October 2024 Archives

Happy Halloween to all of my readers. Halloween this year is on a Thursday. I love the autumn, so I have spent a few weeks checking out the beautiful and spooky autumn decorations. They start to be released on put up from the end of September. A lot of shops and restaurants or bakeries also serve Halloween or autumn specials. Keep reading on to see the decorations and treats.

My Instagram feed was covered in Halloween specials. I did not get to try to many as I am losing som weight, so I did some window shopping where I could. I cannot remember the below shop, but it was located in Soho. There were pumpkins, bloody hearts, graves, ghosts, bats, and more.

Many shop fronts and restaurants also decorate across the city.

Anabell's always does a Halloween display, but it looks far spookier in the dark as it is illuminated with red and black.

My local ice cream shop also makes ice cream cakes with Halloween themes, such as pumpkins and ghosts and spiders.

I received a gift of the Fortnum and Mason Trick or Treat gift box, which contained similar treats that I received a few years ago in a black hamper.

And a pumpkin marshallow cupcake was one of the treats I had.

With the autumn theme, I had a nice visit to Eastcote House Gardens in one of the last summery days of the year.

Whipped also do Halloween treats, and I bought the candle one this year, but it did not survive the tube journey home. It was rainbow cake inside. I also bought a delicious pumpkin cookie. They are located near Covent Garden.

Also in Seven Dials market is the delicious wheelcakes from Wheelcake Island. They made a pumpkin and custard one.

Of course, people dress up their pets.

Covent Garden is on of my favourite places, and the floral displays never cease to amaze. The autumn colours are the best and so vibrant. 

I took half a day off work today to go to Kensington High Street with my friend and her daugher to do a treasure hunt, and I stopped by a few of the streets to look at the Halloween decorations. 

Including the station itself, complete with antenae eyes.

After returning back from Kensington, I needed to get ready for Halloween in Ruislip. Happy Halloween!

At the end of last week, I visited Quarry Bank, which is an estate owned by the National Trust in Cheshire, and I enjoyed the special Halloween trail. The Halloween trail included a lot of spooky scenery, illuminations, fire, actors dressed up as ghosts, and there was additional entertainment. I visited earlier in the day and saw some of the decorations already, but it really comes to live at dark, and some of the decorations are very spooky.

Before the trail, I had a gin and tonic and dinner at The Ship pub in Styal. This village was built by the owner of the Quarry Bank mill for his workers. He provided them a place to live and work and built the town of Styal. He built shops and pubs, which his workers spent their money on.

The trail started down the hill and wandered around the mill. The first series of spookiness were a few coffins with skeletons hanging out of them.

There were some ghosts or phantoms with lanterns.

One of the tallest trees next to the house was filled with red beams of light, and skeletons were placed around and under these lights.

The smoke stack of the mill was also illuminated with cobwebs.

The skeleton theme continued with bones scattered around a graveyard. It was very spooky.

Across the small river were some friendly settings with pumpkins and scarecrows.

Next up was the spider scenes with cobweb illuminations on the side of the mill.

And a spider tunnel.

Just after the spider tunnel was an area where a performer was showcasing various tricks with fire. This was fun to watch, but it did get very busy.

After that, we headed into the mill and wandered a couple of floors. There were "ghosts" around this area.

On the walk back up the hill, more skeletons in cages (a form of punishment) were hanging. 

I enjoyed the visit to Quarry Bank and the Halloween trail. The only issue we had was that the street performer area was too busy, and the food is nearly at the end of the trail, but they were out of hot chocolate (and it was only one vendor selling hot chocolate). This whole area was too busy, and I think it would have benefit with more food areas, fire pits, and space. 

Sorry for the late timing of this post. This year has flown by and has been so busy that I have struggled to keep up. I wanted to post about some of the things that I did over the summer that I have not yet posted about, and summer has been over for a month now, so it's time I posted this. I felt that I did not get to spend too much time with friends this summer as their lives have been busy. For me, work was also very busy, but it was not quite as bad as last year when I over-worked myself. However, I got rolled off the project I was on at the end of September.

I had a visit for Sunday lunch at pub Ye Olde Green Man near Rickmansworth. I've been before, but Sunday pub roast meals are a novelty as I've ben focusing on losing the weight I put on. I decided to have a treat, and I enjoyed a roast turkey, cocktail, and brownie.

Another meal that I had out was with friends at Zaza Italian restaurant in Ruislip. They recently moved into a new larger building, and we enjoyed doing their Tuesday set menu deals, which come with a bottle of wine. Two guests share a platter of starters, and each guest can choose their own main meal. I also had the lemon tart and pistachio ice cream for dessert.

I was also off to enjoy another Italian meal, this time on my own at Metro Italia in Ruislip. I had garlic bread to start, the pasta, and a dessert. I also had a cocktail, and I enjoyed this.

On one of my trips to London, I stopped at Barnaby Bars and tried their ice cream bar. I originally posted about this chocolate bar company located around the corner of Leicester Square and Covent Garden, but I cannot locate my post now.

I enjoyed some visits to Eastcote House Gardens, but these were very few this year due to work. I visited in the spring and in the summer.

I enjoyed some cuddles with my two Maine Coon cats.

The park land near where I live still has some beautiful wildflowers on it.

I also enjoyed som visits to Covent Garden, and I love seeing the floral displays in the market.

I started to walk more regularly to Ruislip and the lido. I stopped by Beverage Botique in Ruislip on one visit. I've been wanting to visit here for awhile. On my second visit, I brought my friend, and we shared a cocktail and we also went to Hop and Vine, which I'd also been wanting to visit for a few years. My friend visited me in early September.

I also stopped at Anabella's in Ruislip on one of these walks, and I had a cocktail and halloumi starter with Lotus Biscoff French Toast to finish.

This summer, I enjoyed some drinks at Ten in Ruislip Manor, and the dessert was nice too.

In July, it was one of my friends' birthdays, and we went to Prime Steam for bottomless brunch. I had previously been here for my own brunch twice, and you can read about my visit here: Prime Steak and Grill Bottomless Brunch.

After the brunch, we walked down to The Treehouse in Beaconsfield and had a couple of cocktails there, but they were a little expensive.

So we went to the Royal Sacren's Head pub, where they were playing live music. We had more Prosecco, and I ordered a pizza. I was very tired.

In September, we had some flooding due to the heavy rainfall that took place. My hair appointment got cancelled due to the flooding, and the brook had broken the banks in the nearby park and flooded. The pond was also very high and had burst the banks.

Overall, it was a busy summer, and I did not look after myself in the best way. I hope that I am able to do so in the autumn and winter now.

Halloween Lakeside Trail is located near Manchester at Partridge Lakes Fisheries. The trail features a host of spooky characters and lights set amongst the woods and around a lake. I visited it on Thursday night, which was the opening night. Before entering the trail, I enjoyed a tasty hot chocolate and marshmallow s'mores, which were warmed by the fire. The trail is not scary and is perfect for children. There are illuminations, robotic Halloween figures, Halloween decorations and props, food and drink, actors dressd up and interacting, and plenty of places along the way to get photographs.

Before going into the trail, we listened to a video about the objective of the trail, which is geared to children. The children have to find ingredients for a potion to help the witch. We headed through a light tunnel with some Halloween decorations.

We were greeted by friendly-looking ghosts.

I enjoyed the beautiful lights reflecting onto the water.

Next up was the pumpkin and scarecrow portion of the trail.

I met a witch taming a dragon.

We then went through a spider tunnel.

There was a large display of creepy decorations, including many skeletons spread around. Some of the displays were set up for group photographs.

Some illuminations of pumpkins and bats were projected over the lake.

Last up was the witch area.

At the end of the trail were more actors with "magical tricks", who were constructing the potions to help the witch that we learned about at the beginning of the trail.

Overall, this Halloween trail was fun. The nights will be getting darker earlier once the time change happens on Saturday night, and this is a perfect event to help get everyone in the mood for spooky season. Halloween seems to get more popular each year as it is fun to dress up and see the decorations.

Halloween is nearly here, and I love this time of the year even though it means saying goodbye to summer. It is the time of the year to enjoy the last of decent weather before the nights grow longer, and it is the perfect weather to practice some self care and take baths. I enjoy checking out the different seasonal displays and products from companies, such as Lush, and I headed to the Oxford Street store to see what was on offer. (I really wish they'd bring back their Covent Garden store; as a Londoner, I hate going to Oxford Street and Westfield as they are always too busy). Let's check out the Halloween 2024 at Lush products!

I Want My Mummy bath bomb: This pink and white mummy-shaped bath bomb has citrus fragrance, and it fizzes in the bath. It is made from rice starch, which helps soften skin.

Punkin Pumpkin bath bomb: This citrus and cinnamon bath bomb is in the shape of a pumpkin jack'o'lantern (see the above picture).

Ghostie bath bomb: This white bath bomb in the shape of a ghost has pink and blue colours that emerge when in water. The bath bomb has a lemongrass fragrance.

Bob bath bomb: This one was inspired by the "Beetlejuice" film, which is all the rage at the moment. It is a creepy-looking face and creates shimmering water.

Monster Octopus shower jelly: This pink octopus has a sweet scent and helps soothe and soften skin. Blackcurrant, vanilla, passion fruit, and orange blossom are used in the scent.

The Afterlife bath bomb: This green, purple, and black sphere or orb is also inspired by the "Beetlejuice" films. It has a sweet scent with orange and juniperberry, and this one pops in the bath.

Brain Freeze bath bomb: This skull-shaped bath bomb releases vivid blue and purple colours into the water, and it has a mint fragrance.

Bat Art bath bomb: This black bat-shaped bath bomb is photographed above, and it releases pink and blue colours into the bath. It has a citrusy smell.

The Juice is Loose shower gel: This purple shower gel is inspired by "Beetlejuice" the movie and is a sweet scent similar to the "Afterlife bath bomb".

Glow in the Dark shower gel: This shower gel glows in the dark and uses lemon as the main scent.

Pumpkin Crumble bubble bar: This bubble bar is a spicy festive scent with warming feeling, and it is shaped like a pumpkin (see below photo).

Magic Potion bath bomb: This bottle-shaped bath bomb has popping candy and uses mental and mood-stimulating fragrances to help you relax.

Dancing Skeleton bath bomb: This skeleton bath bomb has an orange fragrance that is released in the bath, and the scents help to boost mood.

Enchanted Fairy House bath bomb: This is an unusual one (pictured above) promises to add sparkle to the bath. It is filled with a powder, and the container itself is grapefruit-based. It helps make the skin soft.

Alien bubble bar: This green alien head bath bomb (pictured above) has citrus aroma and promises to moisturise skin.

Never Trust the Living bubble bar: This bubble bar is photographed above and is another product inspired by "Beetlejuice".

The Scream bubble bar: The purple bubble bar has a ghost image on it, and it is pictured above. It is a herbal and earthly scent.

Witchy Wood bubble bar: Pictured above is the green and black swirly bubble bar with a refreshing fragrance.

Bubble Baths: Goldfinder bubble bath: There were several different reusable bubble bath products this year: Goldfinger, Worry Monster, Bonehead, Monster Jay-Hawk, Bubble Bubble Toil and Trouble.

Toil and Trouble Shower slime: Peppermint and lavender make the fragrance for this green product with a bat design on top.

Bubble Lugosi bubble bar: This product is sweet and fruity with blackberry and woody scents. It is shaped like a vampire's face.

Space Girl bath bomb: Grapefruit oil is the prominent scent of this bath bomb, which is shaped like a UFO.

Pumpkin pie soap: Real pumpkin was used along with other fragrances to create a scent. The product is shaped like a jack'o'lantern.

Hocus Pocus Socus bubble bar: The main scent of this bubble bar is lemongrass.

Frankenstein bath bomb: The bath bomb has a fruity scent and is in the shape of Frankenstein's face.

Demon in the Dark Soap: This is a previous product that has been around for years and brought back.

Ghost in the Dark Soap: This ghost soap glows in the dark.

Invaders from Mars bubble bar: This pink and green face has an alien appearance based on 1950s comics.

A friend and I recently visited the Lanes of London at Marriott Hotel Park Lane located at Marble Arch. We were the first people in the venue and had the prime location spot overlooking Park Lane where we could enjoy an indulgant Botanical Afternoon Tea. I had a voucher to use, and this included the afternoon tea with a glass of Prosecco. The afternoon tea was inspird by the late Queen Elizbeth II with a teapot, handbag, and hat, and it also had a British icon, the telephone box.

I ordered the vegan or vegetarian sandwiches while my friend had the standard. The sandwiches were small pastries or tarts, but visitors could not order bottomless sandwiches like are offered in some places.

My favorite of the sweets was the handbag, which was a light and fruity dessert. The hat was chocolate, and the phone box was Battenburg cake. The teapot was a type of mousse.

Earlier today, I headed over to Ruislip Duck Pond Market, which is held on the first and third Sundays of each month. The market brings local craft and food manufacturer's together for the community, food trucks, and hosts community events from time to time. Today, a Halloween Dog Show was hosted with a dog parade and prizes for the cutest, scariest, or funniest costumes. The weather was not the best with slight rain, but it could have been worse. I walked around with a friend and enjoyed visiting the various market stalls and seeing all of the Halloween costumes.

After watching the dog parade, I bought some chocolate and cookies had a look at the crafts and other items for sale. I also bought some chilli sauce, lunch, and Bombay Mix. I previously visited this market when it was last on two weeks ago so I did not need much.

Previous posts covering Duck Pond Market can be read below:

Brunch at Anabella's in Ruislip
Ruislip "Summer of 1939" Vintage Car Show
Easter in Ruislip (Easter Eggs & Duck Pond Markets)
Ruislip Lido and Ruislip Lido Railway
Old Barn and Manor House (Ruislip Castle)

UK-based street artist Peachzz created a large mural in the middle of Worcester in 2023 for a street art event. The artist enjoys the circus, so the circus performer has been painted onto a large wall. The title of the piece is "Balance". I photographed the artwork in August of this year.

I've covered this artist's work before in Penge and on South Bank, and the previous posts can be seen here:

• Bankside Frost Fair and Street Art

• Street Art Collaboration: Morgasmik and Peachzz in Penge

Street artist JimmyC is an Australian street artist who has painted in London for the past fifteen years, and his work is created using several small dots or streaks of colour. The artist mainly paints portraits. His work has appeared across London, and in this post, I cover a couple of his murals. One of the murals is located in Hackney, and the other one is located near High Street Kennsington. Both murals were painted in 2022.

The first mural was painted on Mare Street in Hackney, and it was painted with different "languages of love"; in each of the orbs, a different language for the word "love" is translated.

The second mural was painted in High Street Kennsington and Earls Court area and includes a cat.

More artwork by JimmyC that I have posted about in this blog are:

JimmyC on Hanbury Street Collaboration
Zabou and JimmyC Collaboration "Self Reflection"
JimmyC Street Art - Spring
JimmyC Paints "Vaccine Nation" Street Art in Shoreditch
London Cityscape at Blackfriars by JimmyC
JimmyC Swan Street Art by Borough Market
JimmyC Updates South Bank Shakespeare Mural
JimmyC Paints Wall of Hearts to Honour Victims of Borough Market Attack
JimmyC Paints "Royal Wedding" Mural for St. Christopher's Place
Mick's Hands
'Open the Mind'
JimmyC Redchurch Street Heart
JimmyC Paints Shakespeare on South Bank
Street Artist JimmyC Paints Caledonian Road
RIP David Bowie & An Afternoon in Brixton
New Mural in Ever-Changing Shoreditch by JimmyC
New 'Spring Offering' Mural by Bailon and Sliks (JimmyC, Zadok Sonar Uno)
New JimmyC Mural on Joe's Kid (Cafe), Fashion Street
JimmyC Street Art - New Inn Yard, Brick Lane, Hackney Road
New Street Art by JimmyC
Street Art: JimmyC

The annual Frieze Sculpture returned to Regent's Park for 2024 toward the end of September with the sculptures in place until the middle of November. Frieze Sculpture in Regent's Park is in its thirteenth year this year; they are displayed to coincide with the Frieze Art Fair in October. I visited and enjoyed seeing the different range of sculptures this year. The sculptures are free to visit.

Theaster Gates - The Duet

Leonora Carrington - The Dancer

Yoshitomo Nara - Ennui Head

Frances Goodman - Pillar

Celine Condorelli - After Work

Hans Josephsohn - Untitled

Nika Neelova - Crude Hints

Kirstine Roepstorff - Lightning Rod

Libby Heany - Non-Earthly Delights. This sculpture was interactive with an app.

Nathan Coley - I don't have another land

Juliana Cerqueira Leit - 'Shovel, Button, and Sand'

Inci Eviner - Materials of Mind Theatre

Albano Hernandez - The Shadow

Anna Boghiguian - Sea and Earth

Fani Parali - AONYA and DREPAN. This work is interactive in that people can stand on the podiums and give a performance.

Theresa Chromati - Steadfast, Step Into Me

Woody De Othello - Seeing Both Sides

Mohamed Ahmed Ibrahim - The Form

Mohamed Ahmed Ibrahim - The Ghaf Tree

This wraps it up for Frieze Sculpture in Regent's Park for 2024. For previous years, see my posts below:

Frieze Sculpture 2023
Frieze Sculpture 2022
Frieze Sculpture 2021
Frieze Sculpture 2020
Frieze Sculpture 2019
Frieze Sculpture 2018
Frieze Art Fair 2017

Dudmaston Hall is a mansion in Shropshire, England dating from the 17th century. Although it is maintained by the National Trust, the hall is still a family home. The relatives of the family that owned the house still live at the estate, and the estate is only open to visitors on specific dates and times. It is also known for its collection of modern art and sculptures by Henry Moore and Barbara Hepworth as well as Spanish paintings. I visited Dudmaston Hall and estate at the end of August. Visitors to the estate can explore some of the open rooms of the house, walk in the landscaped gardens and parkland, and visit the shop or cafes.

The estate belonged to the Wolryche family since 1403, and the medieval house was replaced by this 16th century hall, which was modelled aftr Belton House (another National Trust property in Lincolnshire). The hall was lived in by William Whitmore politician and Charles Babbage computing pioneer.

Before entering the house, which is set at timed entries, I visited the parkland and gardens. 

There are some sculptures by Anthony Twentyman in the garden, and one of these is "The Blade".

The landscape dips into a lake at the bottom of the house.

Another sculpture by Anthony Twentyman in the grounds looks over the lake, and it is called "The Watcher", which fits into the surroundings.

Another sculpture by the artist is called "Spaceframe" and took three months to construct.

I continued to explore the grounds of the house.

Once my time to visit the house had come, I went inside. The house is lived in by the Hamilton-Russell family, so there are their personal items and photographs displayed around the home.

The entrance hall contains a long table which was once in the servant's hall, and there are rooms off of the hall to a small office and to a hallway with other rooms. There were several paintings to see in the entrance hall.

Below is the small office or study room off the entrance hall. 

In the hallway off of the entrance hall are the stairs up as well as an area with a Blue John Stone vase and family photographs.

The below room is the library, which was created from splitting two rooms.

There are views out over the lake and grounds.

The Oak Room is decorated as the rest of the hall would have originally been decorated with wood panels, and it contains old family photographs and paintings.

Upstairs are some bedrooms and bathrooms open to visitors.

The hall contains a small museum dedicated to the fans and the art of fans. These fans were used by women to "talk" to men and other women through a series of motions. The fans are all different with some more ellaborate than others and were made to match the outfit.

There was another room containing vintage items and then the rooms dedicated to art, such as the Spanish paintings. 

Dudmaston Hall was quite busy during my visit, and this was my first visit to the National Trust property.

For the second time this year, the northern lights have lit up the skies in London, much further south than they have been in the past. This was the second glimpse of the northern lights that I saw over London this year with the first having taken place in the middle of May on the same day of the month as the show overnight and into this morning. (Readers can read about the May northern lights over London here.) Last night, the northern lights were much stronger in colour and were almost overhead with a large portion of sky filled with reds and greens. 

The northern lights were beautiful, and seeing them for a second time this year was a treat.

When I was in Bridgnorth in Shropshire at the end of August, I discovered a few painted sculptures of locomotives around the town, and I photographed a few of these. The sculptures are of a locomotive called "Catch-Me-Who-Can", which was designed locally by a mining engineer named Trevithick. There were several sculptures placed in 2020 of this locomotive around the town over a two mile walk. Although not all of the sculptures are in place, several of them remain both in the lower town and the upper town, but I could not locate a map. When the trail was launched and until the end of summer last year, there seemed to be thirteen sculptures in total.

The sculptures were displayed by the community for the town for heritage appreciation.

Brand Bird and Blend are a brand who creates flavoured blended tea, and they have recently created an autumn collection, Cosy Collection, with some of their autumn tea and chai flavours. I recently ordered the collection, which came in an autumnal decorated box "Let's get cosy". The box is filled with all things autumn. The box came with the following items:

In the collection, I received a golden tea measuring spoon and a tea infuser with an orange lid. I also received some flavoured chai, loose leaf tea, and matcha tea. Spiced Pumpkin Pie was on of the loose leaf traditional teas. I received two matcha pots, Spiced Pumpkin Pie Matcha and Toffee Apple Matcha. I also received Baby Spice and Apple Cider Bobbing loose leaf caffeine-free tea and Spiced Pumpkin Pie and a new Bonfire Toffee Sticky Chai loose leaf.

The packaging comes with autumn colours and illustrations. 

Street artist Ben Eine is a popular street artist from London, but he now lives in the USA, and he has created a lot of street art across London using his typeface style for the past twenty years or more. One of his most recent murals in London is painted on Old Street and is inspired by Princess Diana. The work reads "You're a Luxury" and features a neon typeface. This is always a difficult wall to photograph due to the elongated wall broken with trees.

Last night, I went with friends to Hertfordshire Oktoberfest in Watford to enjoy the atmosphere and a couple of drinks. It was made more special by dressing up in Oktoberfest outfits, and we all put in an effort with the dressing up and having a good time. We listened to traditional German music along with some modern music by a singer and German drinking songs and my friends had beers, but I had a glass of wine. The majority of the event was inside a tent, but there were a couple of food trucks outside, one ride, and a couple of axe-throwing areas. 

Before we headed out to the venue, we had some drinks at one friend's house and ended up to their closest pub, the Middlesex Arms in South Ruislip. The pub was decorated for Halloweeen, and I enjoyed the sunshine of the day. We sat outside to have some drinks.

We attracted a lot of attention as we were all dressed up.

When we got to Oktoberfest in Watford, the sun was setting.

Beers were ordered, and these came in the two-pint glasses.

We listened to the German band, which reminded me of my visit a couple of weeks ago to the official Oktoberfest, Oktoberfest in Munich.

I started to feel a little hungry, so I got some fried chicken in a chili sauce.

I never post photographs of myself on here, but I liked the photograph.

Cheers! Oans, zwoa, drei, Gsuffa! But most had not been to Oktoberfest (Munich, Germany), so not many knew to drink after the Ein Prosit song countdown. Raise the glass and drink a good quality of the contents of the glass.

I don't know what happened with my camera when the below photograph was being taken, but I thought it was cool to include it.

We had fun, but we would have preferred more rides, food options, and. I was hoping for a pretzel, but there was no luck. I think more rides and food and other attractions would have made it a lot better, and we did not care for the singer on her own, but the German band was good.

Welcome to my summer 2024 edition of empty beauty and skin-care products that I have used up this summer. The purpose of this post is that I wanted to post products that I used up to help me remember which ones I would purchase again, and it may help others with deciding which products to purchase too.

Clinique Super City Block: This is a daily sun cream that can be used underneath foundation but also suits as a foundation as well, but I always wore it underneath. Would I buy it again? No, I have gone off of this brand some time ago and am just using up the product, which lasted so long. The product is a bit thick and feels oily, and I prefer something that doesn't sit on my skin. It isn't the best with warmer weather as I found it ran and was easy to sweat whilst using it.

Afternoon Apple Picking Hand Soap from Bath & Body Works: This autumn scent smells like an apple orchard and fresh apples. Would I buy it again? Yes. I love the brand, and I love the scent.

Foot Moisture Pack: Wearing these foot moisture socks is meant to increase the moisture in feet and remove dead skin. Would I buy it again? No, I have tried a few brands and it didn't really make my feet feel any different.

Cow Shed Horny Cow Body Lotion: This sample of body lotion had a seductive warming scent perfect for bed time. Would I buy it again? No, I just don't like the way body lotion feels on my skin and has an oily thick texture.

Joik Lavendar Bath Truffles: These bath truffles add moisture to the bath as well as release a lavender scent. Would I buy it again? No, I just did not think this product was for me, but it was not a bad product.

Philip Kingsley Body Building shampoo and conditioner: The shampoo and conditioner promises to add volume to hair. Would I buy it again? No, I did not find that it worked.

Marks and Spencer Summer Daze perfume: This perfume is in a travel size and reminds me of late summer, and I liked the scent. Would I buy it again? This was an old product that I used up this summer, and I would not purchase it again as it did not have longevity.

Botanicals Beautiful Hands: This moisturising hand lotion promotes conditioning of hands and nails. Would I buy it again? No, the product felt too oily for me.

YSL Forever Young Liqudiator: This is a primer that promotes a youthful appearance to skin when used on the face and under the eyes. Would I buy it again? No, I did not see the benefits of the product.

Charlotte Tilbury Glow Toner: This sample size of primer promotes fresh and youthful skin and helps minimize the appearance of poors. Would I buy it again? Yes, I liked that the product was absorbed into skin and felt that it did minimize pores and wake up my skin.

Molton Brown shampoo, conditioner, shower gel: These sample sizes of Molton Brown products are good for travel, and this brand creates nice scents that do last awhile. Would I buy it again? I would not purchase the shampoo nor conditioner, but the shower gel and soap is good, but I don't need to purchase any of that until I use up what I have.

Balmi lip balm: These travel sized lip balms by Balmi were all the rage several years ago and looked attractive in square-shaped cases. I got the melon flavour. Would I buy it again? I felt that the balm was a little too thick for my liking, and I found the box was sticky and I didn't like the feeling of it when I touched it, so I would not buy it again.

Anna Sui Secret Wish perfume: I was a fan of Anna Sui perfumes, especially "Flight of Fancy" being my favourite. I purchased this one to try the scent, which is a fruity and floral tone. The bottle comes with a fairy perched on top. Would I buy it again? I would not purchase the product again because it wasn't my favourite scent.

The White Company Flowers Shower gel: I like this brand, and the shower gel named "Flowers" has a crisp and floral scent. Would I buy it again? I like the brand, but I have enough shower gel, and I wouldn't buy shower gel from this company as it is expensive for what it is.

Japanese bath powder (daruma doll): This bath powder is a red colour and made to bring good luck, and it is also good for skin and contains snake gourd plant extract. Would I buy it again? Yes, I loved the scent and the fine powder, which lasted in my bath for a long time.

Votary facial oil Head Your Skin: This facial oil promises to heal and repair skin as well as keep moisture, and it is a cult product. Would I buy it again? I would not purchase it again as it felt too sticky on my face.

Lush Ultrabland Facial Cleanser: I purchased this product to cleanse skin and remove make-up. Would I buy it again? No, I did not like the product at all. It was very oily and did not cleanse my skin.

Penhaligan's Juniper Sling shower gel: This shower gel is the Juniper Sling scent. Would I buy it again? No, I wouldn't purchase shower gel from this brand as it is too expensive and I have brands I perfer, but it is a nice scent.

Bath and Body Works Champagne Toast body spray and shower gel: I like this brand of scents, and I received these products in a small size as a gift. Would I buy it again? No, i wouldn't purchase the scent again although it was nice, but I prefer their other scents. I also find that the body sprays do not last long.

I Love Makeup Lip Lava: This purple lip gloss glides on and has colour that lasts long, even though the gloss was not long lasting. Would I buy it again? I would not purchase this colour, but I would try a berry shade.

Penhaligan's perfume - Halfetti and Orange Blossom: These two scents I received in an advent calendar, and I have used these for travel. Would I buy it again? I like some of the scents from this brand, but I find that they do not have longevity, so I would not purchase again.

Lush Sticky Dates body scrub and dream cream: One of the samples is a body scrub, and the other is a conditioner cream. The body scrub smelled delicious, and the cream was absorbed into skin. Would I buy it again? I would purchase the body scrub again once I am in the need for one, but I have a few other products to get through first.

Penhaligan's perfume - The Ingenious Cousin Flora: This is a floral and playful scent. Would I buy it again? I like some of the scents from this brand, but I find that they do not have longevity, so I would not purchase again.

Crayon Touch Me lip gloss: This lip gloss adds a slight colour to lips and a good shine. Would I buy it again? I would not purchase it again, and I could not get the remaining product out of the container, even after turning it upside down.

ESPA overnight hydration therapy: This product is an overnight facial cream. Would I buy it again? I did enjoy the product as it did absorb into skin and had a pleasant scent. I would consider purchasing it again.

Trene Forte day and night creams: I received these sample products from a hotel, and there was day cream and a night cream. Would I buy it again? I liked the products, but I have other ones to use up.

Th Dark Arts Potion Bar is located in Southampton. It is an immersive bar experience with themed magical drinks. They have escape rooms and potion making as well as other events, but I visited here with a friend for some drinks. I really liked the attention to detail in this bar, and the staff kept in character.

Now up for the cocktails. We ordered the following: The Love Potion comes in a heart-shaped glass with a rose and heart candies.

Jun Bubble is the take on the June Bug cocktail.

Pornstar Pixie came in a glass shaped like a nude woman, and this was served with butterflies.

Tipsy Witch came with a cauldron of sweets, and it was a sweet and sour cocktail.

A lot of quirky magical and wizard items were on display around the pub. 

I was interested in the potion making and puzzels, but this will have to wait for another time.

Overall, this is th perfect Halloween experience. I visited the pub at the end of July when I was in Southampton.

Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama is known for her polka-dot pattern artwork featuring pumpkins and "infinity rooms", and her work is photogenic and popular. A new sculpture designed by her is now located at Liverpool Street, and this is her first permanent sculpture in the UK and her largest one in the world. The work shows a series of orbs connected together and twisting into different patterns and shapes. Visitors can walk amongst the sculpture.

The sculpture was funded for Crossrail Art Programme for the Elizabeth Line, London's newest tube line which serves Liverpool Street. Due to the new line, Liverpool Street is the busiest station in London and served by rail and multiple lines.

I saw an exhibition by artist Yayoi Kusama a few years ago, and you can see additional photographs of her work here: Yayoi Kusama "The Moment When I Went Into the Universe".

When I visited Worcester a couple of months ago, I came across an American restaurant called Hickory's, and I decided to have dinner here. Hickory's is a "smokehouse", and they also have cocktails and American food. I tried a couple of cocktails and the grape soda, which I love; grape soda is rare to find. 

I ordered cornbread to start. This was followed by the smoked chicken and onion rings. The chicken had a nice flavour, and the meat was tender.

I also had a dessert, which was an ice cream sundae.

Afterwards, I walked back through the park and saw this poppy sculpture.

The restaurant gets busy, but I arrived early, so getting a table was not too big of an issue. The restaurant is popular with families. The restaurant make your day special if celebrating a birthday or any special day.