Flaming good ideas

I have no idea if you’ve already decided what you’ll wear for Halloween, and even if you have your costume all lined up, these tutorials are pretty cool. Use them as inspiration for the next convention you want to attend if Halloween isn’t your thing.

I give you Cora from Vintage Or Tacky with a Hunger Games inspired make up tutorial

From xxMichaelJames a Marilyn Manson inspired look

And lastly for today we have Julia from MissChievous.tv with a sexy pirate look

I’m loving the research for these blogs, because I get to see some of the most amazing tutorials with some incredibly interesting people.

More very soon.

Halloween in Australia, too hot to handle

I don’t know exactly when or where I learned about the concept of Halloween, probably through American situation comedies such as Full House and The Cosby Show. I don’t think we even saw someone in costume begging for lollies until I was 10 years old. Yeah, that was a few years ago now.

When that first knock sounded and it looked like we were expected to give up our hard earned Cadbury chocolate, Mum and I just shook our heads, and claimed we didn’t have any. Afterwards we looked at each other and knew this was the beginning of the end. Australia now cared more about traditions based in other countries than our own.

Things petered off a fair bit for a long time after that first year, since nobody in my neighbourhood gave those kids more than a stern talking to about patriotism and the dangers of devil worship. ~It was a small country town~

So after I moved to Brisbane I was a little shocked to see the numbers of kids wandering the streets after dark begging for lollies, and even more agog once my daughter started school, at the numbers of Halloween parties that were happening behind closed doors.

Hubby talks tough every year and gets irritated that something that’s supposed to be, in effect, a day of respect for deceased loved ones, has been turned into a way for kids to get away with vandalism and black mail their neighbours into giving them lollies… ‘or else.’ We were left the lovely gift of a dozen broken eggs on the front of our house a few years ago and ever since, he’s dutifully picked up that extra bag of bounties (worst chocolate bar ever) so if we get the knock, we’re prepared.

Now this all makes me sound like a big ol’ scrooge when it comes to Halloween. But I’m really not much more than an over protective parent, who doesn’t share her lollies with ANYONE!

I do dress up every year in my own home, even though it’s usually hotter than hell by October 31st. I gorge on chocolate… (hey, that’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it) and I am impressed at the effort people go to when dressing up. However since I don’t share my chocolate EVER, I’d rather see the effort put into Supanova than have you on my front doorstep with threats of vandalism.

If you want to stick with the true traditions of Halloween, light a candle, place it in a carved out turnip and share happy memories of your loved ones who have passed. The Scotts have been doing as such since 1895.

So now that I’ve ousted myself as the biggest party pooper ever, stay tuned for some other points of view on Halloween, make up tips and costuming ideas.

Happy Halloween everyone!

Welcome to another episode of Liiiiiife with Liiiisa!! Hosted by Lisa herself!

Thank you, thank you!

We all know that the holidays are coming up fast, and that means, delicious food, family and friends, fun, gifts, decorations, and so much more! I LOVE the summer, I love laying out in the middle of the day reading a book, with my two dogs right next two me, enjoying the warm sun, and just being outside. But I also really enjoy the fall and winter time! There is so much to look forward to, and this month I’m letting you in on all the things I have planned, with the fall, Halloween and my birthday coming up!

(And this post itself, is just to let you know of the fun things and Life with Lisas coming up!)

Usually I wouldn’t plan out all the things I do, because usually they’re just a spur of the moment. But this year I did, so I could share with you guys, and maybe give you a few ideas for the holidays (:

So here are the posts and what I hope to include in each:

-Trick or Treating/Costume (The meaning of Halloween, Trick or Treating, and Costume Ideas)

-Haunted House (Haunted Houses and possibly Pumpkin Patches, I plan on going to)

-Carving Pumpkins/Decorating (Pumpkin purchasing, carving, designs, and decorating my back porch!)

-Baking/Goodies (3 Dessert Recipes, possibly goodie bags!)

–My Birthday (Anything! My cake, dinner, gifts, what my family, friends and boyfriend has planned, etc)

I hope you’ll be joining me in this crazy busy month, and maybe get a few ideas from these next few Life with Lisa segments! If you have any other ideas, for posts, or things I could add to posts, please let me know down in the comments!

October is here and if you go to high school you know what that means…Football and Homecoming! It doesn’t matter if you have a date to Homecoming or not, just go, have fun, and dance!! Here’s a simple check-list and a few ideas, for any girl planning on going to Homecoming!

Dress: There are tons of dresses, in all colours, sizes and price ranges! I recommend going shopping early to get the best selection. I know dress shopping can be difficult and frustrating, but keep calm, and try on as many dresses as possible. That way you’ll know what you want and what you don’t want in a dress.

Shoes: Shoes are the second most important thing about your entire look, it pulls everything together! But what kind of shoes should you wear? Heels? Flats? Well, if you’ve never wore any heels, I would recommend either flats or small heels. You’re going to be dancing you behind off, you don’t want to ruin the fun with not being able to walk or your feet hurting and blistering.

Accessories: Are another large part of your outfit. If you want a statement piece, wear a big necklace, or big earrings. If you want to keep things simple, wear studs and a small meaningful chain! Accessories are perfect to fancy up a plain dress!

Hair: Have fun or just keep it simple, it’s up to you! You could straighten or curl it or even do something different like this!

Make-up: The biggest tip I can give you, is don’t wait til the last minute to think of or do your make up. Decide what you want to do ahead of time, and practice!

Nails: I recommend doing something cute with your nails. You can get them done, do them at home, make them match your dress, or even have them stand out by making them a different colour. As long as you have something done with them, it will really take your look to the next level!

And lastly, Shaving and Scent: You’ll have a short dress on, you want to have smooth and silky legs, especially when taking pictures! And you’ll be on the dance floor all night, its important to wear some deodorant, and stay smelling fresh!

Exams are here again

QCS is finished for our grade 12 students in Queensland, but there are 4 other grades (and 7 other states and territories) that have another term of end of year exams.

Here are some tips ~some I wish I had followed~ to get you into gear and surviving the potentially stressful situation of exam season.

Drink water, eat well – Your brain is like an engine, it needs the proper fuel and lubricant to work at its full potential. Skip the junk food for nutritious healthy foods if you’re able to, and water is better than coffee to drink, because coffee and tea are diuretics, creating dehydration.

Gradual study is better than cramming – Burning the midnight oil to cram as much information into your brain at the last possible second isn’t really as effective as you might think. You’re better off doing small bursts of revision work for months in advance than you are making yourself dead tired at the final stretch. You are more likely to have better recall with a good night’s sleep.

Focus on something else – Once you’ve done your gradual study and the exams are looming, remember to avoid a single-minded approach to the coming events. Take a little time to do something else that will hopefully get you out of the house and into some fresh air and include movement to generate some endorphins and create some happiness. Stress doesn’t help anyone to remember the answers.

You can only do as well as you can – Once you have prepared yourself with revision and a healthy lifestyle, the rest of it is up to your frame of mind on the day. Breathe well, think positively, and know you have done the best you can up to this point.

No matter what happens there are always options – Waiting for the postman at the end of your schooling career would have to be one of the most emotionally wrenching days you will have to live through in your teenage years.

Your OP (overall position) is NOT the be-all and end-all of your life.  It may be a number that isn’t as good as you would like, and it may mean you have to take a longer journey to get to where you want to go. If you really want to do something, the journey to get there is part of the prize of reaching your goal. The people and experiences are there to enrich your life and to give you perspective come the final success.

If things are getting too much, TALK to someone. – You are not alone and you are worth the time.

Lifeline 13 11 14 (and on Facebook)

Kids Help Line 1800 55 1800 (and on Facebook) ~ Success is 99% hard work and 1% opportunity. Grab onto every opportunity with both hands and run with it. ~