Happy (Birthday To Me) Halloween!!

As some of you may or may not know, last Wednesday was my birthday, my 21st birthday to be exact! Having my birthday fall on Halloween means that I have a natural affinity for the holiday, along with anything and everything of the spooky sort! I have fond memories of my earlier birthdays where me and my mam had a tradition of sorts of watching Tim Burton's Nightmare Before Christmas, along with the classic Hocus Pocus, Beetlejuice and Casper (who else had a huge crush on the actor who played Casper in his human form, Devon Sawa?!?!) from the moment I woke up. All on good old VCR of course!

I had an excellent day, breakfast in bed watching NBC, a spot of retail therapy, and a ghost tour in the beautiful 17th century Huntington Castle, which I am kicking myself for not getting any pictures of, but I was in such a hurry to get in there I forgot to even take my phone with me! The ghost tour was brilliant, and yes, there were a few scares! One included a scary clown with a chainsaw.... Truly terrifying! Then I had a lovely meal with my best friends and went out for cocktails and tequila shots! I didn't dress up as anything per se, but my outfit was still spooky, I sewed several plastic spiders to one of my cardigans, wore the glittering spider fascinator that you can see in my previous post, and glued a whole cluster of confetti spiders to my face!

Kind of sad that Halloween is over now, but seeing as Christmas is already being shoved in everybody's face, I am sure that the Christmas feeling will soon take over! Got my fingers crossed for snow this year.....:3
♥

I'm not dead...

Apologies for my latest disappearance, I haven't written a blog post in about a month and a half, and I'm really not happy with myself for that. I don't want to go into a lot of detail because this space, my blog, and all of your blogs, is my escape from all of the other things going on in my life, my escape from reality really, and I hate talking about myself and my 'feelings' anyway.. But seeing as most days I struggle with the motivation to even get out of bed and get dressed, it's kind of inevitable that my blog has been at the back of my mind for the past few weeks, and it's one of those things where the longer you leave something, the harder it becomes to do it. Also my internet is being a bitch, but I won't even go there!
Thank you to everyone who has stuck with me through my constant hiatuses, it really does mean a lot, and I've met some wonderful people through this blogging world. I think a giveaway is in order really, to thank you all! I've never done one before so it's about bloody time!

To ease myself back into proper blogging, here are a few Instagram pictures as a kind of update. It hasn't all been gloom and doom, I find lots of kitty snuggles, comforting baths, interesting reads, baking and plenty of new treasures from my beloved Etsy can do you the world of good!


(Clockwise from top left)
 ♥ No October is complete without a few viewings of The Nightmare Before Christmas ;) Seeing as I'm a Halloween baby, when I was younger me and my mam used to have a tradition of watching NBC the morning of my birthday!
♥I went a bit crazy with all of the Halloween treats...
♥Some Halloween-themed birthday cakes I wouldn't mind blowing the candles out on next week!
♥Haribo ghosties!


♥ Amazing black lace trimmed umbrella with a skull handle from River Island.
♥ Metallic red eyeshadow patted over Nars Velvet Matte lip pencil in Cruella, LOVE.
♥ Pretty bat nail decals!
♥ My first Pumpkin Spice Latte of the year (obsessed with everything pumpkin lately).


♥ My first attempt at making cupcakes for my knitting group, of course they were spookily decorated! The spider ones were red velvet cupcakes with whipped cream, black sugar crystals and plastic spiders to decorate them, while the orange ones were pumpkin spice (DELICIOUS) with disastrous orange icing and little batty and orange sprinkles! They went down very well!


♥ Got Felix a Halloween outfit; He was NOT impressed! But look how adorable he looks :3
♥ Flossie giving me bitchface as I try to move her off of the clean laundry..
♥ Snuggles with Felix.
♥ Curled up on my bed.. She left a big puddle of drool for me, how nice!


♥ I've been thoroughly stuck into Ash by James Herbert for the past week, finished it last night, excellent read!
♥ My Victorian ghost lady bookmark from Etsy, such a eerie and unique idea!
♥ Huge ass garden spider outside my front door.. *runs away*
♥ Found another creepy bookmark (It's a hologram!) in a tiny little shop in Co.Mayo that did not look like it would sell scary things like this!


♥ Second attempt at making red velvet cupcakes, this time with proper cream cheese frosting!
♥ They turned out pretty well if I may say so myself ;)
♥ Nellie got a cupcake because I dropped it on the floor taking it out of the oven, she had already nicked off with a bit before I could protest!
♥ Close up of the pretty red heart sprinkles.


♥ Simply uh-mazing black glitter spider fascinator I bought from Etsy for my birthday celebrations :)
♥ Pretty sheer black lacey patterned tights.
♥ More spider hair decorations! Love the polka dot tulle.. And the huge (but not alive..) spider!
♥ Been looking for a pair of tights like these sheer black heart print ones for ages!


♥ Pretty black rose hairclip with added spookiness in the form of some spiderwebs!
♥ My favourite gothic chandelier earrings from Restyle :)
♥ Obscenely pink and fluffy bath water thanks to Lush's Comforter bubble bar.
♥ The bat decals in action!

Well, that's it! If you want to follow me on Instagram, I am @grotesqueburlesque. The quick and easy nature of Instagram means I update a lot on there, but I *will* try my hardest to post a lot more on here from now on!
What are everyone's plans for Halloween? I was hoping to go to Alton Towers's Scarefest in England for my birthday, but the trip turned out to be quite expensive for a two-night break so I've got other things planned instead! Namely, my first tattoo and finally taking the plunge and going for copper red hair!
♥

Etsy Is A Cruel Mistress Part II

I thought it was about time I did another one of these, since there's been quite an accumulation of  new things filling up my jewellery box... Again, these things were all purchased over more than a month, so it doesn't look so bad all things considered, right??

Victorian Gothic Ornate Briolette Necklace from AngelBDesigns

I actually bought this necklace whilst I was still in New Zealand, though thanks to stupid posties, it was sent back to the seller instead of delivering it to me! Dawn Marie was absolutely wonderful about it though, and when we presumed it must have been lost, she was brilliant and refunded me straight away! Once it had turned up back at hers, she asked me if I still wanted it and of course I said yes! So it's been a bit of a kerfuffle (no fault of Dawn Marie's!), but well worth it! I absolutely love the ornate glass in the center, it's just so pretty!

Victorian Skeleton Key Silhouette Droplet Earrings by Fable And Fury

Fable And Fury is seriously one of my favourite shops on Etsy, their stainless steel silhouette jewellery is so unique and unusual! After my Vampira necklace purchase, I set my sights on the black pair of these really unusual skeleton key earrings, and after I got them I loved them so much I went back for the silver pair! Plus the silver is much more visible when I have my hair down! They really are just the highest quality, I've seen a few copies of their designs on Etsy (tut tut!) that are a lot cheaper, but I really wouldn't buy them, Fable And Fury's pieces are 100% worth paying that little bit more for quality! Next on my list is their amazing spider necklace.. Pretty!

Anatomical Bat Skeleton Bobby Pins from The Lysine Contingency

I love these little bobby pins, they have the perfect balance of cute and creepy, definitely my cup of tea! Like I said before, I have a bit of a thing for old anatomical drawings, and these bat skeletons are so unique! The owner Jaime told me I was the only person with a pair as they were the only ones she made and she won't be making any more!

Teeny Tiny White Bunnies With Hearts Earrings from Matin Lapin

How adorable are these little bunnies?? And they really are teeny tiny.. Like, teeny tiny! They are very Alice-In-Wonderland-esque with the little hearts in the center of them, so I can give a subtle nod to my Wonderland obsession everyday! Also, how cute is the business card? Wabbits everywhere!!

Frankenstein's Monster and His Lady Earrings from The Devious Owl & Pussycat

I am an avid fan of the classic Horror film Frankenstein, along with it's sequel, Bride of Frankenstein, so I nearly had a fit when I saw these earrings! Featuring iconic images of Boris Karloff and Elsa Lanchester and cute little black bows, how could I not buy them?? They are smaller than I was expecting, but I actually love the size of them! Ugh, I just love them in general! Also Jen has an Ahh! Real Monsters necklace and earrings set... So much want..

Alice In Wonderland Drink Me Necklace from petiteVanilla

I think it's fair to say that you all know of my Alice in Wonderland obsession by now, yes? Yes. This is a wonderfully whimsical little necklace featuring my favourite John Tenniel illustration of Alice about to drink from the bottle that makes her grow uncontrollably! By FAR my most worn piece, I practically wear it every single day! I have another Alice necklace on the way from petiteVanilla, this time featuring the White Rabbit, and I can't wait to wear them together!

Gothic Black Crystal Deco Window Earrings by Lunarbelle

Another gorgeous pair of earrings, I had my eye on these for a while! I fell in love with the elegant gothic style, and I think I mentioned before how much I love black earrings! It does mean that these are strictly wear-with-an-updo earrings, as they are kind of invisible in my dark hair, but these earrings really do deserve to be seen so I don't mind!

Real Black Bearded Tomb Bat Skull Pendant from BoneJewellery

This is a special one! I stumbled across Dominick's shop somehow, and was amazed by all of his real bone and skull jewellery. Despite the name of his shop, no animals are 'murdered' in order to make his jewellery, and he doesn't use endangered species either. He has a few different bat skull necklaces, but this little guy stole my heart! I am just fascinated by this tiny skull, the amount of detail and beauty for something so small is something only nature can produce! And how cool are his sharp little fangs?? I was surprised at how strong the skull is, though I will still be taking special care with it!

Ghost Of The Moth Lavender Sachets from Sillycut

First of all, how pretty is that packaging?? It's so purdy.. I finally got my hands on a pair of these lavender sachets after the lovely Sandy snapped up the originals before I did, I contacted Jana and she was wonderful and set about making me another pair straight away! The Death's-head Hawkmoth is so eerily beautiful and it will always remind me of Silence of the Lambs! The lavender scent is lovely too, although it's meant to repel moths, I actually don't mind them! I have one in my wardrobe as it is quite old and needed a scent boost, and then the other is hanging up on my wall, filling my room with it's relaxing scent! And they don't half look pretty!

I swear some day I'll have the strength to put myself on a strict Etsy ban... Just.. Not yet.. *shifty eyes*
♥

Drink Me

I've been spending lots of time lost in my own wonderland recently.. The 1951 Disney version of Alice In Wonderland and Tim Burton's 2010 revisit have both been on constant replay while I've been busy gutting my bedroom of unwanted things, and when I've been relaxing, it's been with my giant copy of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through The Looking Glass that I've had since I was 8. After my last post, I've taken a few more forays into the world of Indie perfumeries.. And when they have Alice In Wonderland themed perfumes, how can I resist?!

I made an order recently with one of the more established Indie perfume houses, Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab. After a recommendation on Instagram, I pretty much knew I needed a bottle of their Drink Me perfume oil in my life immediately, and after a short wait, my package arrived!

♥

There seemed to be no use in waiting by the little door, so she went back to the table, half hoping she might find another key on it, or at any rate a book of rules for shutting people up like telescopes: this time she found a little bottle, ('which certainly was not here before' said Alice,) and round the neck of  the bottle was a paper label, with the words 'DRINK ME' beautifully printed on it in large letters.

It was all very well to say 'Drink me' , but the wise little Alice was not going to do that in a hurry. 'No, I'll look first,' she said, 'and see whether it's marked ''poison'' or not'; for she had read several nice little histories about children who had got burnt, and eaten up by wild beasts and other unpleasant things, all because they would not remember the simple rules their friends had taught them: such as, that a red-hot poker will burn you if you hold it too long; and that if you cut your finger very deeply with a knife, it usually bleeds; and she had never forgotten that, if you drink too much from a bottle marked 'poison', it is almost certain to disagree with you, sooner or later.

However, this bottle was not marked 'poison', so Alice ventured to taste it, and finding it very nice, (it had, in fact, a sort of mixed flavour of cherry-tart, custard, pine-apple, roast turkey, toffee, and hot buttered toast,) she very soon finished it off.

♥

Ugh... This. This perfume. I swear to god. It smells exactly like the potion in Lewis Carroll's novel, EXACTLY! The main notes I smell are the cherry tarts, the custard and the buttered toast, absolutely delicious, I just want to eat my wrists after applying it. And I can't stop applying it! It's just amazing. Such a comforting scent! I feel like getting 10 more bottles so I don't run out for at least a year..

They also included two other scent from their Mad Tea Party collection, and they just so happened to be two that I really wanted to try: Eat Me (Three white cakes, vanilla, and red and black currants), and White Rabbit (Strong black tea and milk with white pepper, ginger, honey and vanilla, spilled over the crisp scent of clean linen). Both smell gorgeous, I definitely need a full size of Eat Me! White Rabbit *is* a lovely scent, but I think I prefer Poison Apple Apothecary's White Rabbit (It's the boozy chocolate-y-ness!).

I also tried my hand at some 'crying' makeup, in honour of Alice's despair after drinking the bottle marked 'Drink me'. I was originally going for a nice, natural look, one suited to Alice, but we all know my propensity towards vampy makeup, and since I have dark hair, it was kind of inevitable I wouldn't make an authentic Alice! Also I'm pretty sure Alice didn't have a septum piercing...

And I think I made the tears too corpsepaint-ish.. Oh well!
On my eyes I just patted Maybelline's Colour Tattoo Cream Eyeshadow in Permanent Taupe all over my lid and into the crease and then lightly swept some of Mac's Satin Taupe over that. Super easy! It's my new favourite quick defined eye! Also I have Mac's Dark Side on my lips.

I don't know why, but I find tears and messy makeup really pretty! I think I'll try and find a way to incorporate it into my costume for this Halloween.. Shouldn't be too hard!
♥

Curiouser and Curiouser..

My Etsy addiction is still going strong, but as it seems that I've finally admitted to myself that I have enough jewellery to open my own shop at this stage, I've moved on to the world of indie perfumeries! You can find a lot of shops on Etsy that sell wonderfully unique hand-blended perfume oils, and pretty much all of them offer sample sets, very helpful if you are unsure of whether or not you will like a certain scent. I really prefer perfume oils to normal perfume sprays as I like to reapply quite often (I always, without fail, carry some perfume in my bag!) but it can be hard to do discreetly, and without poisoning other people in a cloud of perfume! Perfume oils are so easy to reapply, and the oils sink into the skin quite fast, there is no oily, greasy residue left. I also prefer roll ons to drop bottles, again for the ease of application!

I found Poison Apple Apothecary through Sandy on my Etsy activity feed (We like to feed each others addiction!) and was immediately drawn to their Alice in Wonderland collection (I've been spending far too much time watching the 1951 Disney cartoon lately!). I got their six-piece sample set, which contains all six scents and was really impressed as my package arrived in just under a week! *Mr. Burns voice* Eeeexcellent..

I just love the little tin that the vials came in, it's a lot nicer than just receiving them in a loose envelope!

 Cheshire Moon

Inspired by the beloved Cheshire Cat who informs our dear Alice that everyone is a bit mad here. This feline is exotic, magnetic, and full of riddles. The Cheshire Moon perfume creates the same atmosphere with a blend of Neroli, Sandalwood, and Sweet Tahitian Vanilla.

My opinion: This scent is definitely puzzling! It's one of those scents that leaves you thinking "What is that?". Sweet but somehow still managing to smell fresh, it is a lovely scent but I prefer my perfumes sweeter and deeper, 'fresh' isn't really my bag!

Caterpillar's Pipe

Undoubtedly one of the most interesting characters our heroine Alice meets along the way; the caterpillar is lazily seductive with his intricate tenor and puffing hookah pipe. His blend is equally as deep with notes of Hemp, Tobacco, Frankincense, and Patchouli.

My opinion: Very smoky and musky, the Tobacco and Frankincense are the main components that I can smell. It really does remind me of the Caterpillar! I do like musky scents, so this one is an instant hit with me!  

 

Red Queen's Rage

The Red Queen's ire is matched by no other throughout the land. Her perfume is a blend of the sharpest red roses, tempestuous clove, and deep vanilla musk.

My opinion: Holy mother of Clove!! This is a strong 'un! The blend of rose and clove is an inspired idea for the Red Queen's perfume, it is so strong and unforgiving, just like the Red Queen herself! I usually hate clove, my mam gave me some of the oil to rub on my tooth once when I had a toothache and I swear to god, I thought my mouth was burning and the taste was just nasty. Ever since, I've avoided clove oil like the plague, but surprisingly, I really like this perfume! I don't know if I would actually wear it, but at least it's lessened my fear of clove oil a bit...

 

Hatter's Tea Party

Welcome to the mad tea party! This curious blend is the perfect perfume for just this occasion. Would you like a spot? This bottle boasts a cup of tea, a dash of spices, a crisp butter cookie, and a generous helping of blood orange.

My opinion: Yummy! I get a distinct gingerbread scent from this perfume, which is probably from the combination of the butter cookie and the spices.. Mmm, makes me crave for a Starbucks Gingerbread Latte! Lovely scent, reminds me of Autumn. I will definitely be purchasing a full size roller of this!

 

Sweet Alice

"Curiouser and curiouser!" This blend evokes the sweetest qualities of our dear curious Alice in a blend of rich buttercream, tart black currants, a generous scoop of sugar, and strawberries growing wild throughout the forest.

My opinion: So sweet I can almost feel a toothache coming on! The strawberry is the note that jumps out at me straight away, it is obviously made even sweeter by the addition of sugar and buttercream. If you have a sweet-tooth, I definitely recommend that you check this perfume oil out! I might need a full-size of this one too....

 

White Rabbit

The perfume inspired by the White Rabbit begins to evoke an ardent sense of restlessness but dries down to a smooth composed blend. This perfume is sweet and creamy with notes of White Chocolate, Sassafras, Caramel, and Cognac.

My opinion: Ohhh my god. Easily my favorite! The description alone sounds drool-worthy, and believe me, it smells as good as its sounds! The best way I can describe it to you is that it's almost like if Baileys brought out a White Chocolate version of their creamy alcoholic drink (Note to self: Make this happen). It is very chocolate-y and very booze-y, and I absolutely adore it! I've already purchased a full-size roller, along with a couple from their Halloween collection, can't wait for them to get here!

Do any of these perfumes tickle your fancy?
In case anyone is interested, the keyholes I used as 'props' are actual earrings (I just hid the hooks) from ReStyle, that don't appear to be on the website anymore, and the key I took off of the matching necklace as I prefer using the necklace as a brooch, but the little key was too pretty to throw away!
♥