England, trick or treating isn't really a thing so watching Halloween films, going to friends Halloween parties and my school Halloween disco were our Halloween activities but as an adult I don't really do anything for Halloween. However, I want to throw a Halloween party this year, even though it's on a Monday, and Festive Lights have a great post full of ideas for an adult Halloween party! This is a collaborative post.

Costumes & Makeup

For the past couple of years I have been creating Halloween makeup looks for my blog which is one of my main Halloween activities around this time of the year and it's SO fun! You can't have a Halloween party without costumes and halloween makeup. I have quite a few ideas on my blog for makeup looks including the Cheshire Cat,  a mermaid, a sugar skull and much more - my most recent Halloween look was a vampire witch look! You could create a costume or makeup competition and whoever has the best or the creepiest makeup or costume would win a prize.

Snacks & Drinks 

Festive Lights and also Pinterest have amazing Halloween food, drink and snack ideas! Festive Lights have some fantastic cocktail ideas such as 'freak show lemonade', 'Witches Coven' and more all of which are inspired by the TV show American Horror Story (I really need to start watching it). I have one Halloween recipe on my food blog for Vegan Coconut and Chocolate Muffins with Vegan Jelly and I also have some more healthy Halloween food ideas on my blog too.

Decor 

Halloween decorations have to be some of the best homeware decorations ever, can you tell that I love Halloween? Wilkinsons and Amazon have some fantastic Halloween decorations at great prices. Also you could go down the DIY route and use the templates on the Festive Lights Halloween party PDF to create a creepy bat silhouette on a lamp shade which would be so easy to do but so effective.

Games & Music

We never did apple bobbing as children at school but you could make a more adult version using punch or cider instead of water. Pumpkin carving competitions, telling scary stories and drinking games would be perfect for a adult Halloween party. Halloween music is an essential; here are some of my Halloween music picks: Monster Mash by Bobby Pickett, Thriller by Michael Jackson, Time Warp from the Rocky Horror Picture Show film and Ghostbusters by Ray Parker Jr.

Films + TV Shows

Now for more of a hygge inspired Halloween party were it's more intimate with close friends and family. A Halloween TV/film night with candles and spooky snacks would be perfect for me, here are some of my recommendations: Beetlejuice (it's one of my favourite films!), Hocus Pocus, Sleepy Hollow (the Johnny Depp film version) and Pan's Labyrinth. My TV recommendations: The Strain, The Frankenstein Chronicles, The Living and the Dead, Sleepy Hollow and my favourite Halloweenesque TV show which is Penny Dreadful - it's quite distributing at times!

Definitely check out the Festive Lights Halloween Party PDF! 

What do you think of these ideas? What are you doing for Halloween this year? Any Halloween TV show recommendations?

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Halloween Makeup Look: Pop Art Zombie

Here's my third halloween look of the year and I had a lot of fun with this one as it is not is typical look - it's a mix between rotting zombie and pop art and I love how it turned out on the whole but there are things I'd like to change as I would have preferred the brows to be thinner. Here are the products I used for this look:

- Makeup Revolution Ultra Base Correct Palette

- Barry M White Creme Foundation

- Colorsport Rapid Lash Gro Eyeliner in Black

- Duwop Plumping Lip Styxx in Chop Styxx and Night Styxx

- Eye of Horus Goddess Liners in Black and Teal

- Rimmel Smoke 'n' Shine Liner in Blue Steel 

- Makeup Revolution Awesome Eyeshadow Collection Palette

- Makeup Revolution Viper Mascara

- Real Techniques Sculpting Brush

- Spectrum Eyeshadow Brushes
- Essence Fixing Powder

- L.A.B2 Brushes

1. I always prep my skin well before halloween looks as white foundation and bases can make my skin look really dry. I applied the green and lilac shades as a base all over the skin making sure to stipple as otherwise it will look streaky. 

2. I used a black pencil liner to map out the shape of the mouth, tear, brows, brain section and teeth. I then filled in the pink flesh/muscle parts of the mouth and the lips with the two Duwop lip crayons - I fill in the brows and brain with the same pencil. I filled in the tear with a blue pencil liner. 

3. I added various lip liners and shading to the brain section to make it looks more textured and 'realistic' in a pop art way. I added detail to the tear with the white foundation. I used the same white foundation to fill in the teeth with a tiny liner brush (don't worry if you go over onto the black outline as you can go over the black at the end). 

4. Now onto the eyes, I used Makeup Revolution shades to create a bright smokey eye with a bright teal shade across the inner third of the lid and a navy on the user two thirds in a winged shape. Finish with winged liquid liner and a black pencil on the upper/lower water line; then mascara and lashes if you want to add them. 

5. Finish by adding expression lines with a black pencil and or liquid liner. Then set the base with a small face brush and a white or transparent powder. 

Overall, I think this simple and easy look is so effective and quite unique! You don't have to use all of the products I did but if you don't have specific face paints or halloween makeup products then this is a great halloween look to create with products you already have in your collection - the Makeup Revolution corrector palette is amazing as face paint! Coloured contacts would be great for this look - check out my Cheshire Cat look to see some in action. Also check out my quick and easy sugar skull look!

What do you think of my pop art zombie look? What are your plans for halloween?

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Halloween Cheshire Cat Look ft. Vision Direct

Halloween is almost here *squeals*, it is one of my favourite holidays, closely followed by the mother of all holidays - Christmas. For the past couple of years I have been creating Halloween looks of varying success...and I couldn't wait to create some this year. As Alice in Wonderland was one of my favourite cartoon films as a child, I had to create another Cheshire Cat look but unlike my previous look, this one is based on the Alice in Wonderland film featuring Johnny Depp. 

I received the *Freshlook Colourblends Contacts in Turquoise (found here at £14.48 per lens) which are prescription coloured contact lenses from Vision Direct. I chose the turquoise shade as the Cheshire Cat does have teal/turquoise eyes in the film but if you didn't want this shade then there are a range of others to choose from including amethyst (which would be great for the original purple Cheshire Cat look), Honey and Gemstone Green which looks amazing! 

I've been wearing contacts since I was 17 so these were quick, easy and fuss free to put in, remove and wear for hours and unlike other coloured contacts I have tried, you don't see the colour while you're wearing them which makes them feel like my regular lenses. They look so vivid and bright on my eyes and are perfect for this look. They may be a little expensive but I think they are the most comfortable and bright coloured contacts I've tried. 

Here is my step by step guide to achieve this easy but effective Halloween look:

1. I prepped my skin with my daily moisturiser and applied a mixture of the green, lilac and silver shades from the Makeup Revolution Corrector Palette with a combination of my Real Techniques and Spectrum brushes until the base is even. Stipple the foundation/base you are using to add more coverage. To add extra colour, I used the blue shade from the new Makeup Revolution Unicorns Unite lipstick collection around the perimeters of my face for more depth. I then set the base with the Essence Fixing Powder but you can use any white powder so it won't affect the colour. 

2. Next up, I used a range of black liners from Essence and Makeup Revolution to draw in the nose, mouth and teeth as well as a swirl at the end of each corner which makes it looks a bit like a Tim Burton character to me. It is a little time consuming but it is a Halloween look so it doesn't have to be completely perfect. I filled in the nose with a purple/plum lipstick from Duwop; I also filled in the teeth with the yellow shade from the same Makeup Revolution Corrector Palette but a white face paint would be better. 

3. This step is the one that makes the look, in my opinion, I used so many liners of different shades and textures to add the effect of fur. I used a silver shimmer liner from Rimmel as all as navy and blue liners. 

4. Now onto the eyes and brows. I used the Eye of Horus Teal Malachite Pencil to fill in my brows and the Makeup Revolution Salvation Palette to create a winged out blue smokey eye with most of the deeper blue shades under the eyes and the outer corner - blend, blend, blend. Lastly, I lined my upper lash line with the Colorsport black liquid liner and my upper/lower waterline with a black kohl pencil. Then the best step, add the contacts! Make sure you hands are clean and free of makeup before you add the contacts. 

Overall, I'm so happy with the way this look turned out first time round as it is simple and easy to create but so effective. I have to say, the contacts are comfortable to wear and they really make this look! Vision Direct have a great range of coloured contacts which would be perfect for halloween or fancy dress parties. This is a sponsored post. 

What do you think of my first halloween look of the year? Have you tried any coloured contacts?

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Halloween Tutorial: The Cheshire Cat

My third halloween look for this year, I have loved creating these looks for my blog and for the Fragrance Direct blog too (check it out, here). Alice in Wonderland is my favourite Disney/cartoon films, I loved watching it as a child. I am surprised I haven't done an Alice in Wonderland look before and this one is surprisingly simple and easy, it's the cheeky Cheshire Cat! In the original cartoon film (the one I love) the cheshire cat is purple/pink unlike the modern version which is grey/blue - I definitely love the original film/character more!

Products used:

Barry M White Foundation 

*Zoeva Graphic Eyes New Jewels Liner

Avon Supershock Eyeliner (Black)

*Colorsport Rapid Lash-Gro Liquid Liner (Black)

FCUK The Colour Palette 

Rimmel Scandaleyes Liner (Silver)

*Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara (Black)

Makeup Revolution Awesome Eyeshadow Collection 

*Makeup Revolution Atomic Lipstick (Make Me Magnificent)

Firstly, as with the Corpse Bride look, I mixed the Barry M white foundation with a few shades from the FCUK palette (received a couple of Christmases ago) but just mix a few pink/purple/light navy eyeshadow shades together until you find a shade you like. I then used a flat foundation brush to paint the colour over my face, slightly onto my neck and ears. 

I then moved onto the mouth so the purple foundation would set slightly. I made a guide of the mouth with the avon liner, creating the teeth in the mouth and filling in the gaps in-between with the black liner. Join the mouth with the nose and then I used the liquid liner to make the lines a bit neater and to create the curly ends of the mouth which I love, I think it makes the look! Then fill in the teeth with the white foundation (a white pencil would be better/easier). 

Now onto the eyes and brows, I used the zoeva purple glittery pencil (no shade name) throughout my brows and along the upper and lower lash lines. I made the front of the brows quite pointy which I think makes the look a bit more scary/crazy! I then used a mix of purple shades from the massive Makeup Revolution palette messily over the lids and blended into a more rounded shape than I would normally, but with a slight haze of shadow at the outer corners of the eyes. 

Back to the foundation, I used a thin eyeliner brush, various purple eyeshadows, the rimmel silver pencil and the white foundation to make thin lines on the face to make the skin look a bit like fur and so the foundation didn't look so flat. For the finishing touches I added some of the silver pencil in the inner corner and a small amount of highlighter down the centre of the face and cheekbones. I also added dots to the cheeks. Last but not least, apply a lot of mascara - I'm currently loving the Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara (review, here).

What do you think of my cheshire cat look? What are you dressing up as for halloween? 

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