Hopping onto the saddle in September, we find ourselves cycling past tawny coloured grasses which, long and sodden, slope sideways, weighed down from being drenched in the downpours...
...And soon after, when the sun shines again, small flutters of amber and ruby coloured leaves drift in gusts of wind like fiery pieces of confetti, their colours enhanced by the bright skies behind…
…Meanwhile the brambles are filled with an abundance of wild blackberries, which light up in the early September sunlight like purple amethyst and red garnet jewels, ready to be transformed into a homemade batch of jam- so long as the nearby dormouse doesn’t get to them first!
…As flower petals fall away, delicate fruits are revealed, and as the lifecycle of ornate grasses and leaves draws to a close, they are now transformed into swathes of warm colours which grace the lands across our countries...
Witnessing the summer abundances begin to fade in this way at the time of the Harvest Moon reminds us of two things: first, that the circle of life is inevitable. Time stands still for no one, nor no thing. Being grateful for every moment of existence we encounter, no matter how small, is important, because we’ll never get it back again...
Second, as one phase comes to an end, the dawn of a new phase always lies ahead, and as mother nature perpetually transforms her displays of beauty throughout the passage of time, so too must we be ready to adapt to, and embrace the beauty of, the changing seasons we find ourselves passing through...
The days may be colder and filled with rain, but from this comes that familiar damp woodland smell as the fading greenery turns to mulch, which can only be harnessed by the temperatures of the crisper air…
…and although flowers are few, filling the void are the berries and mushrooms which are now in the many…
…As the days become shorter and the nights become longer, opportunities for everyday cosy moments of magic consisting of a good book and a blanket become more frequent. At no other time of year do the concepts of #hygge or #friluftsliv come more into their own!
…and although the head on winds whilst on the saddle become colder, it’s life, it’s real, and against very high odds, somehow we’re here in our complete consciousness able to experience it for all that it is…
Four Cycle Pretty Ways to Make The Most of
September Saddle Days…
1. Go On A Foraging Bicycle Adventure For Blackberries And Fallen Leaves
September is such a wonderful time of year to get back on the saddle for a day of exploring with these treasures around. With such a diverse mix of different fiery coloured leaves and berries, so much is ready for the picking!
Often seen only as garden waste and something that creates the 'chore' of brushing up, the falling leaves can actually offer so many home craft opportunities to get excited about!
And the brambles, so often seen as 'overgrown' 'weeds' in need of uprooting, go on to become the cosy home and rich food source for wildlife when left to grow to this stage of maturity...
Harvesting some blackberries- whilst leaving plenty for our fellow animal counterparts!- makes for a wonderful past time whether with family, friends or just by ourselves. Making the most of these opportunities for quality time, the harvesting season also gives us chance to look back and reflect on the year so far, and think about what has successfully grown, while looking at ways to adapt the way we cultivate the things that haven't gone so well. Either way, we are inevitably then led to think about how we put it all to good use, whether in the form of jams and pickles, or simply just lessons that can be taken into the next growing season that waits for us, just on the horizon.
2. Make Blackberry Tarts!
Cherish the magic the new season has to offer, and transform your foraged treasures into mini tarts, which fill the home with rich fruity aromas when baking in the oven...
Make up a batch of basic short crust pastry, roll it out, and use a flower shaped cutter to cut out as many pieces as you want tarts...
In a muffin tin, which is already prepared with a coating of butter, drop the pastry pieces into each well...
Add your foraged blackberries to a saucepan and add caster sugar with a drop of water to make a light reduction. Be careful to only bring up it up to simmering point and not to leave it on for too long, to ensure the blackberries retain their form. Then spoon the mixture into the pastry cups once the reduction has come down to room temperature...
Bake in the oven on the middle shelf on around 160 degrees until the pastry is golden and crisp, and the blackberry mixture bubbles. Leave on a cooling rack for an hour and then dusty with icing sugar to add the finishing touch.
3. Make An Autumn Leaf Bookmark
There's so much detail and colour in the fallen leaves that can be collected when fresh off the trees at this time of year...
...without being exposed to too much rain just yet, the rustling leaves that we can gather up in the month of September still hold their form, are bright with colour and filled with so many details...
Making a bookmark with a handful also makes for another wonderful pastime, particularly if you're looking for interactive things to do with young children. Giving them the chance to learn how being innovative with mother nature's resources, which can so easily be overlooked, can lead to great things. This can also perhaps resonate as a lesson on life as a whole...
So with a pot of PVA, a brush and a covered workspace, set to work transforming these fiery pieces of confetti into something you can hold and admire long into the future every time you open your book...
In The Florist Parlour
The Autumn Sunrise Teapot Letterbox Flowers combines a fiery combination of glowing tones that we find ourselves surrounded by at this wonderful time of year...
Like the silhouettes of trees, branches of deep red oak leaves, berzelia and intense maroon dahlias with anigozanthus are set amidst a sea of different sunrise-coloured rose varieties in a range of sorbet oranges, corals and dusky pinks.
With every variety selected for their unique characteristics, the petals of each type swirls into their own geometric patterns to offer many points of interest. Then accented by another two silver-toned rose varieties...
...the arrangement is then brought together with taupe coloured asparagus ferns and a one-of-a-kind showstopper tulip variety...
Finally completed with mottled greens and subtle hints of purple, the long slender leaves of grevilea and contrasting sedum offers the natural progression into the deeper velvet purples of the candle-shaped astilbe and amaranthus flowers...
In The Cycle Pretty Boutique
Inspired by the beauty of the Autumn's flora and fauna, the Fable England Harvest Moon Oatmeal Meadow Rucksack offers comfort and style with the oatmeal meadow print from Fable England's Harvest Moon collection...
Accented with the famous Fable Bee charm, zipper and strap adjusters which are all in gold, this bag will complement any of your outfits this Fall...
The roomy interior can hold anything from all your daily work items to essentials for your next bicycle escapade, while the adjustable straps offer extra comfort...
From September's Book Corner Club…
From our bookshelf collection of Canterbury Classics, we bring to you 101 Fairy Tales by The Brothers Grimm…
A collection of 101 fairy tales brought together in 1812 by the two Grimm brothers from Germany, who both had a keen interest in folklore and tales of magic during the increase in the Romanticism movement's popularity.
With the tradition of orally passing down stories from one generation to the next being threatened by the industrial revolution, they published their works with a view to reviving the memory of many which were very nearly lost, and preserving the records of all for the generations to come...
With most stories no more than a few pages each, this really does make for the perfect book for life on the go. Making it the ideal read for a busy lifestyle where only small moments of free time are available, as a book it makes for a wonderfully entertaining page turner.
The Fisherman and His Wife The Seven Ravens Cinderella
The Wonderful Musician Our Lady's Child Hansel and Gretel Thumbling
Little Snow White The Godfather The Spirit in the Bottle
An eclectic mix of familiar stories are all rooted in life lessons, each one is dusted with a sprinkling of magic from the human imagination...
Wishing you all warm, glowing moments during the rest of your September saddle days. Hope they're all filled with bountiful harvests of blackberries and bakes in the kitchen afterwards...
See you back here again for Halloween! xxx
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