My Top Halloween Movies

If your looking for anything scary, I can tell you now, you are looking in the wrong place because you won't find it here.  I am the biggest wimp going when it comes to scary movies, and I know I am not alone in this.  However that doesn't mean to say that we should miss out on all the Halloween movies.

I think it is safe to say that Halloween is a fast growing celebration now in the UK and in my opinion why should we treat it any different than we would Christmas.  Lets embrace it and enjoy it while it lasts.

So if you fancy a Halloween movie night my top movies choices are:

Harry Potter

Hotel Transylvania

Casper

November Kiss

Hocus Pocus

Nightmare Before Christmas

Do you have a favourite?  What would you recommend?

~ Gem x

My American Adventure

I'm actually finding it hard to believe that I'm writing this post.  There is no way that I would even have begun to imagine travelling to America at the beginning of this year, let alone on my own.

Back in May I met up with the lovely Brook from Redhead Reverie.  She was visiting London on holiday and had contacted me about meeting up, which I was thrilled to do after communicating with her online since 2011.  It was great to chat to her over coffee and we got on so well, it was as though I'd last caught up with her the previous week.  We talked about travelling and I had mentioned how I'd love to see more of America.  I remember how I felt getting home that evening, the buzz and excitement of meeting up with her.  Little did I know we'd me meeting again later in the year, this time in her home town.

Having booked my flights in August, by the time October rolled around I was ready.  Although feeling nervous, I was so excited for the 8 nights that lay ahead I couldn't wait to see Brook again and finally meet her family, whom I had heard so much about. 

The trip was certainly very different to any other visit I have made to the US before.  Fitting myself into everyday, American family life was a great insight, plus it meant plenty of quality time with Brook.  Enjoying breakfasts out with bottomless cups of coffee and my body weight in pancakes was something I could easily get used to. 

During my stay I got to experience my first American Football game, it was a no brainer knowing that they are a football mad family, but that was OK with me.  It was insane and I enjoyed it so much more than I thought I would.  The atmosphere was amazing.  It would have been better had the temperature been a little warmer but even still I had the best time. It is an experience I won't forget and I am so glad I was able to experience it. 

I had also timed my visit in time with Halloween.  A celebration that the Americans do very well.  Trick or treating was never really a thing when I was a kid so this also meant that I was able to experience it for the first time too.  It was so good seeing how much effort everyone went to, and of course I had to dress up and get involved, you can't let the kids have all the fun can you!  I was even able to visit the boy's school and help out with their Halloween party.  I spent a little while reading to some of the children, which was an experience in itself as it is not something I would ever of had the opportunity to have done before.

The trip didn't end here, but I am going to save the rest for another day.  For now I just want to finish by saying how thankful I am for this trip.  It's an opportunity I have gained through blogging that I would not have been so fortunate to experience if I had not come across Brook's blog all those years ago.

~ Gem x

Let's Talk Pumpkins

There is something quite special about this time of year, and the tradition of decorating for Autumn is becoming bigger and bigger here in the UK.  Something adopted from our friends across the water in America and Canada, it is something I am extremely happy about.  Any excuse to dig out the decorations has me doing a little happy dance. 

The tradition of carving pumpkins is still rife, however there are so many other ways to decorate a pumpkin and with the help of Pinterest you'll know exactly what I'm going on about.  I love the fact that it isn't all about jack o lanterns now and that pumpkins represent autumn as opposed to Halloween. 

Last year I met up with Laura from Life by Laura for a little crafty get together at my place where we both opted to paint our pumpkins as opposed to carving them, who says pumpkins need to be orange?
We both started off with white paint, giving our pumpkins a couple of coats to ensure the orange could no longer be seen.  Then for me, I used a sponge to paint on gold polka dots.  Very pretty right!?

Laura on the other hand decided to take it to the next level and dug out the crayons and heat gun.  First gluing the crayons to the top of the pumpkins to hold them in place and then slowly melting the wax to create an amazing and colourful effect.  Great for adding a splash of colour in time for Halloween that's for sure.

Photo courtesy of Laura

A second design I chose last year was hollowing out a pumpkin, then spraying it completely gold and filling it with pink flowers.  It was perfect for a special little girls 1st birthday party and made for a great centre piece, plus it looked fantastic beside the white a gold polka dot design too.  

It just goes to show that a pumpkin can look just as good without having to carve it.

So how are you decorating yours this year?

~ Gem x

My Annual Visit to the Pumpkin Patch

For the past few years now I have made sure a visit to the pumpkin patch is made around this time of year.  A tradition that has been brought over from our dear friends across the pond and one I am extremely grateful for.  They are definitely becoming more and more popular here in the UK.

I'm lucky to have one pretty close by to home in Basildon, Essex.  It is run by Foxes Farm Produce, you may remember that I visited them earlier in the year for their night time miaze maze.  They also have another site in Colchester.  If your close by it is well worth a visit, however I have seen a fair few on Instagram so they are pretty much all over the country now.

I'm not sure that I will ever tire from walking around looking at all the pumpkins, every shape, size and colour.  I literally just cannot get enough of them.

It always nice to be able to do something seasonal, not that I ever need an excuse.  Plus it felt great to be spending time outside in the fresh air too, something I feel that I've not been doing enough of lately.   

Being so early in the season I'm hoping to squeeze in another visit so watch this space.

~ Gem x

Sadie's Halloween Tree

I'm very pleased to be welcoming Sadie from A Life In The English Rain to the blog today.  I've been following Sadie's blog for a couple of years now and am always inspired by her simple yet beautiful creations, which all fit so well into her gorgeous home.  If you are not familiar with her blog, please pop on over and take a look, you won't be disappointed.  I'm sure you will also love what she has prepared for us today.

It's that time of year again. Halloween is sneaking up behind us, ready to jump out and shout 'Boo'!

Do you decorate?  Well, if the answer is a resounding no, because you don't like all the garish colours and tackiness of the whole affair, then it need not be that way. Keep it simple, and keep it elegant. A touch of Halloween here and there is just as effective as a house decorated head to toe in fake cobweb.

A Halloween tree is so simple. It also has the added bonus of being easily changed for any other seasonal celebration. I'll let you into a secret, and tell you, this is actually my Easter tree. A few alterations and you'd never know.

Take a few twigs, and secure in a pot. I used air drying clay to hold the twigs in place. Once the clay had dried, I added some decorative stones to the top to cover it, and add extra weight. The twigs had been painted white, but of course, you can paint them any colour. Black would be perfect for Halloween. A strand of battery operated lights is an optional extra, but it does take it up a level. I found the baubles in a supermarket, but have to say I'd never seen them before, or since. But you could easily make your own. A few unloved Christmas baubles spray painted and decorated with glittery pumpkin faces would be quick and easy to do. Hang them from the branches, add some black sheer fabric around the base, and it's done.

An inexpensive, simple, and elegant nod to Halloween.

Huge thanks to Sadie for popping over to share with us her beautiful Halloween tree.  It just goes to show that Halloween can be pretty too.

Don't forget you can hear more from Sadie over at her own blog A Life In The English Rain.

~ Gem x

A Day at the Pumpkin Patch

After visiting Foxes Farm Produce Pumpkin Patch last year I just knew that I would be returning again this year and had been looking forward to it for some time.

This year I visited their site in Basildon, Essex and was so impressed by the size of the place and how much it had developed from last years venture.  The place was buzzing with visitors too, but due to the grand scale of the site it didn't feel at all busy.  It was so great to see an independent family run businesses thriving. 

Growing up in the UK, Halloween has never been very widely celebrated, it is a very American holiday.  I'm so pleased to see it slowly getting bigger here in England.  Especially ventures like this as it is something for everyone to enjoy regardless of whether you have children or not. 

Being able to wander the fields, picking the perfect pumpkin and getting yourself some fresh air at the same time, is my idea of fun.

I could have spent hours wandering around, snapping at the different varieties of pumpkins and gourds.  The colours are just perfect for this time of year.

So if you're close to Essex and have a spare morning or afternoon and are looking for something a little different to do this Autumn, head down to the pumpkin patch.  They have two sites, one in Basildon and one in Colchester.  I know I'm already hoping to get back there with a friend before the season is out.

~ Gem x

Lush Halloween Collection

Have I mentioned before how much I love this time of year?  Seriously, I do think it is quite possibly my favourite.  I don't need an excuse to play around with mini displays around my home, but autumn and winter gives all the more reason to do it.  The good thing with this time of year is that it can extend to the bathroom with thanks to Lush and their ever amazing Halloween and Christmas ranges.

I was invited to Lush in Romford last week after hours, to check out the new products in store for the upcoming celebrations. I must say, I liked what I saw.  I'll be saving the Christmas range for another day, as I wanted to share with you my favourites for the current season.

I fell in love with the Boo bath melts.  Such a cute design, wouldn't you agree?

I was also really pleased to see the return of Sparkly Pumpkin, this was one of my favourites last year.  Of course I had to bring one back home with me.

A new addition this year is the Autumn Leaf.  Such a beautiful design filled with pretty autumnal colours that fizz and froth away in your bath creating a colourful show

And lastly for today is the Monsters Ball.  Such a sweet design and beautiful, bright colours.

Such a great range, well worth taking a look and stocking up.  No one said that Halloween was just for the kids you know. 

~ Gem x 

Happy Halloween

I know Halloween isn't until tomorrow but as this is the last day in October I'll be blogging, today seemed as good a day as any to post something Halloween themed. 

It's a celebration that is increasing in popularity here in the UK which I'm pleased about.  I doubt it will ever be as big as it is in the States and Canada but it is an improvement of how things were when I was a kid.  It was never really celebrated at all.  I have never been trick or treating, that actually makes me feel a little sad.  I'm hoping I'll get my chance one day, when we have kids of our own.  It won't be quite the same I know but hopefully I'll get just as much joy out of it seeing the kids happy and enjoying themselves, that's what it's all about after all.  

I'm a sucker for all the decorations and Halloween themed treats, or Halloween themed anything for that matter.  I'm a consumers dream, I just can't resist temptation.

Since having our own home I've really enjoyed decorating for the seasons and embracing it, Halloween has been no exception.  I've not gone too mad this year and have kept it ll pretty low key.  I'm not a fan of the ghoulish decorations either, I like to try and keep things pretty if I can.

Happy Halloween

~ Gem x

A Review of 2014

I can't believe the year is at it's end already, it doesn't seem possible.  But my word, what a year it has been.

I've always wanted to do one of these review posts, but amongst all the Christmas chaos have never been organised enough to do one, but all that has changed this year.  I'm a very organised person but this year I'm aiming to be super organised starting from now.  So here it is my review of 2014.

January

January was a good start to the year.  I bought my wedding dress, visited London with my Mum for a spot of window shopping and to see the Bodyguard, which we both loved.  Country walks were had, time with friends was enjoyed.

February

Sadly February didn't follow suit.  It started badly from the off with the devastating news that our dear neighbour and landlady had passed away.  We had only known her for a year, but in that short time she touched our lives and our hearts and we will remember her always.  The rest of the month wasn't much better with constant rain and flooding.  However, the chickens didn't seem phased and there was progress made with the wedding plans.

March

March saw the start of spring and what a welcome sight it was too.  A visit to my Grandad's bench, lots of daffodils and cherry blossom.

April

April embraced spring time with beautiful apple blossom.  We had our first camping trip of the year complete with little lambs.  I visited my first craft show of 2014.  A weekend was spent apple pressing to make cider.  We celebrated Easter.  I received happy mail from Canada and colour was beginning to appear in the garden.  It was a pretty month.

May

During May lots of time was spent outdoors.  The weather was very kind to us and an early summer was enjoyed.  I began the practical part of my bee-keeping course.  Spent a day at the young farmers country show.  Visited the 2 churches in Willingale with family and enjoyed watching the skies during the occasional downpour.

June

In June we welcomed 2 new chickens to Hensington Palace.  Annie & Clarabel are light Sussex hens (we discovered in September that Clarabel was in fact Clarence, so was replaced by Pip) I made Elderflower cordial for the first time (probably the last, I wasn't keen).  Spent a day with my Mum & my Nan and enjoyed afternoon tea together.  Lots of jam making in preparation for our wedding and lots of lovely flowers and confetti making too.

July

I celebrated my birthday in July.  Me and James spent the weekend camping, we got to try out the Tiny House at the camp-site we regularly visit and James had booked me onto a basket making workshop.  Cream teas were had by myself and Marie and some stunning sunsets were seen.  A very beautiful month indeed.

August

August involved lots of wedding planning with crafts aplenty, bridesmaid hair trials and dress fittings, days out with my girl in London to visit the felt Cornershop, a trip to the seaside with my man, and walks across the fields to sit on hay bales and watch the sunset.  Perfect.

September

Lots of hen celebrations in September.  First with a weekend in Bath followed by my country bridal shower consisting of yet more cream tea and pottery painting.  My new passport arrived.  And lots of wedding preparation took place.

October

By far the best month of my life.  We got married on the 10th of October, it was a truly magical day spent with all of our friends and family, seeing all of our hard work and efforts coming together was a great accomplishment.  We honeymooned at Ragdale Hall health spa and enjoyed each others company for an uninterrupted week.  The end of the month involved Halloween & Firework plans coming together.  

November

We celebrated Fireworks night with our friends and family with a Halloween & firework party at ours.  I carved our giant pumpkin.  Spent time blogging.  Spent a day with Gemma at the Country Living Country fair and met Cherry Menlove.  Another Christmas adventure was had with Marie at Norpar Barns.  Christmas preparations were well under way.

December

December is one of my most favourite months in the year, purely because of Christmas and this year was no exception.  Lots of tree photos, and yummy food, family and gifts, a spot of crafting and lots of candles.  We were even treated to a wedding this year too.

It has been an amazing year, Thank You 2014.  Let's see what 2015 holds.

Happy New Year x