I don't really commemorate Halloween, and we don't collect Sylvanian Families, but I thought this Sylvanian Families Halloween Dressing Up Set was so cute! The fact that there's 59% off the RRP of £13.99, making it just £5.78 doesn't hurt either.

• Grab a spooky bargain*

Sylvanian Families are an adorable range of distinctive animal characters with charming and beautiful homes, furniture and accessories. They live, work and play in the idyllic and wonderful land of Sylvania.

The blurb says "Freya and Creme Chocolate have been preparing for Halloween creating their outfits, a witches costume for Freya and a cute pumpkin suit for Creme who is very excited"!

The set contains two poseable characters dressed in their costumes, pumpkin head, broom and paper elements. Reviews for it are good too - apparently it's not cheaply made or anything.

It's clearly too early for Halloween, and heaven forbid we add another gift-giving occassion to the calendar, but this could make a great gift throughout the year, or decoration for Halloween, when it comes.

Thanks to wishihadadonkey at HUKD

Tomorrow, just in case you've not noticed, is Halloween. Although people talk about 'trick or treating' as a recent thing, in fact I was doing this with my older two 15 years ago. It is now the turn of my 7 year old son. And what I love is that we get lots of neighbourhood kids coming to our house too.

Normally I angst a lot over what to get in the way of sweets. But this year Swizzles Matlow solved all my problems by bringing out the Spooky Trick or Treat Mix bucket for just £4. This is only available in Tesco.

This is a win for me on two scores. First you get 80 pieces of candy for the money so should be more than enough to hand out (except that my husband gets carried away!). Second, they're in a bucket so I can just keep this by the door instead of having to find a container to put all the sweets in.

Also in the bucket are several special edition sweets just for Halloween. These are the orange and black Halloween drumsticks,  purple and black lollipops, and the orange and black Halloween lollipop.

And then there's also all the favourites too. Mini packs of Parma Violets (weird name but awesome sweet), Love Hearts, Refreshers, Fizzers and sherbert lollies. And yes, I have already started tucking in. And yes again, this is after I had already scoffed another bag of Halloween sweeties.

I tested these ones out at my son's school. Basically this involved the teacher standing there at the end of the school day shouting Happy Halloween and the kids all getting to grab a handful on their way out the door.

Judging by their reactions I would have to say that this was one of the best products ever in the history of reviewing on PlayPennies! Ah, the sublime pleasure of being 7 years old.

I love this time of the year. The cool, crisp Autumn evenings. The gold and brown leaves carpeting the ground. And of course, Halloween and Bonfire nights.

Last week I looked at how to carve a pumpkin. And found some pretty cool ideas. You can read all about it if you want, right here. After going quite mad last year, I've reigned it in a little bit this year and am only carving one or two pumpkins. I'm making up my outdoor display with some decorative pottery pumpkins I found at the Poundland pound shop near me.

However, one thing I will definitely be doing this year and that's making good use of all the innards in my pumpkins. Read on to find out what my favourite recipes are. And let me know if you've any of your own.

Tis the season to be scared (not the season to be jolly so please take note supermarkets and take those Christmas displays down OK). So, this means it is time to make pumpkin pie, yay! And what better way to make the dark nights more fun than by turning the pumpkins into their own special lanterns?

I love Halloween. Partly because it is the only time you can give kids sweeties by the handful! But also because for me it is one of the cheapest, if not THE cheapest, themed event of the year. I've talked before about how I made costumes out of bin liners. Now I'm looking at how a few quid spent on a vegetable can turn your house into a Halloween mecca and feed you.

A few weeks ago I looked at some of the gorgeous Halloween creations you could make using ideas generated by talented people across the web. Today it’s all about finding the best possible Halloween deals and bargains so you can kit out your house without spending a fortune.

If you don't like gingerbread biscuits then stop reading now. This review is not for you. If, on the other hand, you love the spicy tang of ginger exploding on your tongue while your mouth is coated in the sweet goodness of biscuit, then read on. This review is most definitely for you.

Tesco *has a whole range of Halloween stuff in this year, and I suspect that the vast majority of it is plastic tat waiting to clog up a landfill. But in amongst the stuff are a few gems. One brilliant idea are their Halloween biscuits. But are they tasty, or just over priced cardboard? There was only one way to tell.

We tried out a very unscientific taste test on two adults, and two children aged 5 and 7. Here's what they thought.

If you're after a cute ghost story for Halloween, you should take a look at this Ready Steady Ghost! book - The Book People are selling it for £4.99 rather than its £10.99 recommended list price.

• Click HERE to take a look at Ready Steady Ghost! *

As I'm sure you can tell from the full list price, Ready Steady Ghost is a hardback book - it's suitable for little ones who love repetition in their stories so they can join in with the 'reading'.

Ready Steady Ghost! tells the tale of Bertie the ghost; he's ready to go out on his first haunting but has a slight problem - he's SCARED of the dark!

He's got to go into the dark forest but keeps seeing all sorts of scary things lurking in the dark; it's a lovely little story, which may also be useful to read to your child if they're beginning to feel a little afraid of what may be hiding in the shadows when the lights go out (okay, so technically you can't have shadows without light - but you know what I'm getting at!).

Single item delivery used to be £1.95, now it's £2.80!  Good job I've got a free delivery code for you - just add code XMAS262 to the promotion code box in your basket and your Ready Steady Ghost! story will be delivered for freeeee; hurrah!

Happy reading ghost stories! 

It’s the spooky time of year again, and if you’re planning a Halloween party and you want to go all out on décor but not on costs, Poundworld may just have the answer to your needs.

There are products for everything you need for your party theme and your wardrobe.

Starting with what to wear, there’s so much to choose from. We were sent a range to test and here are our thoughts.

Last year Halloween hit me like a ton of spooky bricks. I was way too late to make fun cakes and take advantage of all the totally fantastic ideas that people came up with. So, to give you time to get the ingredients or be inspired, here are some of the best, most unusual and craziest cupcake ideas for your Halloween party.

I'm putting this code up because it will soon be Halloween. Angels Fancy Dress is an online costume retailer that many people use, mainly because they often have sought after costumes.

Click here to use your Angels Fancy Dress promotional code

• Discount: 10%
• Promotional code: SPOOKY10
• Expires: 31st October 2012

To use this code, go to the Basket page and enter it in the Voucher Code box. It will be applied automatically.

Personally I'd suggest shopping around, and if you've the time, check out the costume rack at the supermarket. However, the cheaper stuff goes fast and if you're stuck then a 10% discount is handy.

Having said that, as mentioned they have good quality costume and a large range. I've bought from here before myself. What annoys me about the retailer is that they add a whole pile of extras onto the page, which will go into your Basket if you click Buy. These will inevitably double the price of your item, so you need to make sure you take them out of the basket. Unless you want to keep one - such as a wand to go with a Witches costume.

Also, the site automatically selects the most expensive delivery option. Now, since the majority of sites select the cheapest by default, it is really easy to miss this. I wonder how many have ended up paying more for delivery than they need to?

Thanks to missgem at HUKD!

Amazon are selling this Snazaroo Ghastly Ghost Skull face painting kit for £3.38 instead of £5.00 - it's not a massive saving but, as a certain supermarket likes to tell us, every little helps.

• Click HERE to take a look at the Snazaroo Ghastly Ghost Skull face painting kit 

If you're of the 'dressing up for Halloween' persuasion then you might want to take a look these Snazaroo Ghastly Ghost Skull face painting kit - there are one or two of us here at PlayPennies (I won't be coerced into naming names!) who have a penchant for dressing up at Halloween, I'd be surprised if they don't already have their costumes and face painting already planned.

What can I tell you about Snazaroo face paints in general?  Well they're made in the UK and have been formulated to be friendly to delicate and sensitive skins, are fragrance-free and non-toxic - they are made using only ingredients that are in full compliance with EU & FDA toy and cosmetic regulations.

All of Snazaroo's face paints, not just these Ghastly Ghost Skull ones, are water-based which makes them just as easy to get off as they are to put on; hurrah!

Thanks to wishihadadonkey at HUKD

The Book People are selling Usbourne's 1000 Spooky Stickers book for £3.99 rather than its recommended list price of £9.99.

• Click HERE to take a look at the 1000 Spooky Stickers book

Do you shop at Tesco?  Have you been to your local store recently?  Does yours have tins of Christmas chocolates, piled floor to ceiling, the moment you walk through the doors, and an entire aisle dedicated to all things edibly festive too?

Mine does and we'd all be forgiven for wondering what on earth happened to Halloween, because there wasn't a hint of anything spooky, witchy or pumpkin!

We've ticked 'back to school' off the list, next up on the festival agenda is Halloween before we launch straight into Bonfire Night - I'm sure we'll have our annual Halloween reviews coming along soon!

If you want to give a youngster something different to mark Halloween, other than the usual sweets and chocolate, then this 1000 Spooky Sticker book may just be the thing you're looking for.

There aren't any free delivery codes floating around at the moment, so single item delivery is going to cost you an additional £1.95 - if I come across one though, I'll let you know.

Happy spooky sticking!

Amazon are currently selling this Snazaroo Halloween Face Painting kit for £3.82 instead of its usual £12.49.

• Click HERE to take a look at the Snazaroo Halloween Face Painting kit

There's no law which states you have to wait until certain times of year to buy things; in fact, if you do, you'll often end up paying full-price for things or run the risk of them being out of stock by the time you get round to sorting out what you need.

This was the case last year with these Snazaroo Halloween Face Painting kits - they came up on a deal, like they are now, and were out of stock within a matter of hours.

I think we can safely assume that there won't be quite such a mad rush on all things Halloween at the end of June, but you know how quickly this year is going and it will be Halloween before we know it!

If you're of the dressing up for Halloween persuasion then it might be worth buying these Snazaroo Halloween face paints now and putting a note in your diary, close to Halloween, to remind yourself you have them tucked away in a draw somewhere.

Thanks to jmcderm1 at HUKD

I know it is May and there's a while to go before October. But this is when you get bargains like this. Amazon has reduced the Cheadle Royal Halloween Party Pack Ten Guests down to just £4.44 from £7.99. And, delivery is free if you've got Amazon Prime. Also, by buying Cheadle you're supporting a good cause (see more below).

• Click here for your Cheadle Royal Halloween Party Pack at Amazon

Whenever it is time for a party, there is no better way for you to get organised than with this party in a box. Oh yes indeed, I love party in boxes! Actually I keep a box (it has PARTY BOX in big letters on the side) on the top of the cupboards in the kitchen, and put bits and bobs for parties and occasions in there throughout the year. What I love is when I open it and find something I'd forgotten about. It is like getting a present for yourself!

Halloween only comes once a year and this scary and spooky night should be spent in the company of as many good friends as possible. This party pack will help you to decorate your house and get your guests in the mood for some Halloween fun. It should always be party time.

Cheadle Royal (Industries) Limited is a sheltered workshop and industrial therapy unit providing long-term support for thirty people with learning difficulties and mental health problems. CRI provides people with worthwhile jobs in a safe and friendly environment. While you have your party, you will be supporting the work of this amazing charity, that’s something to celebrate.

Thanks to wishihadadonkey at HUKD!

It's here – Halloween! If you're partying it up this weekend, here are a few goodies you might want to add to your décor.

Draw attention to your food and drinks with these Screaming And Flashing Skull Drinking Straws. They are fabulous screaming skulls that light up and flash whenever you take a sip through them. Theyre easy to unwrap and some of the packaging is recyclable, which is always a bonus.

The Screaming Straws are not so loud as to drive you mad which is especially helpful in a room full of Screaming Straws, and you can turn them off by blowing into them.

We gave them to PlayPennies mum Tammy to see what she and her kids thought about these novelty items, and they found them pretty amusing – Tammy's five year old loved it and insisted on using it in every drink every day for a week. They all felt these were “pretty darn cool”, and would make a fab addition to a fun Halloween party.

The down sides are that they are novelty, and Tammy wasn't sure how long they'd last. “It's the kind of thing you can stick in your cupboard and use year after year if they last, but,” she said, “How long before they'd lose that novelty and just end up landfill.”

Additionally, at £3.49 a pop, you'd probably only have a few at a table because it'd work out pretty pricey to have one per guest.

For those who don't get a screaming straw, the party's not a total wash-out: How about some vampire teeth ice cubes?

Tammy actually laughed at these – and I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing. You get five slots in one vampire teeth mould. You can use food colouring or coloured juice to make bloody vampire teeth ice cubes, or normal ice cubes for your normal drinks. Or if it's a grown up party, nothing like some vodka jellies in your moulds.

I'm getting to be a bit of an expert on children's costumes. My son loves dressing up just that much. The nicest, loveliest, most gorgeous costume I've ever seen for children or for adults is in his wardrobe. It is this Wizard Costume, and I have to say that the photos there just don't do it justice.

For one thing, they make it look blue, on my computer screen at least. Whereas it is in fact a rich, deep purple. I do have to warn you though that it is also the most expensive dress up outfit he owns as well. The costume costs £29.95. But the quality is well worth every penny.

It really does depend on your child. If you have one who is just in love with dressing up, and really gets into character, then it is a joy to find costumes like this one. It arrived in a large, sturdy box, shaped rather like a pizza box. The sort of box that a heroine in a movie opens to find a gorgeous, expensive evening dress.

The costume was beautifully wrapped in tissue paper. When he saw it, my son's first words were "oh I quite like this". Which actually surprised me because I was sure when I first saw it in the box he'd pronounce it as too girly to wear. Just goes to show you never can tell!

We haven't work it to the party yet. The Witches and Wizards party he is going to is on Monday, and he doesn't want to wear it out until then. But it has spent a lot of time on my son, as he has played around the house. Other costumes can look frazzled after a few games of jumping off the sofa and rolling across the cushions placed on the floor, but this one has held up well.

It is available in two sizes, 3 to 5 years, and 6 to 8 years. The website is called Swimbabes, which I found slightly confusing as it really is all about that - swimming with babies. However, there is a section for the fancy dress costumes, and I did really enjoy browsing through the lovely outfits they sell.

The website describes the costume as a cloak. However, it does have a button to fasten on the front. There's a silver brocade collar, and silver trim on the cuffs and bottom of the cloak. There's a silver and embroidered bat on one side of the front, and a moon and star on the right-hand side.

The hat has a silver brim, and the peak is fairly stiff, so stands up quite well. But is soft enough to have that authentic slightly floppy look that's just so cute.

As is so often the case with boy's fancy dress costumes, I wish they would not use so much pink. The label is attached to the costume with a pink ribbon, and the embroidery on the detail has a pinkish hue. If your child loves the costume, as my son did, then it probably won't matter. I can see though that for some boys it will be instantly off putting, as that whole gender colour thing is pretty big at this age. That's the only fault I could find with this costume though. Overall, I just wish I was small enough to wear it too.

It is Halloween on the 31st of October. As it is every year! For the past three years we've gone trick or treating. But this time around we're going to a children's party. My son loves getting dressed up. He has half a wardrobe full of costumes, and wears them whenever the mood takes him. Like going to the supermarket dressed as a penguin, or to the park in pirate costume.

There's a costume that he has that I thought I'd review as it makes a great alternative to scary types of Halloween costume. Interestingly, that's the one sort of outfit he really doesn't want to get dressed up in.

It is a clown costume. Specifically, the Mr Brighty Buttons costume (£17.99) that we got from Angels Fancy Dress. At least our one is, it is possible it is undergoing a name change as the costume is called Mr Brighty Balloons Clown. I rather prefer Buttons though, and that's what my son insists he is called when he has it on.

The costume is an all-in-one outfit, with fake braces. It also comes with a fabric 'top hat' - be careful in storage of this as I found it crushed easily. The material is bright and cheerful, with lots of strong primary colours. I've given it a hand wash after it was worn a few times, and it came up looking fresh and bright afterwards.

The instructions say sponge clean only, but I found that really only works for a while. The felt type fabric on the braces, for example, did start to look dingy.

My son absolutely refused point blank to wear the hat as the flower on, which looks purple on the photo, is definitely pink. Possibly an odd choice of colour given how sensitive boys get to this as his age - the costume is a medium for ages 7 to 9.

As such the costume is too big for him (he is six and a half) but nothing that rolling the sleeves up doesn't cure. The trousers are meant to be short anyway, so on him they just look normal.

I don't think that £17.99 is expensive for a good quality costume. Most of my son's dress-box is full of outfits I've bought for around the £10 mark and the seams are usually full of loose thread. Also, my other bugbear is the use of Velcro fasteners. On cheaper costumes with flimsier material, these are usually bulky things that create a weak point and are generally the first part of the costume to come apart. I'm pleased to say that this is not an issue on this costume.

Overall, it is a great outfit, but I do wonder at it being targetted at boys. It doesn't seem at all gender specific to me, and girls love to wear it when they come to visit.

Last year I carved out four pumpkins, and was astonished at how much flesh I had left over. What to do with it all? This year I'm aiming to be more adventurous with my pumpkins - I'm such a sucker for those orange lanterns! All I know though is pumpkin soup. There's roast pumpkin, a specialty in New Zealand where I come from (in case you missed it, we also hold the rugby world cup. Just saying.).

However, there's two problems with roasting the pumpkin here. First, the pumpkins they sell in the shops in the UK aren't the same as ours. Ours seem to have a deeper, rich, dark orange flesh, which also seems to be denser and less watery.

My daughter has just hit the Hello Kitty stage and the “Ooooh Halloween” stage and so I got her this pretty darn awesome Halloween Hello Kitty from Build-a-Bear Workshop. At first glance online, the Hallow (geddit? Hahaha) Kitty doesn’t look that appealing. It really doesn’t.

The mottled texture makes it look like packaging as opposed to a cute Build-a-Bear toy. However, once you get this bear it looks completely different and is oh, so, very soft. Soft, soft, soft like that toilet paper advert.

She is also a spectacular orange colour. I’m a fan of orange so this worked for me but was it something that worked for my daughter?

Her face lit up when she saw this Hello Kitty and it has remained by her side for weeks now. She refuses to sleep without it and getting her to school is a bit of a trial as she, obviously, can’t take it with her.

The Hello Kitty has undergone quite a bit of use since I got it for her, so how is it holding up. Fine, is the answer. Build-a-Bear really do deliver good quality toys that are robust enough to handle most kinds of kiddie abuse. We still have bears we made when I was pregnant and they look like new.

The second question is, of course, the price. This Hello Kitty is big. She sits at 46cm and is a lot for small arms to cuddle. She is also a brand so there has to be the obligatory slapping on of extra dosh for the name. I think that £20 is an averagely good price for a Hello Kitty Halloween toy that can be customised and built together.

You could get a large Hello Kitty toy elsewhere for cheaper but it wouldn’t be this awesome bright orange and have loads of extra clothing to kit her out with either. A good buy as a special treat.

I'm a Halloween grinch; I confess! If there's a festival/celebration/call it what you will, that's been totally hijacked, it's Halloween.  I loathe it and I will NOT be putting a carved pumpkin outside my door so that other people's kids can knock on it begging for sweets!

However, I appreciate I'm very much in the minority and that there are lots of kiddies and grown-ups, up and down the land, who are getting very excited at the prospect of dressing up and going out Trick or Treating.

Clintons - yes, the 'card people' - sent us a few of their Halloween bits and pieces which we duly handed over to one of our PlayPennies parents to try out.