Halloween 2018 at Target's Dollar Spot

I have been checking Target almost religiously to see if they have Halloween stuff in their Dollar Spot (aka Bullseye's Playground), and I got lucky this past weekend and found some goodies! Not everything was out yet, and they just had a sprinkling of items, but it was still incredibly exciting to see orange and black at Target! 

I wanted to share what I spotted so far, check out my Target Dollar Spot finds below:

Book Review: Drawn to the Dark - Explorations in Scare Tourism Around the World (Plus Giveaway!)

How would you like to travel the world checking out festivals, celebrations, and haunted attractions Imagine the wonder and excitement you would have visiting traditional Dia de los Muertos cemetery celebrations, attending demon festivals in Japan, getting menaced by Krampus in Austria, exploring locations that inspired Castle Dracula, traveling up a mountain to celebrate Walpurgisnacht in Germany, and checking out different haunted attractions around the world! That sounds so incredible, and that is exactly what author Chris Kullstroem did for a whole year.

Sneak Peek: Halloween 2017 at Williams Sonoma

Vintage Halloween Melamine Dinnerware Set

Halloween things are starting to pop up all over online, including Williams Sonoma! Their full Halloween collection isn't up yet, but they do have a few treats up and several caught my eye. These won't be in stores until probably late August or later, but for now you can start scheming which items you'd like to buy or just let the images inspire that Halloween spirit.

These are the Williams Sonoma Halloween items that are my favorites so far:

Sneak Peek: Halloween 2017 at Target

Target's Halloween 2017 Nocturne Collection

UPDATE: The collection is now in stores! Check out what they have in-store HERE and HERE!

Target is notorious for torturing Halloween fans and dragging out their roll-out of Halloween goodies to stores every year...I'm sure this year will be no different but it will be worth the wait!! Just check out these amazing Halloween items that they will be carrying this year (some are already available for pre-order on their site!):

Halloween 2016 at Cost Plus World Market

The gang is all here!

I popped into Cost Plus World Market over the weekend to see if they had their Halloween items out yet, and luckily they had just started stocking them! I spent some time browsing around, admiring their Dia de los Muertos decorations, checking for vegan Halloween foodstuffs, and ogling all their Halloweenie decor. Check out some snaps I took of their selection below:

Food Review: Two Tias' Organic Tortillas

This is going to be a quickie, because I mainly picked up these lovely Two Tias' Organic Tortillas because of their packaging. I cannot resist any foodstuffs with sugar skulls on it, okay?! I mean, who could?! I found these at Sprouts grocery store, and though I was enthralled by the packaging, I was even further thrilled when I found them to be vegan! I flipped over the package to check the ingredients (as vegans do), and right smack-dab on the package it said "vegan". Plus they are organic/non-GMO and use simple ingredients (basically just flour, water, and salt). Swoon!

Halloween 2015 at World Market

World Market always has rad stuff for Halloween and gets it out relatively early, so when I visited a store over Labor Day weekend I was disappointed to find that there were no Halloween items yet on shelves! However, I visited again just yesterday and am happy to report that they are finally stocking Halloween products.

Halloween 2015 at Pier 1 Imports

Trick or Treat Pennant Banner - $19.95

I haven't had a chance to make it out to a Pier 1 Imports store yet, but I hear that they have their Halloween decor out! To be honest, I usually don't find much I like at Pier 1 (there is always far too much glitter and cutesy decor for my liking), so instead of visiting a store I decided to take a look at their new seasonal items online. Most of the stuff I liked is actually only available online, so I'm glad I checked before making the trek out to a store.

You can check out my faves from Pier 1's Halloween 2015 collection below:

Sneak Peek: Halloween 2015 at Cost Plus World Market

I love these Dia de los Muertos-inspired dishes and serving tray!

Set of 4 appetizer plates are listed for $7.96, the serving tray is

listed for $9.99.

Psssssst! Cost Plus World Market posted a sneak peek of their Halloween 2015 items, and it looks like they will be bringing back a few favorites as well as debuting some rad new spooky items! On their site I saw their popular Frankenstein's Monster and Bride merch returning and tons of really cool Dia de Los Muertos tableware, too!

I can't wait for their Halloween section to go on sale (right now it's all listed as "out of stock" on their site), but out of the whole bunch that World Market has on their site I am ESPECIALLY looking forward the following items hitting the shelves:

Halloween 2014 at Cost Plus World Market

Cost Plus World Market had a 25% off sale on their Halloween decor this past Monday, so I knew I had to scoot over there after work to check out their Halloween offerings and take advantage of their one-day Halloween sale!

They had lots of creepy cool items this year, including a great Dia de los Muertos section, awesome kitchen accessories, bloody candles, vintage-inspired decorations, mummies, skeletons, and lots of Halloween-inspired wine! I even found some vegan Halloween pasta, which is probably my favorite fiendish fine at World Market since vegan Halloween pasta is hard to come by as they usually use squid ink to color the pasta black! This brand just uses carrots for the ink, though, hurrah!

Here is what I found:

 So much Frankenstein stuff! Frankenstein's Monster

and The Bride are plastered on serving trays, plates, and

napkins! They also had two elongated rectangular serving

trays that were really cool! 

Halloween 2014 Collection from Crate and Barrel

Written by Sarah E. Jahier

I've already posted about the Halloween 2014 collections from Williams-Sonoma and Pottery Barn, but I just discovered that Crate and Barrel has their Halloween items posted, and I think they are my favorite out of these higher end stores! I wish I could buy everything in this collection, but for now I shall have to resign myself to drooling over their online store and trying to hold myself back from pressing the "add to cart" button. Le sigh.

Here is a taste of some of my favorites:

Black Branch Wreath ($49.95) -  Love this gorgeous wreath, but
I could probably make it on my own for much less.

OPI So So Skullicious Halloween 2012 Collection

Shades from left to right: Hi, Pumpkin!, A-Rose from the Dead, Morning Glory, Candlelight

OPI recently announced their Halloween 2012 collection, which is Dia de los Muertos-themed! I love the colorful packaging of their minis above, though I wish it was a little less girly and a bit darker like last year's Spookettes collection.

Here is what OPI's official Facebook page says about their So So Skullicious 2012 Halloween collection:

Celebrate the lives of the dearly departed with OPI’s festive Dia de los Muertos-inspired shades, arriving just in time for Halloween, for a limited time only. The new So So Skullicious mini pack includes four mini lacquers in supernaturally bright and bold orange, pink, yellow and black hues. 

For you vegans or cruelty-free shoppers out there, there is a lot of discussion over whether OPI's nail polishes are in fact cruelty-free and vegan. For what I gather from various online resources, their nail polish is vegan, however they were acquired by Coty, a parent company that does test on animals (though, as far as I can tell, OPI itself does not test on animals). So depending on how you feel about that may influence your decision to purchase this collection.

Available now on Amazon!

Dia de Los Muertos Photography by John Rees

Happy Dia de Los Muertos, dear readers! I want to take a moment to welcome to all my new followers...I hope you'll stick around and keep haunting the place for a spell.

Today is Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, a Mexican holiday that falls on November 1st-2nd. This holiday is celebrated throughout Mexico and other Central American countries as well as parts of North America. Traditional events include decorating deceased family members' graves and leaving them offerings of sugar skulls, marigolds and favorite foods and drinks. Elaborate and colorful altars are built for the deceased and skeletons and skulls dominate the decorations. You can learn more about this holiday in the awesome book Skulls to the Living, Bread to the Dead: The Day of the Dead in Mexico and Beyond by Stanley Brandes!

However, today I wanted to leave you with some gorgeous Dia de los Muertos-inspired photography by John Rees (please note I do not claim ownership of the photos below!). Enjoy and I hope you take a moment today to celebrate the Day of the Dead and pay your respects to the dearly departed.

For more John Rees photography, please visit his website!

31 Days of Halloween: Vegan Halloween Recipes

My vegan Halloween sugar cookies!

It's almost that time, lovelies! In just a few days it will be Halloween! Woot!

And in preparation for that grand holiday, I wanted to share a handy list of delicious vegan Halloween recipes for your enjoyment and use! Below you'll find links to autumn and Halloween-inspired vegan recipes that I've posted in past years as well as the ones I've posted this year. 

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Autumn Chili and Cornbread

Spicy Pumpkin and Black Bean Burgers

Jack-o-Lantern Sandwich Cookies

Halloween Sugar Cookies

Caramel Apples

Dia de los Muertos Pumpkin Spice Muffins

Pumpkin Brownies

Pumpkin Pie Hot Chocolate

Enjoy!

31 Days of Halloween: Halloween 2011 Events in Orange County

Happy October 1st, fiends! Today kicks off my 31 Days of Halloween (check out last year's Halloween posts!), where I will be attempting to post a Halloween-related post every day of October for Countdown to Halloween's annual blogging marathon!

For my first post, I've made a list of some spooky events occurring around Orange County, California, where I currently reside. Of course, the L.A. area has a TON of events, but to narrow it down I've elected to just post about some events closer to my home.

Please note this isn't an all-inclusive list, but rather events that have caught my eye! I'll be adding more to this list as I find out about more events, too! If you know of any other events in the area, please let me know in the comments below!

Fullerton Haunted Walking Tours
(Fullerton, CA)

A hauntingly good time is in the offing when the Fullerton Museum Center’s popular “Haunted Fullerton Walking Tours” return for their 11^th season in September.

Tours will be given Wednesday and Thursday evenings Sept. 14 through Nov. 3, with a special Halloween tour planned Oct. 31. Due to popularity, the tours book up fast, and persons interested in participating are strongly advised to get their registrations in early.

Considered to be one of the most haunted cities in Orange County, Fullerton will serve up a variety of “spirited” locations to take in during the tours.Locations visited can vary and may include the landmark Plummer Auditorium, where the spirits of Louis E. Plummer and one known only as the “angry woman” are said to watch the shows presented there; the historic California Hotel, now Villa del Sol; and the home of Fullerton’s first woman auto dealer. Even Fullerton’s Police Department apparently is not without its own reported hauntings, and will be one of the locations visited on the tours.

Ghost Ship
(Newport Beach, CA)

GHOST SHIP is the first haunted attraction in the country that actually sets sail into the dark, open ocean…at night. The Attraction is comprised of three floors of highly interactive content. The gut of the ship will bring the poor souls through the abandoned hallways of what once was the treatment deck for those in need of Electro Shock Therapy, Hydrotherapy, and Sleep Disorder Rehabilitation as well as the old examination rooms and even morgue. The middle floor will appear to provide a moment of calm where patrons can grab a cocktail and take in the old ballroom vibe of the 1930′s. However, appearances can be incredibly deceiving. Lastly, the top deck will bring gluttons for punishment through an interactive execution experience that just may make them wonder “who” is actually getting executed. This will be an experience you will not want to miss if you are someone with a high tolerance for fear.

Monster Massive
(Irvine, CA) 

America's largest Halloween dance music festival returns on Saturday October 29th, 2011 with an exclusive U.S. appearance of Armin Van Buuren's "Armin Only Mirage" show on the "Tomb of Doom" main stage all night. The "House of Horror" will feature Erick Morillo, Moby and much more TBA.

Hearse Show at OC Fairgrounds
(Costa Mesa, CA)
 
Freak Out is the theme for this year's event slated for Sunday, October 30 a"Come as Your Favorite Freak" Costume Contest, several shows presented by Freak Show Deluxe, "Freaky" stilt walking troupe, Monster Mash Up Puppet Show presented by Swazzle Puppetry along with free trick or treating from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., world renown pumpkin sculptor “Farmer” Mike Valladao carving 3-D "freakish" masterpieces out of 400 lb plus pumpkins. All day exhibition of antique and classic hearses preceded by a four mile ceremonial ride through Costa Mesa.

Day of the Dead Craft Workshop at Bowers Museum
(Santa Ana, CA)
 
The Days of the Dead in Mexico are a time of remembrance and celebration of the lives of departed family members. Memorial altars are created with special foods, flowers, mementos and candles. Sometimes, a humorous piece of skeleton folk art will be placed on the ofrenda (altar) in order to keep Death distracted from the living. The masks are worn to celebrate the life of a deceased person and to remind everyone of the fragility of life.

Great Park Pumpkin Harvest
(Irvine, CA)

The Great Park Balloon will be transformed into a giant Jack-O-Lantern, as visitors are welcomed to the Great Park Pumpkin Harvest. Visitors will experience the time honored tradition of fall activities and family fun, including: Pumpkin Patch, Pumpkin Decorating, Pumpkin Carving Demo, Mini Hay Maze, Train Rides, Art & Crafts Activities, Carnival-style Games and more. Come visit our inaugural Scarecrows in the Park exhibit that will be featured at the Pumpkin Harvest event.

Ghost of Old OC Tour
(Santa Ana, CA)
 
Meet the Spirits from Orange County and California history as they tell stories of how the state and county were formed. Journey through Heritage Museum’s seven-acre site in this after-dark living history program.

An Autumn Meal and warm beverages will be available for purchase, courtesy of the Victorian Tea Society.

Everybody Dies Horror Film Festival
(Brea, CA)

From the minds that brought you the radtastic horror spoof Stupid Teenagers Must Die! (one of my fave indie movies of all time!) comes Orange County's own horror film festival!! The Everybody Dies Horror Film Festival promises to deliver the best in indie horror to one of the most terrifying places in the world: Orange County, California. Designed by filmmakers for filmmakers, this new two-night fest presents shorts, trailers and feature films displaying everything from brain-chompin' zombies to knife-wieldin' crazy killers, all hosted by our mistress of ceremony, the super sexy psychopath Machete Betty.

Night of the Living Dead LIVE at the Maverick Theater
(Fullerton, CA)
 
This is a one of a kind experience, perfect for the Halloween season. Night of the Living Dead...on stage! A group of panicked survivors are barricaded in a deserted farmhouse while a horde of flesh-eating zombies hovers outside their door.

Dark Harbor at the Queen Mary
(Long Beach, CA)
 
Something Wildly Wicked Takes Over: This Halloween, The Queen Mary steams into a harbor of the damned, a decidedly demonic destination.With a trio of She-demons that prey on all mortals who dare enter their realm after sunset - villagers, passengers and visitors alike - the annual scare-fest takes on a horrifying new dimension.

Knott's Halloween Haunt
(Buena Park, CA)
 
The granddaddy of Halloween events will feature 13 mazes and four scare zones scattered throughout the Buena Park theme park.

New Knott's mazes for 2011:

• Invasion  Beneath – The military battles against creatures emerging from a fissure in the Earth's core. Replaces the perfectly themed Black Widow's Cavern (Calico Mine Ride).
• Endgames: Warriors of the Apocalypse – A post-apocalyptic arena where gladiators battle to the death for the entertainment of the rich and powerful. Replaces the pointless and endless Labyrinth (In Camp Snoopy at the former Peanuts Playhouse location).
• Delirium – A wasteland along the blurry line between nightmare and insanity. Replaces the mediocre Club Blood vampire maze (Ghostrider warehouse).

Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween at Disneyland
(Anaheim, CA)

Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party is a Halloween-themed special event held on select dates in Magic Kingdom theme park.

In addition to many favorite Disney attractions, Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party is filled with special entertainment, including:

• Mickey's "Boo-to-You" Halloween Parade—including Disney Characters and the stars of the Haunted Mansion attraction. The parade begins with a spook-tacular ride by the Headless Horseman.
• Happy HalloWishes—a spectacular fireworks show where the Disney Villains go trick-or-treating in the sky.
• Many favorite Disney Characters and Disney Villains in special Halloween costumes.

Special lighting, music and theme effects transforms special areas of Magic Kingdom theme park into happy haunted hollows.

What are some Halloween events going on where you live? 

Dia de Los Muertos Pumpkin Spice Muffins

The other day I was in a baking mood, so I made these adorable skull-shaped pumpkin spice muffins. I used a box mix from Trader Joe's that I've had since last fall and substituted vegan ingredients for the eggs (I used applesauce) and milk (I used rice milk) it called for.

I decided to use my skull molds because I've been so excited about the approaching Halloween season lately! Time to get festive! I used some Halloween icing to decorate of the few skulls like Dia de Los Muertos sugar skulls. However, I ate most of them before I could finish decorating...LOL!!

I've been eating them all weekend! Soooo moist and delicious! Plus, their spicy, pumpkin-y taste puts me in a frenzy of autumn expectancy!