Food - we've started to introduce some hearty meals with lots of root vegetables, wild mushrooms and stewed fruit. Last weekend I made a blackberry and apple crumble and served with warm custard, it was delicious. I'm also delighted that we're now eating leeks. Chris has always said he doesn't like them, but I made a leek gratin, and he declared it tasty. Together with lots of curry (Chris's speciality) and some Mexican food, we're really enjoying getting into the heartier food of the season.
Candles - I love autumnal smells: log fires, sandalwood and pumpkin spice, We're enjoying all of them. It's so lovely to settle down in the evening with the smell of log fires or spicy fragrances. We're not ready to light the stove yet, so candles are giving us a really good alternative.
Books - I'm loving Miranda Mills The Cosy Commonplace Book, Kate Mosse Autumn, Rosamunde Pilcher A Long Way From Home and Rachel Morley Church Crawling. All of them are getting me in a very autumnal mood. I've just started reading Gervase Phinn's Dales Inspector novels and they seem very seasonally appropriate.
Perfume - we're loving Jo Malone's perfume and are trying out some new scents. I've also bought Liberty's 1875 Eau de Parfum and it's absolutely gorgeous. It's perfect for this time of year; a bit heavier than the perfumes I normally use, so just perfect. It pairs really well with Molton Brown's Blissful Templetree which I love.
Flowers - dahlias, dahlias and more dahlias are the only flowers that I want at this time of year!
Music - I love the seasonal playlists that Chris compiles, they are full of our favourite music and some new surprises. The selection includes tracks where the lyrics mention the autumn months and tracks which simply feel autumnal. Every year I love listening to Neil Diamond's September Morn.
Walks - we love walking in the autumn, it's just the perfect time to enjoy some of our favourites. We're planning walks in Grizedale Forest, Tarn Hows, Farleton Fell and Hawes Water, to name just a few.