Happy Halloween!

No new closet items this month. I did get a gift from a promotion Hulu/Gilmore Girls help on Instagram - an "I am an Autumn" sweatshirt that has become my comfy around he house top, ha ha. I also finally posted my closet update from September! Go check it out to see what I added and improved. 

Was pretty boring around here this month except for my annual birthday trip to Woodstock, Vermont. I was also supposed to go to Disney last weekend but my best friend wasn't able to work it out so we cancelled. Let's hope I can get back there soon, the withdrawals are real!

 THE (modified) RULES

1. Be mindful of purchases 
2. Quality over quantity
3. Basics are best

MY PROGRESS

 

Clothes:

1. Purple Polo Ralph Lauren Cashmere Sweater ($0 with credit, $18 at Marijane Boutique, retail $?)
2. Joie Cardigan with Floral Embroidered Detail via Marshalls ($24.99)
   

Basics:

1. Old Navy Sleeveless Open Stitch Sweater in Gingerspice ($17.49, retail $34.99)
2. Old Navy Luxe Crew Neck T-shirt  in Wild Currant ($8.49, retail $16.99)
3. Old Navy First-Layer Ribbed Scoop-Neck Tank Top in Alpine Tundra ($4.99, retail $9.99)
4. Old Navy First-Layer Ribbed Scoop-Neck Tank Top in In the Navy ($4.99, retail $9.99) 
5. C&C California purple linen short via Marshalls ($16.99)
6. Elie by Elie Tahari Sleeveless Knit Tank via Marshalls ($16.99)
   

Shoes:

1. Ancient Greek Sandals Chania Sandal in Black ($110 via eBay, $270 retail)
2. Ancient Greek Sandals Thais Sandal in "Mure" Burgundy Velvet ($15 via Poshmark, retail $275)

Handbags:

1. Loewe Mini Puzzle Bag in Pomodoro red soft grained calfskin ($895 in Japan, retail $2650)
2. Chloé Alphabet Mini Saddle Bag in Red and Brown leather ($515 via Ebay, retail $1050, used blog money)

Accessories:

1. None
   

Activewear/Swimwear:

1. None
   

Gifted from Brands:

• None
  

Spent in October: $0

Spent in 2025: $1,114.93

Spent in 2025 - counting ad money: $1,629.95

It's almost Halloween! We've got a couple on-theme bakes in this round-up, but I didn't do much "Halloween" baking. 

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

When Tessa of Handle the Heat posted a preview of these on Instagram I knew I would have to make them. She said it was like a brownie and cookie had a baby and that is the perfect description. They are AMAZING. I don't usually like milk chocolate but the mix of different types of chocolate was perfect here. Will definitely be making them again soon.

Blueberry Zucchini Muffins

I needed to make a quick breakfast for a trip I was taking with my parents and since we still had a bunch of zucchini these muffins seemed perfect! I didn't make the glaze before we left because I was freezing them, so imagine some glaze on top! Everyone gobbled them up so I only had 2 myself, ha ha!

Lemon Blueberry Loaf Cake

I saw this on King Arthur's Instagram account and knew I had to make it with the wild blueberry jam we bought in Maine! The recipe has you make your own, but I used the pre-made. That might be why my color isn't as vibrant. It was still delicious! I only had a few slices and left the rest for Christian - I made it for him to have when I was away.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Megan | Closet Fashionista (@_simplymegs_)

Brazilian-Style Chocolate-Glazed Carrot Cake

While I had my membership for Milk Street I went through the site looking for fun recipes I'd like to try. I'm not a carrot cake fan because of the cream cheese frosting and general texture but this recipe looked amazing! We had carrots leftover from a few dinners so I whipped this up over a weekend and it was delicious! The carrots and wet ingredients are put in the blender so it comes out really smooth and bright orange. Such a fun bake! I'm probably going to remake it for one of our Thanksgiving gatherings because it's dairy-free and one of my aunts is lactose intolerant.  

Slice & Bake Ghost Cookies

These were a cute, easy bake for a night where we didn't have any desserts left. I started them in the morning and then baked them up before dinner. They're a great shortbread cookie with a fun Halloween twist!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Megan | Closet Fashionista (@_simplymegs_)

Monster Brookies

I was very excited when Jenna shared an updated version of her monster brookies to go along with the regular brookie recipe I love. I swapped out Reese's Pieces for Halloween colored M&Ms because we don't love RPs, ha ha. I think I prefer the regular cookie recipe for the top vs a monster cookie. The peanut butter and oats were a bit much for us in combination with everything else. So if I did this again, I would use her regular brookie recipe, add the Oreos in and still add M&Ms!

I shared this over on my Instagram earlier this month, but Christian and I went to Orlando in September to visit my brother-in-law and we did Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party one night! Christian decided he wanted to be a pirate to match his new Peg-Leg Pete parrot shoulder pal so I decided to build a costume around my Star shoulder pet from Wish! Obviously that meant I would be Asha!

We decided a few weeks before the trip so that didn't give me much time to get something together so I decided to try and find a ready-made costume. I saw one that looked great on eBay and was only $20. There were other costume options as well, but the one I found looked the highest quality and better design. Sadly, what arrived was one of the uglier costumes I really didn't want. Apparently the seller never even opened the package they had and just assumed which costume it was and used those photos for the listing. They gave me a refund and told me to keep the ugly costume, which was nice. But now what was I going to do?!

Luckily, my Mom has been sewing since she was a teenager so I enlisted her help to transform the ugly costume into a great one. I found a purple tank dress to use as a new base, it was the perfect shade and had pockets! 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Megan | Closet Fashionista (@_simplymegs_)

How We Did It!

Mom shortened the skirt and gave it an elastic waistband so it was more comfortable.  We also removed a little bit of the fullness so I wasn't carrying around heavy fabric all night.

Another thing we did in anticipation of heat was put the sleeves on to a tank top so I could go to the bathroom and take it off if I got too hot (we had a green one handy otherwise I would’ve gotten purple to match.) We cut the sleeves and gave them a vent so it would be a little more breezy in the Florida heat. 

As for the dress, rather than me having to pin it to get Asha’s gathering effect, Mom made a small square piece of fabric to act as a button and sewed in the ruffle. 

 

I didn’t want to lose out on the neck details so we cut that off the inferior dress and fused it to the tank dress. Then I used fabric paint to add the “beads” and hide the sewn edge. 

 

The last touch was fixing the horrible belt that came with it. I used gold fabric paint to make the stones and my mom made some suede squares for the buckle part. 

I grabbed a beaded necklace from Etsy and we were good to go! The beads I got were actually not the color I ordered - I ordered Magenta and received Light Red, but they still worked with the costume so I dealt with it, ha ha. Unfortunately in our rush to leave for the party I forgot to put on the necklace, ahh!! At least I'll have it for next time.

I also forgot to take a photo by myself in the costume at the park and only did a video. We were literally "go go go" from the moment we walked into the party so at least I got that, ha ha! 

The Party!

We got into the park at 4:45 and I wanted to take photos/my video in front of the castle, so we did that. Then we headed to Columbia Harbor House for one of the Halloween treats I wanted that was only available during regular park hours. I assumed that meant we were safe until 6, turns out the restaurant closed at 5 and we walked in at 4:58...talk about last second! But I got my S'mores Cup, so all was well with the world. Although I was ashamed of myself for not knowing it closed at 5, almost lost my Disney expert card! 

This was the first of many close calls of the evening, ha ha. We also made it to the Carousel of Progress right before it closed at 6pm, ha ha. Can't miss one of our favorite attractions!

I was able to snag reservations for The Beak & Barrel, a brand new Pirates of the Caribbean themed bar for 10:55pm! At one point before the trip I had 2 reservations for 1 person each, so we could at least go inside and see it separately, but then miraculously I snagged a reservation for all 4 of us the day before! This is why you always keep checking for reservations at Disney restaurants, even the crazy popular ones. 

We really wanted to go here because 1. It was new and we love pirates and 2. Christian was dressed as a pirate! We tried both of the non-alcoholic options: Cursed Treasure, an indulgent blend of Coconut Milk and Cookie Crumbs topped with Vanilla Foam and Pirate’s Gold and Treasure Trove, a mysterious Ube, Lemon, and Coconut Concoction served with a Vanilla Cake Plank, Chocolate Cannonball, and Golden Caramel Popcorn!

After leaving the bar at 11:30 we literally speed walked - no running! - across the park to ride Tron before heading home for the evening. We almost got stuck by the passing parade but found alternate routes and made it at 11:48, still 12 minutes to spare! We were walking out of the park by 12:30am and then on the boat to the parking lot at 12:45. My phone battery was at 7% because I brought the wrong charging cord, so that was fun too, ha ha.

It's been a while since my last major closet update in Summer 2023. This time my upgrade was kind of an impulse purchase. We went to IKEA to get some new pieces for Christian's office and while we were there I decided I wanted to add a third bookcase to my closet and glass doors on one of them to protect my bags and some shoes. 

Previously I had 2 Billy bookcases and a Kallax shelf unit (with a couple Target shoe racks on top) to house my sweaters, shoes, bags, etc. With this update the wall is now made up of 3 Billy bookcases. We sold the block-y shelf and one of the shoe shelves remains in my closet in case I need more space, which at this point I should not, ha ha! I also bought 5 extra Billy shelves and have 2 leftover so I can make shorter shelves in the future.

In this process I purged a few items, but not as many as I wanted. It's always so hard to get rid of things, even if I don't wear them often. The closet within my closet had the most removed, but then I hung all my Disney tees in there (they were on the cube shelving previously) as well as putting my travel bags on the shelves, so it's still very full. There's some space on my new bookcase for more pieces, which is nice.

Products:  

Angelica 70.08" Metal Clothes Rack

Dikoaina white Faux Fur Rug

BILLY Bookcase, white 31 1/2x11x79 1/2"

BILLY shelves, white, 29 7/8x10 1/4"

OXBERG Glass door, white, 15 1/2x75 3/4"

Adjustable Shelf Divider, clear

Shoe Slotz Storage Units in Ivory

Peryman Velvet 71.6" Square Arm Sofa in Eggplant (similar)

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Megan | Closet Fashionista (@_simplymegs_)

We've got a successful no shopping month. Probably because I was away for half the month, ha ha! I took 2 "working" vacations to North Myrtle Beach and Orlando - where I worked during the day and did vacation stuff during the evenings and weekends.

I had my eye on a few pieces but waiting for some good sales to add them to the closet because I really don't need anything.

 THE (modified) RULES

1. Be mindful of purchases 
2. Quality over quantity
3. Basics are best

MY PROGRESS

 

Clothes:

1. Purple Polo Ralph Lauren Cashmere Sweater ($0 with credit, $18 at Marijane Boutique, retail $?)
2. Joie Cardigan with Floral Embroidered Detail via Marshalls ($24.99)
   

Basics:

1. Old Navy Sleeveless Open Stitch Sweater in Gingerspice ($17.49, retail $34.99)
2. Old Navy Luxe Crew Neck T-shirt  in Wild Currant ($8.49, retail $16.99)
3. Old Navy First-Layer Ribbed Scoop-Neck Tank Top in Alpine Tundra ($4.99, retail $9.99)
4. Old Navy First-Layer Ribbed Scoop-Neck Tank Top in In the Navy ($4.99, retail $9.99) 
5. C&C California purple linen short via Marshalls ($16.99)
6. Elie by Elie Tahari Sleeveless Knit Tank via Marshalls ($16.99)
   

Shoes:

1. Ancient Greek Sandals Chania Sandal in Black ($110 via eBay, $270 retail)
2. Ancient Greek Sandals Thais Sandal in "Mure" Burgundy Velvet ($15 via Poshmark, retail $275)

Handbags:

1. Loewe Mini Puzzle Bag in Pomodoro red soft grained calfskin ($895 in Japan, retail $2650)
2. Chloé Alphabet Mini Saddle Bag in Red and Brown leather ($515 via Ebay, retail $1050, used blog money)

Accessories:

1. None
   

Activewear/Swimwear:

1. None
   

Gifted from Brands:

• None
  

Spent in September: $0

Spent in 2025: $1,114.93

Spent in 2025 - counting ad money: $1,629.95

We've got an interesting mix this week, including some garden grown eats! We don't have a lot of variety growing in our garden this year (a lot didn't make it) but we've got plenty of basil, cucumbers, tomatoes and zucchini! 

Peanut Butter Zucchini Bread Baked Oatmeal

We were getting a lot of zucchini in the garden so I decided to try out this baked oatmeal recipe for breakfasts! The hardest part was grating the zucchini (aka - the recipe was very simple!) After I made one batch I went ahead and made a second and froze individual squares to reheat on demand. I don't usually eat breakfast during the week but I could definitely see myself making this a regular thing.

Pullman Loaf Bread / Pain de Mie

I got a Pullman loaf pan for Christmas this past year and have been trying to make a perfect loaf. The first few times I used a King Arthur recipe but it just wasn't working for me. I thought it was because I was making errors somehow or it was too cold to rise properly, but I tried this new recipe and it worked perfectly!  The flavor of the King Arthur version was great, it just never filled the pan for me. I could probably adjust the recipe to make more dough but now that I found this recipe I don't really need to.

Flourless Chocolate Cookies

I saw someone post these on reddit and they looked simple and tasty so I decided to try them out! They were a little messy to portion out because it is super liquidy, but they came out tasty! It's also a small batch of only 8 cookies so good if you don't want to make a ton. Not sure I'll make them again because they were tough to get off the parchment, but the flavor was good.

Brown Sugar Cinnamon Pop Tart Shortbread

I have had this recipe saved for a while and finally decided to make it! Brown sugar pop tarts are definitely the best flavor, but I always hate how little frosting they had on them. This recipe solved that by having every bit frosted, plus its easier than making pie dough.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Megan | Closet Fashionista (@_simplymegs_)

Milk Street's Stovetop Chocolate Cake

I don't remember where I first saw this recipe mentioned, but it sounded fun and easy so I gave it a shot one night before making dinner! Christopher Kimball, formerly of America's Test Kitchen/Cook's Illustrated/etc., started Milk Street in 2016 to continue his culinary career. If you don't have a membership you can also find the recipe here (I signed up for 12 weeks for $1!)

I only had an 8in pan instead of 9 so I knew I would have to steam it a little longer. It ended up taking 60-ish minutes instead of 23. It was delicious! Christian thought the texture was weird, but I enjoyed how steaming made it soft and light! 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Megan | Closet Fashionista (@_simplymegs_)

Mini Loaf Pan Focaccia

Our garden was in tomato producing mode so I decided to make some focaccia with them. I found this small batch recipe a while ago (I think I posted it once already) and find it's easier for us since there's only two of us. I make one for each of us and we can eat it all at once or in 2 servings. Along with the tomatoes I used basil from the garden! I almost could have used garden rosemary too but I had to buy some a couple weeks before when ours wasn't ready so I wanted to finish that up. I went a little extra and put our initials on them, ha ha.

We had a big purchase this month. The Chloe Alphabet Saddle bag in brown and red colorblock leather! It's been on my list (see blog sidebar) since I first saw it on Net-a-Porter in 2022 and then on Italist for a little bit cheaper. I regretted not buying it from Italist for $700 and had been hunting for it ever since. I finally got lucky and one popped up on eBay for about $515 all the way from Australia!

I also got a couple new pieces during tax free week here in CT. For those that don't know, we do a tax free week around back to school time for all clothing items under $100. My Mom & I headed to Marshalls and found a few things each, ha ha.  I ended up returning one of mine at a different Marshalls but then found a replacement item I liked more so still ended up spending the money. Unfortunately I couldn't find either one online.

THE (modified) RULES

1. Be mindful of purchases 
2. Quality over quantity
3. Basics are best

MY PROGRESS

 

Clothes:

1. Purple Polo Ralph Lauren Cashmere Sweater ($0 with credit, $18 at Marijane Boutique, retail $?)
2. *NEW!* Joie Cardigan with Floral Embroidered Detail via Marshalls ($24.99)
   

Basics:

1. Old Navy Sleeveless Open Stitch Sweater in Gingerspice ($17.49, retail $34.99)
2. Old Navy Luxe Crew Neck T-shirt  in Wild Currant ($8.49, retail $16.99)
3. Old Navy First-Layer Ribbed Scoop-Neck Tank Top in Alpine Tundra ($4.99, retail $9.99)
4. Old Navy First-Layer Ribbed Scoop-Neck Tank Top in In the Navy ($4.99, retail $9.99) 
5. C&C California purple linen short via Marshalls ($16.99)
6. *NEW!* Elie by Elie Tahari Sleeveless Knit Tank via Marshalls ($16.99)
   

Shoes:

1. Ancient Greek Sandals Chania Sandal in Black ($110 via eBay, $270 retail)
2. Ancient Greek Sandals Thais Sandal in "Mure" Burgundy Velvet ($15 via Poshmark, retail $275)

Handbags:

1. Loewe Mini Puzzle Bag in Pomodoro red soft grained calfskin ($895 in Japan, retail $2650)
2. *NEW!* Chloé Alphabet Mini Saddle Bag in Red and Brown leather ($515 via Ebay, retail $1050, used blog money)

Accessories:

1. None
   

Activewear/Swimwear:

1. None
   

Gifted from Brands:

• None
  

Spent in August: $556.98

Spent in 2025: $1,114.93

Spent in 2025 - counting ad money: $1,629.95

Brookies

I first made these when they were a newsletter subscriber exclusive, but she has since posted the recipe on the blog! Jenna of Butternut Bakery shared herself testing these on her Instagram stories in May and I knew I would have to make them the moment she posted the recipe. Sadly, for me, she said in the post that they wouldn't be posted until after her maternity leave. THEN she got so much love for them that she decided to release the recipe for email subscribers only before she created the full blog post. I was missing one ingredient so I had to wait until after our next grocery store trip to make them. They were so easy to make and super delicious! I slightly underbaked them (my pan was a little smaller than what the recipe called for) at first so I threw them back in the oven for about 10 minutes the next day and that fixed them up! The brownie layer is super fudgy and the cookie on top had almost a brownie-like crackle on top. So perfect!

S'mores Fudge Bars 

Easy Blueberry Muffin Cake

Moist Chocolate Cake (aka Matilda Cake)

Buckeyes