Spooky Season

 

Well, Spooky Season has come & gone for another year & this time, it was bigger than ever in Australia! For me, it was a time to read some schlocky books, watch some of my all-time favourite horror movies, listen to some creepy tunes (Monster Mash, anyone?) & head to a couple of events celebrating the occasion, which you can see from the pictures below...

All hyped up for the Nicholas Street Halloween Fair (the Saturday before All Hallows Eve) with my cousin & her two rambunctious munchkins wearing a funky specimen jar printed organza puff mini dress with embroidered trim from Dangerfield, a pair of tan vegan leather sandals with oversized buckles & rubber tread soles from Obsession Shoes & a circular black woven straw crossbody bag with tan leather strap from a little bohemian boutique (that used to be beside my hairdresser) to carry all the essentials while keeping my hands free. 

While everyone seemed to be having an amazing time, I was a little bit disappointed with the organization of the event as the placement of market stalls meant that the entire crowd was being funnelled through two tiny spaces (at one point, we couldn't even move as there were so many people & it was extremely claustrophobic) despite a significant amount of unused space elsewhere. Also, there were only minimal food trucks & there were only a few stations with Halloween themed activities for children - trick or treat doors, slime making, face masks, face painting - that each had lines of more than 45 mintues! Not sure if the organizers weren't expecting such a large turn out but perhaps next year needs to be tweaked a little to accomodate bigger crowd numbers. Regardless, we got into the "spirit" & did as many activities as we could before heading off to have dinner elsewhere.

Scroll down to see how it unfolded...

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"Mostly Ghostly" (if you know, you know) for dinner at the local Leagues Club in this gorgeous white linen maxi dress that I picked up from Swop (a secondhand clothing retailer) at West End, antique French late 1800s cream silk bow that I found at one of the stalls at the Collectorville Markets & retro-inspired black vegan leather strappy heels with buttons from Kitten D'Amour for a modicum of height & that Victorian spirit child vibe...

Delicious Meals & Spooky Decor

This Is Halloween

 

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Dress: Taking Shape tulle, satin, embroidered mesh, sequins (altered by me)

Heels: Jo Mercer leather, laces

Face Mask: Fair Dinkum Bargains foam, faux flowers

Prop Flower: Fair Dinkum Bargains plastic, faux flowers

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Following on from my last "spooky season" themed post, I'm sharing my costume from a recent Halloween Party with friends, where I dressed up in a Dia De Los Muertos ensemble, celebrating the famed "Day of the Dead" holiday tradition in Mexico, where families partake in a family reunion, albeit with the deceased ancestors as guests of honour. I chose a stunning red floral embroidered & sequinned mesh fit-t0-flare midi dress with satin & tulle underlay from Taking Shape (black grosgrain ribbon straps chosen by me & added by my amazing seamstress/alterations lady Desley) as the base of the outfit & then added a chunky pair of black leather lace-up heels from Jo Mercer for a modicum of height & some theme-appropriate props from my local Fair Dinkum Bargains store in the form of a skeleton-face-painted foam half-mask with faux flowers & matching faux flower with blood-shot eye to carry with me & complete the look.

Scroll down to see more...

Keep scrolling for a little peek at the "Boo Buckets" that I sent over to some special little munchkins as a Halloween treat...

This is Halloween

 

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Dress: Black Friday via Dangerfield organza, trim

Heels: Jo Mercer leather, laces

Bag: Gift, vintage satin, beading

Headpiece: TK Maxx organza, felt, diamante

Clip: Gift, plastic

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Although Halloween or All Hallows Eve is traditionally an American or English celebration, it really seems to be gaining popularity in Australia in the last few years & as someone who enjoys everything gothic or spooky, I have to admit that I'm actually enjoying the chance to unleash my inner Wednesday Addams for some ghostly good times with family & friends. For a spot of trick or treating & bit of a boogie at our own Halloween Disco with my cousin & her two rambunctious munchkins, I donned a gorgeous specimen jar & erlenmeyer flask print organza puff-sleeve mini dress with woven trim at the neckline from a label called Black Friday that I discovered at my local Dangerfield store & styled it up with a pair of black leather lace-up heels from Jo Mercer for a modicum of height, a vintage black satin beaded handbag that some dear friends gifted me to carry all the essentials with a plastic skeleton hand clip attached for a touch of extra flair & finally, an organza & felt spiderweb & red back spider headpiece with diamante from TK Maxx to complete the look.

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Lollies for any trick-or-treat-ers who happen to darken our doorway...

Having a bit of a boogie to some spooky classics including:

Monster Mash - Bobby Pickett & the Crypt-Kickers (1962)

Man with the Hex - The Atomic Fireballs (1998)

The Witch Queen of New Orleans - Redbone (1971)

Bat Out Of Hell - Meatloaf (1977)

Ghostbusters - Ray Parker Jnr (1984)

Werewolves of London - Warren Zevon (1978)

Thriller - Michael Jackson (1982)

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Earlier that day...

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Dress: Sacha Drake jacquard

Heels: Kitten D'Amour vegan leather

Bag: Kitten D'Amour woven straw, leather, resin

Cuff: Gift, silver

Headpiece: FDB satin, vinyl, styrofoam, faux flowers

Clip: Gift, plastic

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Halloween isn't just for children... Earlier in the day, I headed off to a party in my beloved River City wearing what I like to call a Zombie-1980s-Prom costume featuring this stunning blue spotted jacquard asymmetrical puff sleeved, drop waist mini dress with tie belt from Australian designer Sacha Drake, a pair of black vegan leather dual buckle heels with matching natural woven straw bag with leather clasp & black resin beaded handle from vintage-inspired label Kitten D'Amour, a silver circular cuff that I picked up at some nameless little market stall years & years ago now, a black satin & vinyl headpiece with faux flowers & styrofoam "Day of the Dead" style skulls from my local FDBs (Fair Dinkum Bargains) & that plastic skeleton hand clip, this time pinned to the neckline of the dress.

Keep scrolling for more - including a look at my one of my all-time favourite tote bags from Relove Oxley, one depicting a couple of key scenes/moments from Stanley Kubrick's 1980 masterpiece "The Shining," based on Steven King's amazing 1977 book...