From The Pumpkin Patch

The days are almost imperceptibly shorter, the shadows are just that little bit longer and the sunlight has taken on a golden hue. Late summer has arrived on a warm wind, and that can only mean one thing.

Autumn is coming.

To celebrate, my husband and I visited the apple orchards at Hewitt’s Farm. The weather was cool and grey, so I wore the vintage squirrel jumper I thrifted last year. It was the perfect way to mark the end of summer (almost!) and welcome in my favourite season.

I snapped a few photos out of habit, so I wanted to share them here while I share the other things I’m doing to prepare for autumn.

Stocking my pantry and freezer

Recently I dedicated an afternoon to stocking my kitchen for the colder months. I cleared out the pantry, fridge and freezer, getting rid of anything expired (thankfully, there wasn’t much), made a shopping list and headed to the supermarket to stock up.

Over the years I’ve learned exactly what we use and need, so I focused on shelf-stable foods such as rice, pasta, tinned tomatoes, coconut milk, lentils and beans. I also refreshed my spice and condiment collection, and added more frozen vegetables to my freezer.

Then it was a time for the fun part – cleaning and stocking! It’s so satisfying to see full, organised shelves at the end of it all, along with the knowledge that we’re ready to hunker down for the colder months.

Decluttering and organising my autumn clothes

One of my favourite things about autumn is the clothes. Long leather coats, knee high boots, floor-length skirts, cosy jumpers… I can’t wait.

So of course, I need to make sure my wardrobe is clean, decluttered and organised before the colder weather starts. Recently I went through every item of clothing I own, donating anything that I no longer love. I even went a step further, spending several hours creating different combinations and trying them all on. I ended up with a long list of autumn outfits that I’m so excited to wear.

Now that most of my wardrobe is thrifted, my style has never been more me. And my favourite season is the perfect opportunity to showcase that.

Writing my autumn bucket list

The older I get, the more the months fly by, and autumn is no exception.

Over the past few years, I’ve made sure to write a bucket list filled with all the things I want to do throughout this wonderful season. My list includes films and TV shows to watch, seasonal ingredients and recipes to cook, and spooky/cosy things to do.

For example, this year I want to spend a few nights in a little town called Alnwick. They have a beautiful castle that was used as Hogwarts location in the Harry Potter films, a poison garden, haunted hotels and one of the largest secondhand bookstores in the UK. You can even take broomstick riding lessons!

If I don’t write these ideas down, I might forget them. Plus, it’s a fun way to get excited about what’s to come.

Deep-cleaning my home

When the days get shorter and the nights colder, I love having a cosy, clean and organised home to retire to.

So, I’ve created a list of all the cleaning and organisational tasks that I want to get done by mid-September. It’s a little overwhelming to see it all written down, but I know I have four weeks left to slowly tick things off and turn our cottage into the cosiest little nook imaginable.

From washing blankets to steam-cleaning the sofa, decluttering drawers and cupboards, and digging out cold-weather essentials such as board games and my bread maker, I’ll be kept busy for the next few weekends.

Blackberry picking and freezing

Blackberry season started early this year, so I’ve been foraging for one of my favourite late-summer fruits.

My in-laws have a huge blackberry bush in their front garden, which makes it easy to fill a bowl every time I visit. There’s also a stream nearby that we like to wade in during the hot weather, and the banks are lined with blackberry bushes. I can’t imagine a more fun activity than wading and foraging at the same time!

If you’ve been gathering berries, I recommend freezing them as soon as possible. This makes it easy to add them to oatmeal, smoothies or any seasonal baking recipes (I’m already dreaming of blackberry bread) all autumn long.

Collecting autumn home decor

I love decorating my home for the cosy season. So for my birthday, my husband and in-laws gifted me a pile of beautiful autumn and Halloween-themed decor. They know me so well!

I also treated myself to a soft, pumpkin-patterned blanket, and my in-laws gave me the cosiest set of autumn bedding from Next. I am going to sleep so well in those.

I usually start decorating for autumn around mid-September, when the first pumpkins start appearing in the shops. It can’t come soon enough.

How are you preparing for the most wonderful time of the year?