Let’s Cuddle for Warmth

We like this time of year. The days are longish, there are still moments of glorious sunshine in between downpours, and you can legitimately propose a barbeque with a jug of Pimms OR a roast dinner with red wine with only the slightest raised eyebrow to either. It’s a win-win time of year.

It’s also the time of year when we all prepare for the great Autumn hunker down and start concentrating on self-preservation in the colder months. Summer duvets get stored away and replaced with the tog equivalent of The Michelin Man, and we plan how to make our spaces snug and cosy in anticipation of long nights curled up on the sofa clasping mugs of tea for warmth.

So, as we start to replace Instagrams of parks and picnics with pubs and burnt orange leaves, here are our top tips for embracing Autumn:

Keep Warm in Style

If you’re anything like us, the minute the temperature drops our feet and hands seem to seize up with disgust and the evenings become a battle between them both over who will lose feeling first. Our remedy to this is a combination of the softest bed socks you can find and a cosy quilt to swaddle yourself in. Layering both your home and your person is key.

Our swaddling of choice this year is our Japanese Festival Quilt designed by Delhi-based team Safomasi and inspired by their travels around Japan during the weird and wonderful festival season. Cobalt blue is a great colour to use in Autumn to brighten up your home - it has an energy about it that uplifts and it works perfectly against this year’s palette of Winter-morning greys layered with neutral fluffy cushions or sheepskins.

Bring the Outdoor In

When the weather is good there is nothing we like more than long leafy walks soaking up the bright natural colours and organic forms outdoors. But during the cooler months we tend to shuttle between buildings, keeping our exposure to the outdoor elements at an absolute minimum. We’ve noticed over the years that keeping nature ever-present in my surroundings helps me to retain balance as the seasons change.

This RHS article lists some suitable flowering houseplants for the Winter – We're going to opt for a Jasmine plant as we love the scented little white flowers. 

Store a Little Bit of Sunshine   

Don’t get us wrong, we love the Winter months, but we do like to remind ourselves when we're sipping our third hot chocolate of the day that sunshine still exists somewhere around the world, and that we’ll be reunited with it soon. Call us escapist if you will but we all need a touch of travel to break through the Winter gloom.

Our office sofa is currently bursting with prints and patterns that make our heart sing. We currently cuddle up to three gorgeous cushions from The Alleppey Collection by Safoamasi that instantly transport us to the Keralan backwaters and inject a ray of sunshine into our busy days.

If it Doubt, Let's Cuddle for Warmth

 

Images: 1. Postcards Home 2. Safomasi 3. The Guardian 4. Safomasi