Tag: autumn bucket list

Posted in creativity, goal setting, intentional living, lifestyle, planner girl, planner lifestyle, Planning and journaling, Setting goals and intentions

Falling for a New Season: My Autumn 2025 Bucket List

Posted on by Laura

As August is fast coming to a close, my thoughts have turned to the approaching Autumn and what I’d like to achieve and have fun doing over the next three months. My mind is brimming with ideas, and, as has become my routine for the last couple of years, just prior to the beginning of a new season, I work on writing a bucket list, planning things to ensure I live intentionally and in line with my core values.

In today’s post, I’m excited to share my bullet journal pages in which I’ve created a bright and colourful double page spread for my Autumn 2025 bucket list which serves as a reminder of my plans and provides inspiration to keep me on track. I’m also going to explain a little bit about the process I go through to come up with the best, personalised ideas which reflect what I want in my life currently. Finally, I thought it might be helpful to provide some detail about each of the items on my list and why I chose them.

How I prepared myself for creating my autumn bucket list

  1. Reflection and reconnect – I took plenty of time to look at previous bucket lists and plans. I asked myself lots of reflective and orientating questions such as – what did I enjoy in the summer time? are there any activities that I would like to continue doing? what did I focus on in previous autumns – do I want to revisit any activities, or, are there things on my lists that I didn’t get around to but would still love to try? I also checked in with my vision board for the year, again asking more probing questions including what are my priorities and intentions for 2025? what kind of seasonal activities fit in with these? which classic activities and pastimes do I associate with autumn? what do I most love about the autumn season? what memories do I hope to create? what do I need emotionally right now? (e.g. comfort and cosiness, connection with others, rest and recuperation, creativity and expression, a fresh perspective, a new sense of purpose, self compassion etc) which activities are likely to instill these?
  2. Gather inspiration – I asked friends and family members to share their favourite autumn traditions and talk about what they look forward to the most about the season. I also went online seeking ideas – Googling ‘autumn bucket list ideas’ checking out Pinterest for all things autumnal and searching tags on Instagram including #autumnaesthetic, #autumnvibes, Finally, I took time to explore what’s on in my local area over the coming months and if there were any events I’d like to attend.
  3. Jot down anything that resonates with me – as I did the above, I jotted down anything that came to mind or resonated with me, include activities to try out, things to start doing this autumn, moods or vibes I want to create and how I wish to feel.

My Autumn 2025 Bucket List illustrated in my BuJo

Photo credit: Laura Jones for Keeping It Creative

I chose a neutral colour background from the 12×12 paper pack I purchased Dovecraft to ensure all of the items on my bucket list and the decorative stickers I made stoodout and created the most impact. I also selected a colour palette of deep red plus shades of orange, yellow and brown to give the pages an autumnal feel.

My chosen bucket list items explained

  1. Choose a new seasonal decor item to display in our home – I love changing up our home decor each season and I’ve got quite a collection of autumnal items to display. I do think it’s nice to pick out one or two new items to add each year and I’ve already been looking online for inspiration. Although it’s not quite autumn yet, I’ve already spotted a pumpkin garland on the Lisa Angel website that would make a lovely addition (okay, I might have cheated and ordered it already but it won’t go up until September 1st!).
  2. Buy a vegan scented candle kit and make own jar candles – I love scented candles and I’ve been wanting to have a go at making my own for a while now. I’ve found various suitable beginner kits and I think candle making is a really nice, cosy activity to do with my husband one weekend. Crafting together is always fun and a wonderful way to strengthen our emotional bond. I’ll be opting for a scent that I associate with winter time so that we can use our handmade items later in the year.
  3. Create an autumnal hanging basket using pansies or violas – We’ve been making our own summer hanging basket arrangement for the past couple of years and I love the charm that it brings to the front of our house. I thought it would be nice to have a go at making an autumn one this year in rich seasonal colours, and my mum said that pansies or violas would be good choices.
  4. Make a list of TV series to watch this autumn – There are always lots of great dramas on the TV as the nights draw in and to ensure we don’t miss any must sees, I like to make a list in my bullet journal. My husband and I both enjoy crime and psychological dramas and watching an hour of TV together is a nice way to relax after a busy day.
  5. Make the vegan rocky road fridge cake from The Veganuary Cookbook – In January, I made a vision board for the year and something I wanted to do in 2025 was eat more plant based. We’ve made lots of recipes from the cookbook so far, but until recently, we’ve mainly done main courses. After flicking through the dessert and bakery chapters in our cookbook I found the perfect quick and easy to make recipe that I can’t wait to try.
  6. Have a go at making the leaf mandala from Painting Calm (using own paint colours) – I found a lovely book in a National Trust shop last year which focuses on connecting to nature through the art of watercolour and my husband bought it for me for Christmas. There are so many different exercises and projects to try and, as I’m keen to spend more time developing my watercolouring skills, I’ve added an autumnal idea to my bucket list.
  7. Try a new recipe with pumpkin in it – For almost a year now, my husband and I have enjoyed the taste and health benefits of lots of home cooking. As part of this, we try as much as possible to eat seasonally. During the autumn, the supermarkets are full of nutrient rich pumpkins and other squashes and we love trying different varieties and experimenting with different recipes.
  8. Enjoy an autumnal treat at Costa or Starbucks – Going to a cafe for coffee and cake is a regular pastime of ours but we tend to opt for the same drinks and sweet treats each time. It’s always good to try something different and both of these chains bring out seasonal flavoured drinks and limited edition bakery items so there’s bound to be something new to try.
  9. Complete an autumn themed jigsaw – There are so many benefits of doing jigsaw puzzles and I find them great for helping me to maintain good mental health. I’ve already browsed a range of autumn themed jigsaws online and I’ve picked one out to treat myself to next month so I made a sticker from the Amazon image and added it to my bullet journal spread.
  10. Visit Castle Lake for seasonal bird spotting – My husband and I love spending time in nature and one of our favourite outdoor activities is bird spotting. Last week, I was looking online to see if I could find any nature reserves that we haven’t yet visited, and I came across a place called Castle Lake. Their conservation group website describes the place as ‘a haven for wildlife enthusiasts and nature lovers’ and promises an enjoyable circular walk so I added it to my list straightaway!

Final words…

I hope you’ve enjoyed seeing my bucket list for this autumn and reading about why I picked each of the items on it. During the season, I will look at my bullet journal double page spread regularly when planning out my weeks and days. For any items that fall into the project category (such as candle making), I’ll sit down and do some goals planning, such as turning them into SMART goals and outline key action steps. I also like to tick off items as I go along (yes I made myself some little tick stickers on my Cricut!), whilst at the same time remembering that my list isn’t something to work through and ensure I get finished by the end of November, but simply a collection of intentional living ideas to help me and my husband make the most of the coming autumn months.

Wishing you an amazing autumn season,

Posted in goal setting, life hacks, lifestyle, personal development, personal growth, Setting goals and intentions

Monday Matters: How I’m preparing for the Autumn season this year (2024 edition)

Posted on by Laura
Image from a selection on Canva

Over the past week, the weather in Sunderland has cooled down and it’s been quite breezy with a few warmish rain showers. It feels like the end of summer is fast approaching and that we’re quickly heading into the autumn time. My husband reckons there are still some bright and sunny days to come and I shouldn’t pack away my shorts, vest tops and cropped trousers just yet but, although I love a nice bit of sunshine, I certainly won’t miss applying greasy sunscreen to my exposed skin before spending time outdoors and feeling hot and sweaty in bed at night despite only having a thin cotton sheet as a covering. In fact, I’m looking forward to autumn this year and will be planning lots of lovely activities for the season. Today, I thought I’d share how I’m getting ready for autumn 2024 with the intention of giving you some simple ways to prepare for what’s to come and hopefully helping you to look forward to the coming months too.

Home decor

A few months ago, I was looking at the autumnal home decor in Next and saw some really cute pieces. I was very tempted to make a purchase of yet another pumpkin but I resisted as I already have over ten in my collection. However, when I got home, I decided to look at everything on their website, as often, many of the products are not available in store. With 205 items including bedding, kitchenware and tableware, vases, fragrances, lighting, pictures and more, I found it difficult to restrict myself to just one item but I was very restrained and, for click and collect, ordered a sweet little three-dimensional autumn picture with battery operated tiny light up sections.

Cute little light up 3D Hello Autumn sign

Other ways I’ll be getting my home ready in terms of decor include:

  • putting away a couple of my current mugs and replacing them with my oversized autumn leaves design one (from TKMaxx)
  • adding our autumn wreath to our front door (I got ours from Lights4Fun)
  • getting out my various pumpkins to display – I have different sizes and different textures including some ceramic ones, some plush ones in velvet (including a fantastic orange doorstop with sequins on along the grooves) and a lovely handmade crocheted one which I got last year
  • bring my throws and blankets out of storage to place on the arms our settee and the chair in our living room
  • airing our thicker quilt to put on the bed as the nights get cooler
  • choosing a few new candles to scent our home to go with the ‘baked apple pie’ one I purchased late last year (unfortunately, Aggie, our hamster doesn’t react well to stronger smells so I’m having to place them well away from her cage in the hallway)
  • collecting and using pine cones, dried leaves, stems and branches to create natural centrepieces and arrangements
  • making my own autumn inspired decor using my collection of watercolours (for this, I will experiment with mixing different earthy and autumnal colours in my palette such as browns, yellows, oranges and deep reds)

Planning some fun activities for the season

Over the past year, starting in autumn 2023, I’ve been creating a seasonal bucket list and then working on a journal to record my experiences. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed creating these but making and finishing the journals has been time consuming and involved quite a lot of expense – I must have gotten through over 50 roller tape glues over the course of the year. So, now that project is almost over, I’ve decided to continue making a bucket list for each season but only record a few of our favourite and completely new experiences in journal pages. I’m yet to create my Autumn 2024 bucket list but here’s last years in case you haven’t seen it already.

Photo credit: Laura Jones for Keeping It Creative

Wardrobe changes

Although I have my shorts and crops out at the moment, as the season gets going, I’ll be laundering and putting them all away and getting all of my thin and more cosy knits out. I picked out a few new jumpers and cardigans last year and have already bought a gorgeous pale khaki green batwing jumper with metallic fibres from Love & Roses at Next so I’m pretty much set for the season already!

We’ll also be washing and vacuum packing our thinner summer weight duvet in favour of a higher tog but we won’t put the thickest one on until the really cold nights! And finally, my sandals will be heading into the loft and my walking shoes and ankle boots will be taking their place. I keep my trainers out for my gym sessions but rarely wear them out and about unless I know I’m only going to be walking on solid, open paths where they won’t get soggy or muddy.

Recipes and drinks

As I write this section, I’m enjoying an icy cold J2O Summer Shine to help me hydrate after an intense Clubbercise class. However, in the autumn time, I will crave warming coffees, creamy hot chocolates and tasty mochas. I’m also hoping that I will still be enjoying my new, very low calorie option, mint tea, which I believe only has about 2 calories per cup. I’ve long wished to develop a liking for herbal teas (to ensure I don’t drink too much coffee in the colder months) but it has taken me a long time to find something I can tolerate let alone grow to love!

As well as transitioning mainly to hot drinks, my husband and I will also be swapping light salads for heavier and warming soups, stews, pasta and risottos. Before the autumn season arrives, I like to pick out some online recipes to try using my favourite ingredients. I also like to fill our store cupboard with wholegrain rice and pasta, packets of other healthy grains such as quinoa, freekeh, bulgur wheat and oats, plus tins of pulses such as chickpeas, kidney beans, butterbeans, black beans and lentils. We also tend not to have ice cream when the temperatures drop, opting for warming desserts with lashings of custard such as treacle tart or syrup sponge. I’m also planning on having a go at making a pineapple upside down cake (complete with cherries in each pineapple ring) this year as I remember enjoying the ones my mum used to make when I was a kid. I just need to add it to my bucket list so I don’t forget!

Pumpkin everything?

Personally, I love cooking with the various squashes that are around at this time of year and love trying different varieties (interesting known as winter squashes not autumn!). However, I’m not a fan of the popular PSL (AKA pumpkin spiced latte) or other sweet pumpkin flavoured treats that become available. Also, I don’t want any of the sickly sweet pumpkin scented candles that can be found in abundance at TKMaxx already. I don’t mind the spice element, but I’d rather go for a nice warming cinnamon. What about you? Do you fully embrace pumpkin in sweet stuff or are you glad when they run out of pumpkin spiced stuff at your local Starbucks? Luckily, cinnamon flavoured items can be purchased alongside the popular gingerbread bits and pieces which come out closer to Christmas time so their warmth can be enjoyed in winter too.

Digital screens

Each season, I change the wallpaper on my laptop and my mobile phone. Last year, I remember having a photograph of a squirrel collecting nuts, surrounded by autumn leaves which I’m sure was digitally created but used to make me smile each time I logged into my computer. I’ve seen lots of background images on Canva Pro which I must choose from before my free trial ends. For the phone wallpaper, I usually just Google ‘autumn aesthetic phone screens for android’.

Enjoying the outdoors

As the weather becomes slightly chillier, there’s no need to stay inside with the heating on and complain about how cold it’s becoming. Going for walks in the autumn is, in my opinion, an absolute must, especially when the leaves begin to change to beautiful shades of red, orange, yellow and brown and then start to lace the ground. As long as you remember to layer up so you stay warm and cosy whilst enjoying the stunning scenes, there’s so much that nature has to offer. And if you struggle with cold and pain in your hands when the temperature steadily drops, my husband can recommend the rechargeable hand warmers that you can pick up on Amazon for a small (and very worth it) charge.

As you enjoy the outdoors, why not collect some nature elements to display at home or make art with such as pine cones, jewel-coloured leaves, branches and stems. Google autumn nature crafts and don’t be put off from doing something arty just because it says it for kids!

Final words…

The more preparation you put in prior to the autumn commencing, the more joy you’ll feel and the more exciting opportunities you’ll create. Each season has so much to offer us and rather than engaging in that popular British pastime of complaining about the weather, why not spend your time fully embracing autumn doing activities that you love or have always wanted to try?

Wishing you an amazing autumn,