Halloween inspiration

I have a confession to make: I love Halloween. I have done ever since I was a little girl, when my brothers and I would carve pumpkins, devour cookies made with their discarded innards, and scare each other silly with tales of haunted houses and ghoulish goings on. Even now at the age of 33, without children of my own as an excuse, I always decorate the house and have a bowl of chocolates waiting by the door for visiting trick-or-treaters.

But for me, Halloween is about more than ghost stories and costumes. It’s about celebrating the joys of autumn: falling leaves and harvest feasts, crackling fires and dancing candles, and that slight hint of magic in the air as evenings grow ever darker and winter draws near. I’m determined to make the most of it this weekend with an autumnal dinner party, a long woodland walk and, of course, some pumpkin preparation ahead of the big day on Monday. For all those who want to do the same, here’s some seasonal inspiration from around the blogosphere…

• A delicious recipe for pumpkin pancakes with salted caramel and pecans from regular These Four Walls contributor Kym Grimshaw of food blog On the Plate
• Some fabulous ideas for unusual pumpkin decoration – metallic brushstrokes, decoupage, caligraphy and even flowers – from Caitlin and Manda of US blog The Merry Thought (this pair really knows how to do Halloween!)
• Some thoughts on autumn foraging from Lou of Littlegreenshed
• Ideas for autumn table styling from Katy of Apartment Apothecary
• A mulled-pear cocktail recipe from A Playful Day
• A list of autumn resolutions from Emma at Field & Nest
• Thoughts on woodland spirits over at TOAST Travels
• A couple of Instagram hashtags to browse if you fancy reveling in all things autumnal – #anatural_autumn, #openuptoautumn and (my favourite!) #squashwatch
• And finally, I’ve created an ‘Autumn’ Pinterest board full of seasonal delights – just click here!

Whatever you’re doing this weekend, have a good one!

Image via Pinterest (if you know the original source please do let me know!)