Autumn Rituals I’ve Been Saving ’til September 1st

Autumn is my favourite season; I say it every year.

And for me, it officially starts on the 1st September, regardless of how warm it might be on the day, or how wintery the weather has been in the week leading up to this date.

Being my birthday month, and the month where all fresh starts seem to begin, I hold September as a sacred time of year in my mind. Last year, I spent much of the month learning to surf and exploring in Portugal, which was great fun but I definitely felt like I missed out on my favourite time of year to actually be in Cornwall!

This year, I’ve been more excited for this season than ever before, and have even been holding off on some activities and rituals in anticipation of September the 1st, in an effort to keep this month special in my head! Below are a few of the things I have been holding off on doing until September arrives (ie. TOMORROW *excited dance*):

1. Having hot porridge/oats for breakfast

There is nothing like a warming bowl of oats to kick off your morning right, and whenever I know I’m having porridge for breakfast, it really does help get me up in the morning. I’ve written before about my favourite porridge oats recipes (including cinnamon and pear – my fave!) so go check that out if you’re in need of inspiration.

^ Loving this transitional navy 3/4 sleeve look from Celtic & Co’s range of Women’s Tops

2. Wearing slippers

Regardless of how cold my toes have been over the last few days (how is it that the end of August has turned on us so horribly this year?), I have strictly avoided putting slippers on my feet because to me that is an important symbol of Autumn that I must retain only for September! (Why am I like this?)

3. Drinking hot drinks

Okay so yes I have had the odd ginger tea throughout summer, and one delicious vegan coconut hot chocolate that I couldn’t resist last week (I’ll post a recipe soon!), but in general I don’t like to drink hot drinks in summer. I try to keep my seasons compartmentalised (in case you can’t already tell…), thus making refreshing smoothies and juices in the warmer months, and saving warm mugs of creamy goodness for September onwards.

4. Having a bath!

So up until this year I really hated baths. It’s always been my ‘weird fact’ about myself, but I’m definitely starting to overcome that now. My struggle has always been with getting too hot, and with not being able to switch off an relax for long periods of time, but after being informed that I did not, in fact, have to run my bath at boiling temperatures and there is in fact no one telling me I should be staying in there for over an hour, I can see now that baths could actually be a thing for me…

5. Wearing scarves

Okay so it may not have actually been cold enough recently to wear a scarf, but this is definitely a ritual I enjoy in the colder months. Enormously oversized cosy scarves are totally my jam, and I can’t wait to have what is essentially a portable blanket carried around with me at all times.

6. Buying Autumn/Winter clothes

On that note, I think I’ve held off pretty well at doing an Autumn/Winter closet shop so far. Usually I’m all over it at the end of summer, but this year I’m going to try and be more mindful of my purchases and try to enjoy the items I already own before I feel the need to buy yet another oversized black jumper…

 

Are there things and rituals you save for specific seasons?

* I was sent this top by Celtic & Co as a gift to include in a post, but I wouldn’t feature it if it wasn’t something I actually love and wear myself! Thanks to Olivia for taking my portraits x