Autumn Country Contentments from The Country Commonplace Book.
‘Tis the season to be cosy. Are you settling into autumn? Read on for some countryside contentments for the autumnal season, taken from The Country Commonplace Book by Miranda Mills.
Blackberry-stained fingers and pockets bulging with windfalls.
The vibrant purple of autumn cyclamen and crocus.
Squirrels burying nuts in the garden.
Mellow sunlight filtering through golden leaves.
Rose-hips shining like rubies in the hedgerows.
Pumpkins picked for Harvest Festival and Halloween.
The heady, cider scent of a ripe apple orchard.
Misty mornings and lengthening evenings.
The whiff of woodsmoke on the breeze.
Dew-spangled cobwebs glistening on the gate.
Going on a ‘colour walk’ and noting all the rich hues of autumn’s cloak.
Bowls of quince in the house, scenting rooms with their delicate fragrance.
The crackle of leaves and chestnut-husks underfoot.
Toffee-apples and bonfires.
The lordly strut of a cock pheasant crossing a field.
Choosing and planting bulbs in anticipation of spring.
Ghost stories read aloud by firelight.
The noisy honking of departing geese filling the air.
Brilliant moonlit evenings from the Harvest and Hunter moons.
Arranging a bouquet of the last dahlias before the first frost descends.
More on ‘The Country Commonplace Book’.
A seasonal touchstone packed full of quotes, book lists, recipes, poems and observations on the natural world to keep close at hand and to accompany you through the year.
Commonplace books have been kept for centuries, and have historically been used to record favourite passages from books, poetry, anecdotes, extracts from letters, proverbs, lists, shared recipes, quotes, prayers and lyrics. ‘Commonplacing’ has seen a recent revival and can now be seen more as a highly personal anthology – a joyful place where the keeper can develop a deeper sense of self by selecting fragments of language that feel meaningful and reflect their tastes, beliefs and values.
In this book, delve into blogger, Instagrammer and YouTuber Miranda Mills’ ultimate commonplace book, a carefully curated guide to the seasons. Including poetry by Robert Browning, Emily Brontë, Sara Teasdale, Lemn Sissay, and with extracts from Edith Wharton, George Eliot, Alison Uttley, Louisa May Alcott, Adrian Bell and many, many more. Connect more deeply with yourself and your creative impulses as you explore everything each season has to offer, and even be inspired to create your own personalised commonplace book.
The Country Commonplace Book is available to purchase here. Find Miranda’s Instagram here.
Illustrations by Debbie Powell.
