Reviewing Chocolate Smoothies

Enjoying your chocolate is easy when you make it into a smoothie. Yes, I have gotten into smoothies lately. And since I can't not have chocolate as part of my day, a chocolate smoothie sounded great. So I went searching for the best recipes.

We'll start with the basic, high calorie, indulgent kind. Then move through some of the great options to make your chocolate smoothie healthy and nutritional beneficial.

Basic Chocolate Smoothie, or Dessert Time

It's Food.com that has the easiest and best basic recipe for a chocolate smoothie. Ice, yogurt and chocolate syrup all blended together.

Go even a step further to make the basic recipe into a full chocolate dessert. Instead of yogurt, add in ice cream. This chocoholic made a "Death by Chocolate" smoothie with chocolate ice cream, instant chocolate pudding mix and chocolate syrup. Delicious and high calorie.

Healthy Chocolate Smoothie

Get Lecithin here

The good thing about smoothies is that you can easily convert them from dessert style to nutritious style with just a few ingredients. SmoothieWeb has a yummy recipe for an Almond Joy chocolate smoothie. Not made with those candy bars, but with plenty of coconut and chocolate. The way this recipe is made, you end up with a healthy protein smoothie.

They also feature a great recipe called Help Me Study Smoothie. Besides chocolate, it includes strawberries, peanut butter and lecithin. Lecithin is a brain boosting nutrient that every cell in our body needs.

Power Chocolate Smoothies

So far, we have been talking about simple smoothies with few ingredients. But it's time to go with the power versions of chocolate smoothies. Healthy Smoothie HQ offers up recipes for more elaborate ingredients and more nutrient-rich results. 

One of my favorites is Chocolate Blueberry Spirulina Smoothie. This one is chock full of plenty of those superfoods that we can all benefit from. Not only cacao (which is the chocolate part), blueberries and spirulina (a complete protein with plenty of other nutrients), but also avocado and tahini. 

The good part about healthy smoothies is that you can basically put in any ingredients you want to end up with a powerfully nutritious and filling drink. Even if the name ends up as not truly telling what's in it, like Sexy Chocolate Smoothie, you can still enjoy the great benefits.




Posted by: BuckHawk

About This Contributor

BuckHawk decribes herself as "Basically a lazy person who prefers the easy things in life." So that's what she writes about. Easy home decorating, easy recipes, easy entertaining. But, she is also a lover of animals, gardening and crafting. You'll find her writing all over the Web, but with Review This Reviews! she has the opportunity to write about all of her loves.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Reviewing Easy Pumpkin Carving Pages

Looking for last minute fun things to do for Halloween? How about easy pumpkin carving? The stores are still filled with pumpkins and you certainly have knives in your kitchen that can work great for carving. All you need are ideas for some interesting looks to carve. That's what Review This has for you today.

Pumpkin Carving Stencils

A Creative Desktop came up with some easy and fun printable stencils. All free, of course. Along

with instructions for how to print and use the stencils, this site gives you unlimited access to them. You are free to modify and alter them to suit your own tastes and needs.

Not just 40 different designs, but many funny faces as well. Be sure to click through to Page 2 to see lots more. There are some fun stencils, including a flying witch, a Star Wars Storm Trooper and the Ghostbusters logo. You are sue to find at least a few that you can try your own pumpkin carving talent on.

Carving Fun Pumpkins

More pumpkin carving fun comes from a page out of Better Homes and Garden. A simple trio of cute faces make up this page. All are easy for just about anyone to do. With these designs, the carving did not go all the way through the pumpkin. Instead, you have just the outer skin cut. Be sure to get a little paint to fill in the carving so you can get the bright contrast in color. Just like it shows in the image at the top of this page.

Free Stencils for Pumpkin Carving

Talk about fun and cute designs, Readers Digest online offers us some of those great easy stencils. They include some eerie faces, but also those darling emoticons just for fun.

My idea for this year when the grandgirls arrive for our Halloween fest is to have several different sizes. I'll let them pick out a stencil each, but I want to do this "how me?" goofy face myself.

A full 28 free designs are available for you to download and print. And all are fun and easy to do.

Posted by: BuckHawk

About This Contributor

BuckHawk decribes herself as "Basically a lazy person who prefers the easy things in life." So that's what she writes about. Easy home decorating, easy recipes, easy entertaining. But, she is also a lover of animals, gardening and crafting. You'll find her writing all over the Web, but with Review This Reviews! she has the opportunity to write about all of her loves.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Halloween Sandwiches: Part IV of Halloween Recipes on Review This!

This year's Halloween celebration will be just a bit different than I normally have. I'm doing a sandwich spread for some of my family. Therefore I needed some good options for great Halloween sandwiches. And did I find some. Children and adults will be included in this event which means recipes appropriate for both.

Finger sandwiches from Pillsbury

Halloween Finger Sandwiches, Literally

Finger sandwiches are always worth doing and at Halloween we have sandwiches that look like fingers. I love this recipe, it's easy and adjustable for any variety of ingredients. Pillsbury came up with idea and uses meats, but I want to do a vegetarian version.

That turned out to be easy, by just replacing the meats with cheeses and vegetables in the sandwich and using triangles of red pepper instead of the pepperoni for the fingernails. Yep, simple.

Coffin Sandwiches

Coffin Sandwiches from Kraft

Kraft Foods came up with a cute idea as well. Coffin sandwiches are prefect for a fun Halloween treat. The easy part is cutting the shapes. Kraft even gives a template for the coffin shape. A sharp bread knife is a must for this. Getting the shape to come out makes a big difference.

The hard part is deciding on the sandwich fillers. Many, many options can work. With the kids involved, peanut butter and jelly will one of the choices, but I also like the idea of fillers such as egg salad and cream cheese spreads (www.whimsicalteapotsandcups.com/recipes/cucumber-dill-spread).

Personally, I love the idea of adding the R. I. P. onto the top of the sandwiches. Kraft suggests using decorating gel, mustard, even ketchup. Be careful about stacking coffin sandwiches with the message. You need to keep those with a message from sitting under another sandwich.

Halloween Cookie Cutters

Halloween Sandwich Cutters

When you want to make interesting shaped Halloween sandwiches, you can easily use a cookie cutter. Wilton has a fun set that includes that coffin shape for finger sandwiches. But, I also love the idea of the bat for some fun food additions.

Mummy Pizzas

Let us not forget pizza, one of those family food staples. Mummy pizzas are crazy easy to do. And you can add any and all pizza ingredients that you want. The trick is to layer thin slices of white cheese on top to create the mummy wrappings. Then add two slices of pitted black olives to make the eyes.

Food.com gives us a fun option using English Muffins for the pizza dough. Any crust style that you like will work out perfect for mummy pizzas. This is the time for you to use your favorite crust and your favorite ingredients.

Getting ready for Halloween, whether a big party, or a fun family dinner like mine, Halloween sandwiches make an easy menu option. There's plenty of choices for both kids and grown-ups alike. Review This has more Halloween recipes, too. See our appetizers, desserts and beverages to round out your Halloween menu.

Posted by: BuckHawk

About This Contributor

BuckHawk decribes herself as "Basically a lazy person who prefers the easy things in life." So that's what she writes about. Easy home decorating, easy recipes, easy entertaining. But, she is also a lover of animals, gardening and crafting. You'll find her writing all over the Web, but with Review This Reviews! she has the opportunity to write about all of her loves.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Halloween Desserts - Part II of Halloween Recipes on Review This!

Halloween party planning is in full swing. As part of our series for Halloween Recipes on Review This Reviews, I now feature dessert recipes for the fun of Halloween. And I found some for those amazingly creepy and ghoulish parties, as well as for those charming fun parties.

A Creepy Looking Snake Cake

This one, I just couldn't resist. Snakes are the one animal that really creep me out. That means a snake cake is perfect for a Halloween party dessert. Not only does this look incredibly real, but it will delight you guests with how good it is when you can actually break down and cut the cake.

The snake cake tutorial is from Sylvestermouse, so we know the instructions are easy to follow and the tips are perfect to make sure we can duplicate the look. She is always so careful about that. But, she did more than just this scary and perfect-for-Halloween-desserts snake cake.

 Halloween Ghost Castle Cake

Sylvestermouse has a great talent for creating unique and interesting cakes. Her Halloween Ghost Castle Cake is ideal for those parties that feature the fun side of Halloween. Charming, sweet and completely edible, this ghostly castle makes a wonderful centerpiece for your party table.

This Ghost Castle Cake would also make a perfect addition to the kids' school parties. Can't you just picture the children's faces of delight when you bring that cake into their party? 

And believe me, you can make this cake yourself! I know because I've done it. I followed Sylvestermouse's instructions carefully and it turned out perfect. So enjoy a little of the fun side of Halloween, too.

Ghoulish Chocolate Candy Molds 

As long as you are preparing fun stuff for your Halloween buffet, try adding in some brain candies, skull and cross bones shapes or even a few chocolate spiders. Halloween candy molds are easy to use to create some extra little desserts for your party guests. 

My favorite trick is to tuck some of these chocolate candies around and under the dessert platters and cake stands on my buffet table. Yes, I can creep out my guests with the spiders, but that's part of the fun of a Halloween party. 

(www.web-surfing-with-susan.com/halloween-candy-molds)

Spooky Spider Cupcake

No Halloween dessert review would be complete without cupcakes. Thanks to CherylFay, we have some spooky spider cupcakes for you. Of course, she makes it easy to follow her great tutorial. And these are easy to do. Using both Oreo cookies and M & M candies you end up with a perfect treat for just about anyone.

These cupcakes would make a great addition to your Halloween buffet table. Set them up on a cake plate stand so they add visual appeal to your table. Then stand back and watch your guests enjoy themselves. 

More Halloween Recipe Reviews

Be sure to check out more of the Halloween Recipe Review series. We started with Appetizers that will delight your guests. Some truly creepy and some just for fun. Keep a watch as we prepare you for the best Halloween party!

Posted by: BuckHawk

About This Contributor

BuckHawk decribes herself as "Basically a lazy person who prefers the easy things in life." So that's what she writes about. Easy home decorating, easy recipes, easy entertaining. But, she is also a lover of animals, gardening and crafting. You'll find her writing all over the Web, but with Review This Reviews! she has the opportunity to write about all of her loves.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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National Cookbook Month Continues with Chocolate

Delicious Chocolate Cookbooks

As we continue to celebrate National Cookbook Month on Review This, we go on to Chocolate Cookbooks. After all, if we're going to celebrate cookbooks, you just can't leave out the fabulous dessert ones.

It was a joy to review 4 different chocolate cookbooks for the website Completely Chocolate. (www.completely-chocolate.com/)   And of course, I just had to try out some of the marvelous recipes. Well, I had to make sure the cookbooks were as good as promised didn't I?

The featured cookbooks include the latest from the Ghirardelli Chocolate Company and a great one just for vegan chocolate desserts. Since I have a vegan daughter, I couldn't resist trying out those recipes. They did pass the decadent test.

Now, I will give you fair warning. Not all the recipes are easy to make. Some get quite complicated and require better chef skills than I have. These will take just a bit more practice on my part. But, even the failures were enjoyable to eat.

More Chocolate Cookbooks

Each of the featured chocolate cookbooks also make great gifts. They each have beautiful

photographs, most that make your mouth water just looking at them. But, each cookbook also includes lots of extras. Things like how to work with chocolate, how to make chocolate gifts and plenty more.

Allow everyone of your family, friends and neighbors to enjoy National Cookbook Month with you. Get a copy of your favorite chocolate cookbook and try out a new recipe. A decadent dessert can work wonders for everyone.

More Chocolate Cookbooks:  www.completely-chocolate.com/wp/chocolate-cookbooks

Posted by: BuckHawk

About This Contributor

BuckHawk decribes herself as "Basically a lazy person who prefers the easy things in life." So that's what she writes about. Easy home decorating, easy recipes, easy entertaining. But, she is also a lover of animals, gardening and crafting. You'll find her writing all over the Web, but with Review This Reviews! she has the opportunity to write about all of her loves.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Reviewing Bats in Time for Halloween

Not-So-Scary Side of Bats

Bats and Halloween just seem to go nicely together. Those wonderful mammals are associated with the spooky side of Halloween. From fright night activities to Dracula's alter ego, bats just lend themselves to the spooky. But are they really so bad? It's time to review the world of bats.

Yes, I am an animal lover and an animal rescuer. Well, you have to love animals to be able to rescue them as a professional. But my passion for animals goes beyond the sweet fluffy ones. All wildlife plays it's part in keeping our entire world in check. That includes those so-called spooky bats.

Can you imagine how hard it would be for you to enjoy a warm summer evening without the benefit of bats? You would be over run with flying insects, literally. Bats have a voracious appetite when it comes to those pesky and biting insects. Enjoying bats in your neighborhood means you don't need to use chemicals to keep mosquitoes away.

Bat Lover Design Mugs by BuckHawk
Browse Bat Mugs online at Zazzle.com

We can also thank bats for helping to keep the destructive insects out of our farms. Which translates into less chemical sprays on our food supplies, higher yields and lower prices in the grocery store.

OK, so now you've gotten just a few of those great reasons to love bats. Well, you don't have to actually love them, but you can tolerate and support them in your world. There are plenty of ways to support the efforts of those saving the bat population. The Not-So-Scary Side of Bats gives you lots of ways along with videos of some adorable orphaned baby bats and how bats use echolocation to find their food source.

Bats for Halloween are fun, but bats in real life more fun. Time to review your own attitude about bats. 

 


Posted by: BuckHawk

About This Contributor

BuckHawk decribes herself as "Basically a lazy person who prefers the easy things in life." So that's what she writes about. Easy home decorating, easy recipes, easy entertaining. But, she is also a lover of animals, gardening and crafting. You'll find her writing all over the Web, but with Review This Reviews! she has the opportunity to write about all of her loves.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Completely Chocolate and Coffee

For those of you who don't know, I am passionate about chocolate. In fact, I'm also the chocoholic contributor here on Review This. So it makes perfect sense that I would review a site devoted just to chocolate.

Completely Chocolate Site

Since we can never have too much chocolate, well in my view anyway, Completely Chocolate is an ideal way to share this passion. Of course, we can be talking about just the confection itself. But, there's plenty more.  (www.completely-chocolate.com/)

If you didn't know, there are great health benefits to dark chocolate. Which is covered for all of us to read and learn more. How dark chocolate works to our benefit, some of those numerous benefits, even how much we should be eating. All pulled together on one page. I like that.

Health Benefits of Dark Chocolate:  www.healthline.com/nutrition/7-health-benefits-dark-chocolate

How about a chocolate party? That's covered, too. Don't forget recipes. There just aren't enough ways to use chocolate in desserts. What about putting together your own recipe book? Just for chocolate treats and desserts, of course. That's included as well. Completely Chocolate is just that, completely chocolate!

What Goes Better with Chocolate than Coffee?

There is even a site devoted just to coffee. Now, we are talking about my favorite combination. Koffee Kingdom goes deep into the world of everything coffee. And I do mean everything. From roasting beans and how that affects flavor to the perfect Halloween coffee mugs. You can even find coffee themed home decor.

Coffee and chocolate.

My perfect kitchen is loaded with both chocolate decor and now coffee decor. And, yes, my favorite coffee flavor is chocolate.

So grab a cup of your favorite coffee, add a dash of chocolate and browse around these sites. You might just find the answer to that nagging question - what are the Review This Chocolate Contributor's favorite places on the Web? And we all want the answer to that!

 

Posted by: BuckHawk

About This Contributor

BuckHawk decribes herself as "Basically a lazy person who prefers the easy things in life." So that's what she writes about. Easy home decorating, easy recipes, easy entertaining. But, she is also a lover of animals, gardening and crafting. You'll find her writing all over the Web, but with Review This Reviews! she has the opportunity to write about all of her loves.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Fall Teapots Under Review

Fall is always a great time to add different colors and shapes to your world. The beautiful colors and shapes of Autumn are available as teapots. So, of course, I want to have several in my own home.

But, lets not forget Halloween as part of the fun of Fall. And Halloween teapots are a definite fun thing to have around the house. So, it's time to get a review of some of my favorite Fall and Halloween teapots.

Halloween Teapots:  www.whimsicalteapotsandcups.com/featured-teapots/fall-is-the-time-for-halloween-teapots

Pumpkin shapes and the colors that go with them are ideal for Fall or even Halloween. The bright

Fall Leaves Teapot

reds, oranges, yellows and browns are those beautiful colors that we associate with Autumn leaves. This makes the orange pumpkin one of the great choices.

Halloween teapots can be as eerie and creepy as possible, with zombies, skeletons, maybe ghosts, but they can also be delightful and charming with smiling candy corn, happy black cats, even dancing skeletons. Some years, I look to the fun side of Halloween, while other years it's the spooky side.

No matter which side of Halloween you prefer, a teapot to match the season can be a fun addition. Or go straight for the beauty of Fall with pumpkin teapots or those in colors of reds, oranges, yellows.

Posted by: BuckHawk

About This Contributor

BuckHawk decribes herself as "Basically a lazy person who prefers the easy things in life." So that's what she writes about. Easy home decorating, easy recipes, easy entertaining. But, she is also a lover of animals, gardening and crafting. You'll find her writing all over the Web, but with Review This Reviews! she has the opportunity to write about all of her loves.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Reviewing the World of Zombies for Halloween

No way can I resist talking about zombies when it comes time for Halloween planning. That creepy world of the undead fits so well with a party at the end of October. So lets review some of the great options for planning Halloween around zombies.

Zombie Costume Planning

Starting off with my costume is a natural for me. When I know what crazy costume I want, that typically leads to my Halloween party theme. So this year's fun will be all around zombies.

It's pretty easy to buy a great zombie costume for women, men or children. Not only do all the brick and mortar stores carry costumes, but all the online shops do as well. But, I always seem to go way further than the typical ready-made costumes.

So then it's off to find all the extras to make my zombie look truly undead. In effect, I create my own zombie costume, even if I start with the basics.

Adding the Extras

It's the makeup, the hair and the accessories that can go that extra mile. Then I find this great page showing lace collars. You may not think of lace collars for a zombie, but as an undead bride or prom queen, you want those jewelry effects as well. The black and red vampire collar is ideal for a zombie.

Of course, I really can't be a zombie without the gory wounds that caused my death. I found a great set of plastic wounds. They just stick on so all you need to do is add some fake blood around them to make it look realistic.

Plan for Halloween Early

I always recommend that you plan for Halloween, costumes and parties, early. Waiting til the last minute can easily mean settling for what you really don't want just because all the good stuff is sold out. But, there's more. If you discover that you need to return something, you still have time. Planning early means no disappointments for you, your children, even your party guests.

Posted by: BuckHawk

About This Contributor

BuckHawk decribes herself as "Basically a lazy person who prefers the easy things in life." So that's what she writes about. Easy home decorating, easy recipes, easy entertaining. But, she is also a lover of animals, gardening and crafting. You'll find her writing all over the Web, but with Review This Reviews! she has the opportunity to write about all of her loves.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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The Beauty of Fall Home Decor

Every September heralds the coming of the beauty of the Fall season. Every September it's time to think about bringing that beauty into our homes. Even a little Fall home decor can add a fresh look to our homes. Just the simple act of changing a picture or two, adding in a new decorative pillow or replacing a lamp shade can bring that Fall beauty inside.

The Colors of Fall

The vibrant oranges, reds, yellows and even browns are those that we associate with the Autumn season. Those colors of leaves as they prepare to drop off the trees. Through the talents of many artists and photographers, Zazzle has brought us a wealth of these color to use in our home decor.

Some of my favorites are represented in articles that I write. I do enjoy reviewing all the options and then narrowing them down to those that delight me. Decorative Pillows for Fall Home Decor Accents is one of those such articles.

Home Decor Inside and Outside

I don't stop at reviewing beautiful Fall decor items just for the inside of your home. I also love Welcome Autumn with Garden Flags shows other ways to decorate your home with the beauty of Fall.
sharing that decor for the outside as well.

These are just a few of the ways to add more of the Autumn colors to your home decor. Simple accents are my favorite way to decorate. So I'm continuously looking for great home accents to review. Should you run across other items, please share them. I'm always happy to include what others see as the beauty of Fall in home decor items.




Posted by: BuckHawk

About This Contributor

BuckHawk decribes herself as "Basically a lazy person who prefers the easy things in life." So that's what she writes about. Easy home decorating, easy recipes, easy entertaining. But, she is also a lover of animals, gardening and crafting. You'll find her writing all over the Web, but with Review This Reviews! she has the opportunity to write about all of her loves.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Reviewing Halloween Party Invitations

Planning a great Halloween party means choosing great invitations, too. In fact, I start with the invitations. They can help me pick the theme, give me decor ideas, even menu options. So I'm giving you a review of some of my favorite choices for great Halloween party invitations.

Halloween Party Themes

If you think your party theme is simply Halloween, I have some news for you. There are many different themes that can all fall under this holiday heading. When planning your party this year, there are things to think about. Such as: do you want to have a costume centered party? You might even give away prizes for the best costumes. Do you want to have a family-oriented party where it's appropriate for children as well?

Planning your theme can be as important as planning your menu. Many of your guests will enjoy designing their costumes based on your theme.

Vintage Halloween Theme

I've reviewed party invitations for a vintage Halloween theme. These are great for guests who really love to dress in period costumes. Vintage parties are easy to decorate. The look of old mansions or manor homes that have gone to ruin is not only vintage, but also traditional Halloween. So decorating ideas and props are plentiful.

Cute and Fun Halloween Theme

There is certainly a cute side to Halloween. For a family-oriented party where scaring the kids is not the idea, you'll want to choose a theme around the sweet side of the holiday. Smiling pumpkins, candy corn, and butterfly costumes can be a great theme. Of course, you want your guests to know your party is designed around the sweet side so choose cute and fun Halloween party invitations.

Ghoulish Themes

For many, the eerie, spooky and creepy side of the holiday is the best way to throw a party. Ghoulish Halloween Party Invitations reviews some those theme ideas. This theme opens up the costume options to many. Personally, a ghoulish touch to my costume is always fun. I've been known to add a little fake blood to a princess costume.

So start thinking early about your Halloween party. The planning takes some time and you'll want to choose invitations that not only match your theme, but also show your guests what to expect.  

Posted by: BuckHawk

About This Contributor

BuckHawk decribes herself as "Basically a lazy person who prefers the easy things in life." So that's what she writes about. Easy home decorating, easy recipes, easy entertaining. But, she is also a lover of animals, gardening and crafting. You'll find her writing all over the Web, but with Review This Reviews! she has the opportunity to write about all of her loves.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Are You Ready for Halloween?

Yes, I will openly admit it. I love Halloween. I do love everything about Halloween. What a great time to be just the right amount off-the-edge and nobody seems to mind. People don't even look at you funny. But, doing up Halloween right means getting ready. So I will share with you some of the fun things that I found.

Maleficent, the Costume to Crave

The first review up is the most popular female costume this year. Maleficent is the great Disney villain from Sleeping Beauty. I found a fabulous page designed to help us get the look of this beautiful, yet evil, woman. In Maleficent Costume, author Sylvestermouse not only shows us how to get the girls' version of this costume, but also helps us create our own. Now that is helpful.

Those of us who like to create our own costumes know that the time is never too early to get started. Obviously, I want to make sure that I get all the components I need to make my costume before the good stuff is sold out.

Ninja Costumes for the Kids

We can't leave the kids out of our Halloween preparedness. Some people think Halloween is for the kids. So, you need to be thinking about their costumes, too. And Ninjas are great for that glorious dress-up day.

Now, don't count on your kids only wearing their costumes for Halloween parties or Trick-or-Treating. These Ninja costumes for kids are ideal for pretend play as well. But, be aware, there are some things you need to know before just rushing out and buying that costume.

Author Sylvestermouse walks you through those things you need to know. In her article, Ninja Halloween Costumes for Kids, she offers great tips. She has a preference for keeping kids safe on Halloween and that's clear with her writing.

So, Are You Ready?

Getting ready for Halloween does take some planning. Whether you like to just buy a costume off the racks or make it yourself, the sooner you get thinking and planning the better off you'll be come the last day of October.

As for me, I'm not ready yet, but I'm planning. The vacations are over, the kids are in school and my sewing machine is poised to get started. Not to mention, my off-the-edge bones are dying to get started! Hope yours are, too.




Posted by: BuckHawk

About This Contributor

BuckHawk decribes herself as "Basically a lazy person who prefers the easy things in life." So that's what she writes about. Easy home decorating, easy recipes, easy entertaining. But, she is also a lover of animals, gardening and crafting. You'll find her writing all over the Web, but with Review This Reviews! she has the opportunity to write about all of her loves.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Reviewing the World of Mystery Books

One of those great things about having a website that reviews mystery books is publishers send you new mysteries for your review. Which means I get to read plenty of the new stuff before it's released. That's a nice advantage to having put in all the work to build the site and build its reputation.

Not an Overnight Success

Building a website and building its reputation are not an easy thing to do. I'm giving you fair warning up front. In fact, to create a website that draws the attention of some of the big publishers takes a labor of love and plenty of time.

In the web world, that "plenty of time" is referred to as aging. It means your site is not a fad, flash in the pan, or feeble attempt on your part. It means you are committed to making it work and keeping it going. The months and months of building up it's content may not see a single reward other than your joy of writing about your topic.

My love of reading mystery novels turned into a website. That was my own labor of love. Each new mystery I read turned into an article reviewing that novel. Like my love of Jana DeLeon and her Miss Fortune novels (www.mysterybookworldlive.com/mystery-book-of-the-month/jana-deleon-and-the-miss-fortune-mystery-series).

The Mystery of a Reputation of a Reviewer

It's not really a big mystery of how to build a reputation as a reviewer. In fact, it's simple. Be honest.

Sounding like the back jacket of a book cover won't garner any respect from readers. But, giving them the good, bad and the ugly is being honest. Oh, yes. There were plenty of novels where I just couldn't find any bad or ugly. But that was still honesty on my part.

I also had to be honest with those offering me free books to read. I have been asked to review books that really did not fit my genre. Certainly, it was nice to be asked. But I had to decline. I had to be true to the reputation I'd worked hard to build. And that reputation was with my readers, not with the book publishers!

Reaping the Rewards the Right Way

Those wonderful times when a publisher requests a review, and the mystery novel is right for my site,

I love doing that. It's exciting for me to discover new talent bursting on the mystery book scene. Most especially when I can enjoy the story, characters and setting, then look forward to more from that author.

Rory Flynn happens to be one of those. I was asked to review his first mystery novel, Third Rail. And am I glad I did. Take a gander at my review: Enter Eddy Harkness in Third Rail (www.mysterybookworldlive.com/mystery-genres/new-mystery-releases-enter-eddy-harkness-third-rail). You'll see why I'm anxious awaiting the next book in his series.

Yep, reviewing the world of mystery books has it's rewards, but it takes hard work and time to be able to get to this point. For me, it was all worth it.





Posted by: BuckHawk

About This Contributor

BuckHawk decribes herself as "Basically a lazy person who prefers the easy things in life." So that's what she writes about. Easy home decorating, easy recipes, easy entertaining. But, she is also a lover of animals, gardening and crafting. You'll find her writing all over the Web, but with Review This Reviews! she has the opportunity to write about all of her loves.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Chocolate Covered Strawberries

Yummy! We're making chocolate covered strawberries on Review This Reviews. Talk about my kind of food. Covering my favorite fruit with my favorite, well, food, and you have a treat that I just can't pass up. I am always on the look out for great pages about chocolate. Anything chocolate. And I found some.

One Can Never Have Too Many

Yes, I did get tired of seeing the number of pages that were about Chocolate Covered Strawberries. There are plenty. But, don't let that deter you. Every single one is different. Every single one gives us a unique and interesting look at these delectable treats.

Many feature how they make their own, including recipes for adding special touches. Some have recipes for making your own chocolate variations. Some show you how to make interesting and fun decorations with the chocolate covering. Others show you where to buy ready-made chocolate covered strawberries.

Featured Pages to Share

In other words, your own way of making chocolate covered strawberries always has a place on the Web. Here I feature 2 of those pages just to show you some of the variations.

The first page is one of those great "how-to's." How to Make Chocolate Covered Strawberries is by our own Sylvestermouse. She walks you through the basics. And she uses my cooking motto: fast and easy. Her yummy treats are definitely fast and easy. Whether you are dipping strawberries for the very first time, or you are a gourmet chocolate chef, you will enjoy her page.

Kinworm gives us great tips on making unusually decorated strawberries. If you are adventuresome, you might try your hand at here plaid chocolate covered strawberries. It sounds easy to me. In How to Decorate Chocolate Covered Strawberries, she also gives you plenty of ready-made versions that will make great gifts or even inspiration for your own artistic talent.




Posted by: BuckHawk

About This Contributor

BuckHawk decribes herself as "Basically a lazy person who prefers the easy things in life." So that's what she writes about. Easy home decorating, easy recipes, easy entertaining. But, she is also a lover of animals, gardening and crafting. You'll find her writing all over the Web, but with Review This Reviews! she has the opportunity to write about all of her loves.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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The History of Chocolate

You learn the most interesting things on the Web. For me, it's the history of chocolate. OK, what else would it be considering I'm a major chocoholic. It also turns out, I'm a bit of a history buff, too. So lisadh's page, Who Invented Chocolate: The Sweet History of Chocolate was a treat for me.

The Cacao Bean

In case you don't know, chocolate is made from grinding cacao beans into a fine powder. Then that powder is mixed with liquid. Anything from oils to heavy creams will create the various types of chocolate. The more ground cacao bean in the mix, the darker the chocolate.

The cacao bean grows on a bush similar to the coffee bean. So I guess the question should be who discovered that grinding these beans will make something different? And lisadh tells us.

Thank You Christopher Columbus

More that I learned from Who Invented Chocolate was that we have lots to thank Christopher

Columbus for, including introducing the cacao bean to Europe. He brought the bean to Spain where the powder was used to make chocolate drinks.

Of course, that are many other people who had their hand in developing the confection that we now enjoy. Lisadh gives us a good overview of the various names that are credited with these developments.

Fun Chocolate Trivia Facts

Besides the amazing history of chocolate, lisadh also gives us some fun trivia facts. If you are a trivia fan, these are for you. My favorite is the last one. In the movie "Psycho" chocolate syrup was used as the blood in the famous shower scene. Can't you just imagine how great that set smelled? Yum.

Along with Who Invented Chocolate, you can find plenty of pages loaded with great trivia facts. I include lots of trivia in my pages as do many others. If you love chocolate like I do, you will certainly enjoy the trivia found by lisadh.

You can share you own favorite trivia facts, your favorite chocolate recipe, or just about anything you consider a favorite through Web pages. If you love it, you will write about it with passion and fun. And that's what makes a great page. So what are you waiting for? 

Posted by: BuckHawk

About This Contributor

BuckHawk decribes herself as "Basically a lazy person who prefers the easy things in life." So that's what she writes about. Easy home decorating, easy recipes, easy entertaining. But, she is also a lover of animals, gardening and crafting. You'll find her writing all over the Web, but with Review This Reviews! she has the opportunity to write about all of her loves.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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