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Happy Halloween Lovelies! 

I wanted to come on here early and wish you all a spooky day today! I hope you all have lots of fun celebrating or staying cosy if you don’t enjoy it lovelies. Today isn’t for everyone, my mum included, so just be kind and do what you have to. 

If you are out celebrating, I hope you get lots of treats and have plenty of fun. If you are spending the night at a party, dance the night away for me. Whilst if you are spending it, like me, watching something scary then grab those pillows tight. I would really recommend Scream as a must-watch! It’s a classic after all! 

Ultimately though lovelies, I hope that you have a great Halloween with lots of fun and laughter involved! Oh, and just a little word of warning! Like Cinderella at midnight, when that clock chimes, its full stations go on the blog and in real life for Christmas! However, we will sort that all out then. For now, enjoy this scarily good Halloween treat of a day! 

Joey X

Morning Lovelies, 

How are we already nearing the end of October? It seems like the last few months of the year are flying by on a broom stick! As we prepare for the big Halloween parties this week, I wanted to share with you all a fun and super simple recipe that you are perfect for any spooky scenario. 

Get those hands ready because things are about to become bloody messy. Well, not really, but all will be revealed mwahahahaha…

Ingredients

One Cup of Plain Flour

1/2 Cup of Water

A Jar of Jam (Any Flavour)

Tools

Baking Tray

Baking Paper

Mixing Bowl

Mixing Spoon

Fork

Rolling Pin

Hand Shaped Cookie Cutter or Knife

Teaspoon

Method

Start by preheating your oven to 375(F) or 190(C), before lining a baking tray with baking paper. Place to one side. 

Next grab a mixing bowl and add in the flour and water. Mix together until you have a smooth dough. If it is a little sticky, add a bit more flour, but only until it becomes sticky. 

Lightly flour your surface and roll out the dough using a rolling pin until it is around 1/8” thick. 

Once the dough is ready, use a hand shaped cookie cutter or trace careful around your own hand with a knife/use a knife to make a hand shape to cut out hand shapes from the dough. 

When the shapes have all been made, take a teaspoon and place a small amount of jam into the centre of half of the hand shapes. Ensure to make a border around the edges and leave half of the hand shapes plain for now. 

After placing the jam in the right spot, carefully place one of the plain hand shapes onto the jam filled ones. Then take a fork and carefully crimp around the edges to seal the pair together. 

Once all hand shapes have been made, place onto the baking tray and bake in the oven for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown. 

When the hand pies are ready, remove from the oven and enjoy or decorate them with spooky items if you want to. You can also use them at any party, film night or Halloween soirée lovelies. 

I hope you all enjoy these spooky creations and let me know if you make them! 

Joey X

Good Morning Lovelies, 

When you peel fruit and vegetables, do you use the old school knife method or an actual peeler? I’m a peeler person, yet my mum is a knife peeling person. For me, it is a lot easier, but my mum finds that when it comes to time, she can be quicker, as she finds the peelers too small to do the jobs she needs. 

Thankfully though, Microplane have created something that might make me able to change her mind. Fresh from their newest range, the Microplane Professional XL Peeler, has been created to peel the toughest of fruit and vegetables. 

Claiming to be able to get through pumpkins, melons and even as a cheese slicer, the peeler is massive. Something that made every claim seem possible to me. Yet, I couldn’t write this review without testing it out! 

With pumpkin season in full swing, I was ready and armed to make a batch of pumpkin soup, if the peeler worked. However, I decided to go with something a little smaller first. As many of you know, I am a huge fan of butternut squash, yet, due to my condition I really struggle to cut and peel them. 

My mum hates having to prep them for me though, disliking the feel of them in every possible way. Being the star that she is, she does it for me, even if she swears along the way. Handing her this peeler, I told her that I hoped it took away some of the pain. 

Placing it on the very top of the butternut, she made quick work of peeling the entire thing. No knife peeling in sight. Impressed was an understatement when I saw how she reacted at the end of the peeling process. With hardly any mess, unlike normal, she was able to save time, energy and bad words to make the perfect butternut mash. 

The peeler also claimed to help shred lettuces and cabbages. When it came to her making a salad later in the week, she used the peeler again, without me knowing, to see if it really did work. What followed was a call for me to come to the kitchen to see how good the lettuce had come out. Picture the crisp lettuce you find at a restaurant, it was that good. 

We did face one problem with the peeler though. It was so big that it didn’t fit into our drawer slots aha! It is now in amongst our spoons on the side. However, this is actually a bit of a winner for the peeler in some ways, due to people pointing it out. They can’t quite believe its size. 

Overall, the Microplane XL Peeler is a huge winner in our home. With pumpkin season in full swing and Christmas coming up, a time when lots of spuds and vegetables get used, this will help save time and effort. All whilst leaving you with beautiful products and hardly any mess. 

Even I can use it lovely, which has made me feel a bit less useless in the kitchen. You will honestly love it as much as we did lovelies, I promise, so have a look out for it and snap one up if you can! 

Joey X

Good Morning Lovelies, 

I’m officially excited because we are now getting into the special months of the year! The ones with the big celebrations! Having this excitement inside of me inspired me a lot with my favourites from the past month and I wanted to share them with you all…

My Favourite Read - The Therapy Crouch by Abbey Clancy and Peter Crouch: I binged this book hard! Upon it arriving on my doorstep, it took me less than a day to read. I love the podcast these two do and this book is just as good. It made me feel so good inside and was super cosy too. A great read to snuggle up with and then share with everyone you know!

My Favourite TV Show - Jersey Shore: Family Vacation: Many of you will know by now that I love Jersey Shore and will often find a month of the each year to spend binging it again and again. October was that month. I can’t wait for more episodes to come out! 

My Favourite Food Find - Bulgur Wheat Fruit Bake: I had never heard of something like this before, especially when it come to using bulgur wheat, but I am obsessed now. Quick to do and with only a few ingredients, I love the mixture of the sweet jam and fruits infused into the bulgur wheat. Odd yes, but sooooo good! 

My Favourite Beauty Item - BOSS Alive Intense by Hugo Boss Perfume: My mum treated me to this amazing perfume, after we found it for £6 in our local Superdrug. I can’t get over how gorgeous it is and the fact that I paid 10% of its normal price is amazing. Winner winner!

My Favourite Podcast - The Trial of Lucy Letby: This is not something I would normally find myself listening to. However, upon hearing about the outcome of the case, I found this podcast and it is incredibly interesting. Upsetting a lot of the time, but also insightful, you realise just how much the media missed out and what Letby really did in an honest way. 

My Favourite Experience - Halloween: You all know me by now to know that I bloody love Halloween. I love decorating my house, buying items for the trick or treaters and watching spooky shows and films. It is one of the best times of the year and 2023 did not disappoint with its celebrations! 

What were your favourite things from October lovelies? 

Joey X

Good Morning Lovelies, 

For a long time, there has been a Bridesmaids shaped hole in my heart. Nothing has quite compared to it. Girls Trip came very close, but, ultimately Bridesmaids is the real winner for me. However, Joy Ride might just be neck and neck with it. 

Adele Lim’s directorial debut is full to the brim with every bodily fluid possible, horrific comedic moments and a true story of an unbeatable sisterhood. Breaking down everything you may have been expecting from a feature like this, it is giving us audience members a chance to view roles in a completely new way. 

Following Audrey (Ashley Park) and Lolo (Sherry Cola), the film sees how their friendship came to be and the consequences that it has had on their adult lives. When Audrey finds herself having to go on a very important work trip, she is joined by her best friend and her family for an epic journey. 

With Seth Rogan as a producer, you can only imagine where the film and storyline goes next. Sex, drugs and rock and roll is putting it mildly. The characters are faced with every possible act, substance and nightlife possible, leading to endless amounts of equal laughter and disgust. 

Joy Ride pushes boundaries where others have failed to. It is a solid film that stands up on its own, breaking down walls as it goes. For every mild moment comes a rollercoaster one, leading you on a gripping comedic adventure. One that you won’t forget in a long time. All in a very good way. 

4 Stars

Joey X

Hey Lovelies, 

After a few random posts this month, I’ve decided to go full on into Halloween mode for the next few weeks. This is one of my favourite times of the year! I live to decorate my home and the Halloween ones are now up. The pumpkins are out. I am going trick or treat shopping as we speak! 

Oh yes, when it comes to Halloween, I have to make sure that those who come to my door have a whole host of goodies to take with them. This year, I have been searching high and low for Halloween focused items, coming across a number of winners, including those that may not be shared. 

If like me you are planning on doing the same or are thinking of having a party, now is the time to get stocked up. To help you, I have gathered my top five foodie finds to help you get that spooky bucket crawling with delights. Or deadly delicious ones shall we say if you purchase these…

Swizzels Monster Treat Bag, £2.50: Swizzels are the true gems when it comes to Halloween sweets. This massive bag is great for parties, handing out or enjoying whilst watching a spooky film.

Haribo Trick or Treat Mini Bag Mix, £4: Useful for trick or treaters or as a Halloween advent calendar filler, these mini bags are a spooky themed take on the Starmix. I’ve got myself a bag of these and will be enjoying them on the big day, whilst also sharing with trick or treaters. Bring on the Haribo!

Cadbury Skeleton Fingers, £1.85: It wouldn’t be a party without some chocolate fingers! Luckily, Cadbury’s are bringing back these beautiful white chocolate coated biscuits. Warning though! Once you start, you won’t be able to stop eating this skeleton!

Sainsbury’s Pumpkin Spice Cake, £3: Forget buying an expensive cup of PSL! It’s all about this cake from now on. No need to be decorated, just sliced up and served for the ultimate autumn/Halloween dessert.

Halloween Monster Parts Sweet Tray, £3: Why have just the fangs or the brains when you can have every body part? Perfect to enjoy whilst watching those spooky films, this has all kinds of sweets to tuck into. Although, I have to admit that out of it, I am a sucker for the fizzy fangs!

What sweets will you be handing out this year? Have you got a favourite Halloween delight you like best? Let me know! 

Joey X

Good Morning Lovelies,

In our house at Christmas, my mum likes to make sure that she has a drink available for everyone. Whether it be the Amaretto drinker or the cocktail mixer, there isn’t a bottle that isn’t available for them to try or use. 

However, something that hasn’t been huge in our is gin. Yet, I know many people who love it, including my best friend Tessa, my neighbour Amie and many more. I’ve even known my mum to give it a chance. 

Something she did for me, when I asked her to blind taste test the new Amarula African Gin. Made from the marula fruit and premium botanicals, including juniper berries, orange peel and blossom, plus African grains, the gin is made fresh with a fruity twist. 

Whilst many would say this sounds like the perfect ripple for summer, it is a bottle that can be enjoyed all year round. Placing the gin in her glass, before mixing it with a fruity lemon bitter tonic, my mum included ice and fresh fruit slices to really set the drink alight. After I had added the gin before she could see what it was aha! 

Taking her first sip, something that I was nervous about, she was pleasantly surprised. She tried another one and then a third. Before long, she was stating just how impressed she was. Something that she was surprised about when I told her it was gin that she was drinking. 

Now, I can’t get her to stop coming up with ideas on how to share it with friends. A punch bowl has been discussed. Used as a starter for her festive party. The ideas are flowing and her new love of gin has grown. 

Amarula African Gin is exclusive to Europe right now and priced at around £25 a bottle. However, the bottles are huge, meaning you definitely get good value for money. With party season coming up, my mum stated that it is the perfect drink to refresh with, especially after a heavy festive meal. She also said it would be perfect to get the party started on New Year’s Eve with as well. 

To find out more about the brand and to discover some fantastic recipes to try, head to the Amarula website lovelies! You will be getting the gin party flowing this festive season before you know it! 

Joey X