Autumn Moments {three}

🍁 Loving our morning walks to school, even on days like today when the temperature dropped to a chilly one degree above freezing. We chat to the ducks and swans, and take in the ever-changing boats that come and go along this stretch of canal, it's a peaceful way to start the day.

🍁 The scent of wood smoke in the air is such a marker of the Autumn season here in my town and I really love it. As we walk along the canal, the sight of the little boat chimneys releasing their plumes of blue-grey smoke into the cold air makes me feel very cosy and content somehow. 

🍁 We've been lucky in the weather of late and it's been pretty dry for the most part. It makes for a satisfying scrunchy walk through the pavement drifts of crispy dry leaves. You are never too old to take pleasure from kicking through dry leaves. Never.

🍁 Our first frost was early this year, falling at the very end of October. I was on yet another leaf-gathering mission for yet more Autumnal photographs (obsessed with this autumn thing? Me???) which led me up into the park on my way home from school. The grass was damp and icy, with frozen dew drops clinging to every blade, and I was glad to return to the warmth of home for a mug of hot coffee and a gentle sift through my leaves.

🍁 There are still a few flowers to pick in November, some from my own front garden and back yard and some...errm....pilfered from my neighbours front gardens. I'd like to point out that I do know the aforementioned neighbours and feel confident that they wouldn't mind me snagging a small bloom every now and again. I do so love having a pretty hand picked posy on the table, most especially when Summer is no longer with us.

🍁 I absolutely adore the taste of mushrooms, and they seem very Autumnal somehow. Right now (well not right this minute, obvs) I am indulging in regular mushroom lunches, they are so yummy. I go for firm, earthy chestnut mushrooms quickly sautéd in a little butter, heavily seasoned with sea salt and black pepper and a sprinkling of fresh thyme, then deposited onto some toast. Quick, simple, and very, very good. 

🍁 Low slanting golden light is a lovely sight at this time of year as the sun makes its way down towards the horizon in the late afternoon. So far I'm coping pretty well with the shortening of the days (just over five weeks until Solstice), and enjoying my time spent cosied up indoors with the fire lit and the fairy lights twinkling.

🍁 I'm a bit late with this, but belated Happy Halloween!!  I carved a slightly wonky owl this year, using a pattern I stumbled across here. It was a fiddlesome challenge, to say the least. I should have splashed out and got one of those giant "Rambo" pumpkins which were on sale in the supermarket so that I could have up-scaled my design and cut out bigger bits. 

🍁 It was the usual happy Halloween mayhem here this year and although I do get caught up in the excitement of the Little People, I'm always mighty glad when it's all over. Little B dressed as a ghost and came home with a bucket full of sweets after a mere thirty minutes of door-to-door visiting in our neighbouring streets. On the home front, we had that many callers that our bowl containing 50 packets of sweets was gone within an hour and we had to hunker down and blow out all the candles early.

🍁 We enjoyed a fantastic Bonfire Night celebration at the start of November, de-camping to J's brothers house as he is the only person we know who actually has a garden as opposed to a small back yard. It was the kind of old fashioned affair that I remember from my own childhood - sparklers and rockets and a Family Selection Box of fireworks which were bizarrely awful and fabulous all at the same time. Very nostalgic, the smell of it all in the dark and the general feeling of happiness in the air. 

🍁 Autumn to me right now is so much about the seasonal colours and the creativity - I feel intoxicated by it all and brimming over with inspiration. My crochet mojo has been on overdrive as I've spent hours and hours designing, sampling and photographing for my new Woodland blanket which I'll be able to show you on Wednesday.  The colours in this yarn palette are just so beautiful, I am ridiculously in love with it all. I absolutely cannot WAIT to introduce you to the Woodland CAL which will start in early January - Wednesday is the day for a little leafy show and tell!! Eeeeeeeeppp!!!!!!

Hoping you'll join me to see what is totally floating my crochet boat right now, I'm really looking forward to showing you.

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Comments

[Jenny Douglas]

Hello Lucy! I've been a keen follower of yours for some time, you have inspired my love of crochet and enormously encouraged me to start writing about my projects on the web. So it was with wonderful surprise and delight that I have just found the Pumpkin Owl link in your posts which I created for 'Instructables' a couple of years ago . I am so pleased you liked it, yours looks very cute.
Your projects are a joy, Thankyou so much x x

[Eleonora from Coastal Crochet]

Oh what a delightful Autumn post... I too am loving Autumn this year very much! 🍁🍂🍄😊❤️

[Teresa Kasner]

Oh how I love the canal boats you get to see every day. Do you ever get to see inside one? If I had life to live over I'd want to live on one. I'm excited about your next post.. the colors in this blanket speak to me. ((hugs)), Teresa :-)

[Anne Anthony]

Just discovered your blog, and am thrilled that you live in Skipton which I visited for Yarndale 2016 and also rang the bells there on the Sunday morning. I hope to visit the area again before too long.
I'm a knitter, and love your posting about colour (especially autumn) and your local walks.
Many thanks and best wishes.
Anne

[Sara]

Eagerly awaiting Wednesday’s revelation 💖💖💖

[Angela-Southern USA]

Autumn is always too short! More than half of the trees are bare here now, but my leaf garland (inspired by you) is still swaying gentle in the breeze on my front porch and it brings me all kinds of happy.xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

[Edwina]

Love the owl, clever you. Looking forward to the next CAL.

[Susan Walter]

Mushrooms in butter are good, but I add chopped onions, sour cream & a sprinkling of parsley, when done. Also makes a great veggie side dish.

=>/<=
P. S. Totally in love with your eye for colour.....

[Kate Darby]

Autumn colours...Yum! :)

[CJ]

Yarn really comes into its own at this time of year doesn't it. I know when autumn kicks in because I have a longing to make something warm and woolly. Slow progress this year though because of the puppy. I can only get balls of yarn out when he is properly asleep. Mushrooms on toast are one of my favourites, delicious. Brilliant job on the pumpkin, and I love the sound of your old-fashioned fireworks night. Wishing you a good week Lucy. CJ xx

[Ann Goodman]

Hi, I've been enjoying your lovely descriptions of walks around your home. I've been able to visit your area and just love the countryside and the ever changing colours & textures. I'm very blessed to live in Warwickshire in a small market town & its so beautiful with stunning views & great canal walks.

I like crocheting leaves for some reason so bring on the new design. Only one more sleep until we get to see it!!!! x

[Caz]

Bit worried about you trying to "float my crochet boat"..... There's a slight design flaw there! Stick to the canal barges for floaty things and blankets for yarny ones!
Can't wait to see the woodland blanket.

[Clare]

Happy Autumn Lucy! Your mention of the family selection box made me chuckle - we have two good fireworks displays in our town but the boys voted for fireworks at Grandma and Grandpa's instead. I can't say I wasn't pleased 😊 Autumn coloured socks are my needles - many, many thanks for pointing me in the direction of continental knitting! I've just finished brewing a cauldron full of roast butternut and chorizo soup - I always keep a pot in the freezer for the Soltice. It is a lovely reminder of Summer and we have it with Sta Lucia buns (Paul Hollywood recipe, good dough modelling fun for us all) and wash it all down with blackberry liqueur. I'm counting the days 😉 Xxxxxxx

[Linne]

Lucy, once again I've enjoyed the virtual walk with you. I, too, love colours and am excited about seeing the new project unveiled on Wednesday. I love this time of year but always count down to when the light returns. In the meantime, there are crafts to do . . .

[Margaret Simpson]

As always, great photos and wonderful memories of Bonfire Night many many years ago. Looking forward to you new project Lucy. 🍄

[Laurie Mowat]

I meant ''squirrel''. I must be like your other ooops
person because I always triple check for any typos!
Take care.

[Laurie Mowat]

I'm so glad you're having such a great Autumn. It's one of my favorite times of the year but so far it has been very wet and muddy. Most of our leaves are still on the trees so I suppose I might be cleaning those up and maybe shoveling snow at the same time! It's funny how some trees seem to drop all their leaves at once and others just take their sweet old time. I absolutely love your little Autumn leaves, beautiful colors as always. I have to respond to Jeanthecreativepixie about the dog poo because that made me laugh! Every time I fill the bird/sqirrel feeders I have to do a ''shoe check'' because we have two dogs and you just never know do you!

[Donna Ioppolo]

I've never done a CAL before, but I'm anticipating some minor surgery in January and will be off work for 4-6 weeks. Your new CAL will be on the s schedule for my recovery time. Looking forward to it.

[Heather Coady]

Looking forward to Wednesday,! Enjoying crocheting from your patterns

[Jeanthecreativepixie]

Kicking autumn leaves is fun until you find you've kicked through a dog poo 💩 - happened to a work colleague of mine.
On a more pleasant note can't wait to see your new design on Wednesday.

[victoria]

Mushrooms in butter are the BEST thing! But your toast looks a little pale... Excited about the Woodland blanket too, looks as though it will be fabulous.

[Tinke]

Pfuw, only two days. I can wait that long. 5 weeks till the darkest day and then up with the sunlight Lucy!I only need to plant some small Tulips, all the others bulbs will show their beauty to get me through the cold crisp days of winter into spring.But that fabulous winter light.

[Kathryn Grimshaw]

I just love your posts Lucy, and your enthusiasm is infectious. I have always loved Autumn colours and cannot wait to see the unveiling of the Autumn blanket launch!
I am fairly new to your posts and I love reading them as I know just where you are walking and everything is so familiar to me. (I am not a resident of Skipton but we visit all the time and often walk our dog 🐕 along the canal). I even saw you the other week but was way to shy to interrupt your walk with your young son.
Thank you for all the uplifting blogs, and all the lovely patterns ( I’m currently on my third cosy stripe blanket this year).
I hope to see you again sometime....maybe in Coopers if I pick up the courage to speak! 😊😊😊😊😊😊

[Winwick Mum]

This time of year is suiting you much better this year - perhaps you need to work on an Autumn blanket pack every year! :) xx

[Angela Martin]

Fabulous colours and can't wait for Wednesday!!