revisited review: my three most used spooky aroma oils

Spooky season is here again. Thank goodness! It has been difficult to make time for all of the Halloween festivities, but I am doing my best to incorporate seasonal moments into my days. One example? The Spooky Aroma Oils set. This is something that I purchased last year (check out that post here) and have made good use of ever since. I love filling my home with different scents. The one that I choose for the day depends entirely on my mood. It might be an essential oil blend, like one from the Spooky Aroma Oils set or one of the many Walt Disney World inspired blends in my collection, or it might be a scented candle from Bath & Body Works. No matter what, there is some sort of wonderful scent making the days feel a little more intentional. On that note, here are three of the most used Spooky Aroma Oils from this Halloween themed set. 

random recent makeup looks.

Sometimes, there are makeup looks that remain on my camera but never make it into an actual blog post. There might have been something specific that I felt like writing about (which ultimately bumped a planned post) or certain makeup photos simply managed to get lost in the shuffle. This post is dedicated to those random makeup looks. Here are a few recent ones. 

fall favourites (decor, home items, and more)

Thank goodness for fall. I am definitely not missing the warm summer months. It has been nice to experience cooler days and see the leaves changing colour. It has also been nice to decorate for fall and enjoy seasonal items. This post is focused on some current fall favourites. There are decor items featured (both old and new) and items that have been adding joy to my days. 

fall nail polish colours: modelones gel nail polish kit

Since making the switch to gel nail polish, my nail looks have been a lot more colourful. The switch  has really inspired my creativity. I've created simple patterns using nail brushes and have incorporated nail stickers into some of my nail looks as well. This at home system has worked really well for me so far.  Last month, I wanted to get a head start on spooky season and decided to paint my nails in some fun fall colours. Unfortunately, there were not a lot of suitable options in my gel nail polish collection. (I ended up painting my nails black and bright green as a nod to Frankenstein.) Shortly after, my very thoughtful husband surprised me with a Modelones Gel Nail Polish Kit with twenty fall colours. Here is a closer look at this gel nail set. 

review: vanilla sunrise perfume (forever 21)

There is something thrilling about a new bottle of perfume. It holds so many possibilities! Scents have been found to activate the emotion and memory centers of the brain, which means certain smells can trigger memories or emotional responses. Who knows what memories will be made while wearing the Vanilla Sunrise Eau De Parfum from Forever 21? I am certainly looking forward to finding out. (Fingers crossed the memories are good ones.) Here is a full review of this Forever 21 fragrance. 

fall season reading list (horror, thriller, and mystery novels)

I have been thinking a lot about a quote that I came across recently: "The internet used to be an escape from the real world. Now the real word is an escape from the internet." This is a very accurate statement. At this point, I am so tired of horrible people having platforms and defenders. Of bots and smear campaigns. Of AI slop and misinformation. Of ads and junk mail. Of a million different passwords, apps, and QR codes. Of all of it. On one hand, the internet has made it so much easier to communicate and find community. (It allows me to share this very blog post!) On the other hand, we are being divided and manipulated. It can be hard to find a healthy balance. In recent months, my focus has been on living my life slightly more offline. Instagram notifications are turned off. Emails only come through when I manually check. My phone is left in another room for hours at a time. And reading? It is my reward at the end of the day instead of scrolling and streaming. On that note, a handful of books have been added to my fall season reading list. Here are some books that I will be reading this month...

unexpected fall fashion items (mini haul)

There are a few Halloween themed clothing items in my closet. Each year around this time, those items are worn over and over again. I have a stretched out skull sweatshirt that has been in my wardrobe for at least fifteen years in addition to a Haunted Mansion shirt, Scream shirt, Hocus Pocus shirt, Halloween shirt, and a couple of other seasonal items. There are also some plaid button downs that are in the rotation as well. This year, my husband saw an online ad for fall themed shirts and ordered a few items without telling me. It was such a nice surprise! Here is a closer look at some unexpected fall fashion items.