July feels like a bit of an in between month in our garden. The tomatoes aren't quite ready and neither are the courgettes, but the strawberries are nearly over and the elderflowers are browning in the sunshine. Luckily, though, if you know what to search for, there are still many delights to enjoy on your plate this month.

Lots of people are unsure about gooseberries and find them too tart, but they are a wonderful fruit that we really should utilise much more in the kitchen. Try baking them in a tart or turn them into jam (particularly good with leftover strawberries) and enjoy with a dollop of creme fraiche.

Beetroot is starting to come into its own by the time July rolls around. Don't be put off by any you've had from the supermarket swimming in vinegar - the real stuff is so much tastier! Grate into curries and chilli dishes, blend to form a soup or roast with other summer veg for a quick and easy midweek meal. If you've got time it's also rather wonderful in a chocolate cake, and makes for a much healthier treat.

French beans and mangetout are two other summer staples for the month ahead. French beans in particular are so easy to grow and take up so little space, and they just keep on coming over the summer.  Add to stir-fries, pasta dishes or use them to spruce up a salad. If they're picked early you can enjoy them raw, but if not don't overcook them or they'll be limp and bland.

Lamb is also at its best, so get the barbecue out and grill some lamb and mint burgers. Throw on a few vegetable kebabs and serve with nettle jelly (nicer than it sounds!). Finish the meal with homemade rose petal ice cream and you're in for a treat.

July is... opening every window in the house and still feeling hot, relishing the smell of freshly-mown grass, an ice lolly a day, flashes of brightly coloured butterflies, and a houses full of flies.

Did you know? The days from the 3rd to the 11th of July are known as 'dog days', originating from the Roman belief that Sirius (the Dog Star) gave greater heat to the sun at this time of year as it was so bright in the night sky. It's actually to do with the tilt of the Earth which gives us these hotter days of summer.

Dates for your diary: 15th July is St Swithin's Day and according to legend if it rains on this day, it will continue to do so for 40 more days. The proverb 'He who eats oysters on St James' Day will not want for money' refers to the 25th of July, so get yourself to the seaside and indulge in fresh shells.

July in words:

Blue July, bright July,
Month of storms and gorgeous blue;
Violet lightnings o'er thy sky,
Heavy falls of drenching dew.

George Meredith, from 'July'

Things to do at home and in the garden:

• If it's hot, not a lot! This month enjoy the outdoor space you have and try to eat alfresco whenever possible. Throw a linen tablecloth over a table, light a few candles and enjoy salads and barbeques in the summer air.
• Keep on top of dead-heading flowers to make sure they continue to bloom.
• Make your own ice lollies to save money and to make sure you always have something cooling when you return home. My favourites contain just one ingredient: fresh orange juice. 

Be creative:

Flower pressing isn't just for young girls - it's a simple way to preserve beautiful blooms.

One of my favourite things to do is read and learn more about the things I'm passionate about. I've always had a voracious mind and as an adult I'm no different; if there's a course or article that appeals I'll sign up and take part straight away, and I think by doing this I make sure I'm always evolving as a person. Finding a video or book that speaks directly to you is such a wonderful feeling, and in my quest to live life a little more slowly I've found some fantastic resources just like this, so today I'm sharing them with you...

First up, if you're still a little unsure what slow living really entails, you should watch this video - In Praise of Slowness - with Carl Honore, who is often seen as the first true advocate of the slow living movement. There's also an interview with him here on Kinfolk which is definitely worth a read.

For anyone involved in business (and particularly for those running their own businesses), The Happy Startup School is an incredibly heart-warming and inspiring space that offers a free e-book and helpful videos alongside blog posts and more. The Happy Startup Summer Camp is definitely something you should check out too - particularly these videos.

Ever heard of microadventures? Alastair Humphreys is an adventurer who experiences the wild in a way that easily fits in with your everyday life. Think wild camping, alfresco dining and truly embracing the elements. You can take part in Your Year of Microadventures right now, and summer is the perfect time to begin!

Looking for a slow living must-read list for your next trip to a bookshop? London Review Bookshop has one for you right here.

Create the Good Life is a comprehensive online space for all things slow living. Each month a new article goes live about topics such as the power of understanding the choices we make, personal sustainability and the sacred everyday. Small, Ordinary and Deeply Fulfilling is a good place to start.

For a brief foray into the micropolitics of slow living this journal article is for you. 

The International Institute of Not Doing Much offers a tongue-in-cheek checklist of how to slow down.

For more news articles, The Huffington Post has a whole section on slow living - my favourite article is Unplug and Recharge, offering the secrets of a simple life.

Next on my to-read list are Slow Family Living: 75 Simple Ways to Slow Down, Connect, and Create More Joy and The Happiness Project. I'm always on the lookout for books like this, so if you have any you particularly love let me know!

Do you enjoy learning new things? What have you been inspired by lately?

Taking photographs and documenting the changes in my garden as the seasons ebb and flow is one of my favourite simple pleasures. It's so easy to get caught up in domestic duties and home life that we can neglect what's on our doorsteps, but it doesn't have to be that way.  If you reset your priorities on a regular basis and remind yourself that it's really ok to spend an hour or so doing what you love, then quite suddenly these simple pleasures become much easier to notice and make time for. 

For me it's all about being at one with nature. I love to breathe in the scent of a balmy summer's eve as a light breeze caresses my shoulders. I love to scrunch my feet and feel the springy spikes of grass between my toes. I love simply sitting and watching as swallows swoop through the treetops and the dark shapes of bats appear as dusk falls. Writing is one way I like to document these simple pleasures, but photography comes a close second.

Often in the depths of winter I like to leaf through my albums and recall the heat of summer or the freshness of the first peepings of seedlings as they appear. You’ll often find me telling a nostalgic story about autumn days past, even when it’s only just spring, but the beauty of finding these simple pleasures is that they can be relived and enjoyed for longer than just that one fleeting moment. They also provide a reminder that whatever chaos and stress we are currently experiencing in our lives, the one thing we can rely on is the constancy of the changes in nature.

Time, inevitably, is always in short supply. So how can notice simple pleasures like these when life is rushing past so fast?

1.
Set your alarm for 10 minutes earlier than usual, grab your camera or notebook and get outside. It doesn’t matter if you’re still in your pyjamas, bleary eyed and a little off balance – the whole point is to rebalance your awareness as the day begins. At certain times of the year you’ll be privy to the sunrise if you’re up early enough, and observing this primitive ritual is a stark reminder of a greater existence.

2.
Actually take a lunch break. It’s so easy to just work through your lunch, not really taking in what you’re consuming. But an appreciation of food and the sustenance it provides goes further than just taking the time once a day, once a week, once a month even: all meals should be held sacred, and even if you just switch off for 15 minutes you’ll find you eat more slowly and mindfully and will really enjoy the food in front of you. 

3.
A trick I was taught to reduce my technology-related headaches when I was younger was to stick to a 20 minute rule: every 20 minutes make sure you look away from the computer or phone and focus your eyes on something far away – the further the better. Try the same trick and focus on something outside, or if you’re away from a window go and take a look out for a minute or two. Take pleasure in what you see, knowing that life continues outside of whatever you’re busy doing.

4.
Set aside one evening a week (or just a few hours if you can’t manage a whole evening) to switch off those distractions and devices. Get rid of technology, turn off the TV and schedule in time to do the things you love. I find that sometimes the only way we allow ourselves this pleasure is if we actually add it to our calendars and decide in advance that this is the time we can do as we please. Go for a walk, read an inspiring book or get creative: just make sure you add it to your diary beforehand.

5.
Document your simple pleasures. If you’ve already got a daily writing habit, start slowly and write just once sentence a day to capture something simple yet fulfilling that you read, watched, spoke about or took part in. Build up to a few sentences or whole diary entries if you like. You’ll find that once you start writing these memories down, you’ll start to look out for them a lot more in your everyday life, therefore having more to write about, and so the pattern continues…

What does your garden look like this month? What simple pleasures have you noticed today?

I’m a big believer in planning out your week, and I’m proof that approaching life in this way can allow you to create a life you love filled with everything you currently can’t seem to make time for. Today's post takes you through how to design your week, and is actually part of one of the lessons featured in 7 Steps to Slow Things Down (a free email course you can sign up for now!).
 
To start on your personalised planning process you’ll actually need a planner. Or, if you’re anything like me, you’ll need 2. The first will be an electronic calendar for you to plan ahead by months rather than weeks, and the second will be a either an electronic or hand-written weekly planner (call me old-fashioned but for this I definitely prefer a hand-written version, and having a hard copy to stick on my fridge is a great reminder for the days when I’m not glued to the laptop screen).
 

I use Google Calendar for my long-term planning (not sponsored - I just like using it): it’s easy and free to use, syncs seamlessly with my phone (and therefore reminders pop up should I need them) and allows me to colour-code my appointments / tasks – and I love a bit of colour-coding. When I first set it up I added all birthdays for family and friends and any long-term plans for the year (weddings, baby showers etc.), plus I blocked off my working hours to prevent any scheduling clashes – this will work if you work for a company or for yourself, but just might take a little more time to organise if your working hours are often sporadic.
 
Once your long-term calendar is up and running, designing your week is ridiculously easy. I created my own planner, and if you think it might work for you too then simply sign up to download it right away. Each week print off a copy and transfer over anything in your long-term calendar. What you’ll be left with is time to mould and shape into whatever you wish.

I like to set aside evenings in the week for specific activities, and of course remember this can change every week, and it might even change mid-week – but THAT’S OK! This is your plan and it should work for you. Adopting this approach is not necessarily going back in time, but it does utilise some of the same notions and ideals from history: Monday was wash day, Thursday was cleaning day and everyone shopped on a Friday. They might have been on to a thing a two.
 
To give you some ideas, here’s my evening plan for a typical week (I work in the day):

• Monday: my other half is at work so I blog and sort out bills, admin etc.
• Tuesday: a bit of housework, but mostly I set aside time to read.
• Wednesday: usually set aside for plans with friends.
• Thursday: sometimes I have a course / club to attend, but otherwise I try to get outside or work on the blog if it’s too miserable.
• Friday: date night!
• Saturday: wash day, then set aside for plans with family.
• Sunday: meal planning and time to fill out my weekly planner followed by a bit of self-care (think bath, book and nail polish).

Yes, my time is still full. No, I don’t have children, and I know that this sort of plan won’t work for everyone. What you can do, though, is adapt and mould to your own personal specification. Maybe evenings aren’t the best time for you to create weekly rituals – maybe mornings or lunch breaks or just weekends are all you can manage right now – but whatever time you do have, following a process like this allows you to make the most of every ounce of that ‘free’ time.
 
Let’s recap with how you can design your week:

• Set up a calendar and make sure to include birthdays, anniversaries and long-term plans.
• Use a weekly planner and transfer everything over from the calendar before adding in daily rituals and plans.
• Make sure you add in time to fulfil your goals and plan out meals.

How do you design your week? 

While living a slow lifestyle is usually associated with a lack of ‘things’ it is perhaps inevitable in our modern society that certain tools will be required for any way of life. For me, it’s all about choosing the right tools so that I’m not left with things I don’t need or really want.

This decision making process didn’t happen overnight, and even today I can still be tempted when I see new and exciting products on the market that profess to cure all sorts of ailments or solve your problems. A few years ago, temptation proved too difficult to withstand and after university I ended up carting to my new home an exercise bike, bread maker and electronic keyboard, with plans for a new car, laptop and more exercise equipment. I thought that choosing these ‘things’ would help me to achieve a way of life that I thought I desired: a life where I’d cycle for an hour a day (in my living room) and use gadgets to avoid spending any length of time in the kitchen. And for what? Solitary indoor exercise made me miserable, gadgets were expensive space fillers and I’d spent far too much money on things I thought were what I needed. Sound familiar?

My ‘everything-clicked’ moment of realisation that this wasn’t what I wanted at all was when we were preparing to move house. I looked at the piles of ‘things’ ready to be shipped to our new home and didn’t feel connected to any of it. In my quest to fit in with what everyone else was doing I’d lost any concept of what I loved and what made me unique. I think sometimes it can be a scary and intimidating process to admit that what you want to do with your life, and how you want to live your life, is so very different to those people around you. I didn’t want any of what they had, but I didn’t know how to escape it.

Aptly, I started slowly and gradually reduced my reliance and acceptance of the way things were. I ditched the gadgets and got rid of anything that I didn’t love and that didn’t make me happy. Although initially daunting, it became a liberating process. Don’t be misled into thinking that I fully embraced the maxims of minimalism: there was no way I’d ever get rid of my piles of books, but that was the whole point – instead of finding no time to read the books (the things that actually did make me happy) I’d created a new lifestyle in which books took centre stage and I had prioritised the ‘tools’ that I found both useful and joyful.

Without further ado, then, here are my essential tools for slow living:

1. A calendar and weekly planner. “What?” I hear you cry, “isn’t this supposed to be slow living, you know, without complications and extra work?” You’re right, it is, but the crux of living more slowly is using your time efficiently. Time isn’t endless, and we will always desire more of it, so making sure to prioritise and schedule in time for doing what you love is essential. My job could take up twelve hours a day if I let it, so using a planner to ensure this doesn’t happen is a vital part of being able to live life in this way.
2. Preserving jars and freezer containers. You don't have to turn into Delia Smith overnight to reap the rewards of eating with the seasons and thinking ahead to prolong the enjoyment of certain foods. Since slowing my life down I've made jams, jellies, chutnies and cordials, despite having no prior experience, and aiming to have a fully-stocked larder (ideally with homemade produce) makes it so much easier to enjoy the process of cooking and eating food. Making huge batches of midweek favourites is also a good idea; spend an afternoon over a hot stove and you'll be able to fill your freezer for those days when cooking is the last thing on your mind.
3. Inspiring books and magazines. There are days when I feel like everything is slipping. A lost list here, a panic over plans there and slow living can fly out of the window. Whilst I aspire to live slowly, seasonally and positively, there are inevitably moments when things start to crumble and it can be hard to pick yourself up. It's on those days that I find picking up an inspiring book or magazine can do wonders for my soul.
4. Outdoor space (even if it’s just a windowsill) and a few pots. Slow living is all about taking the time to appreciate the natural world and all it has to offer, but that doesn't mean you have to live in the countryside. When I first started living more slowly my home was a tiny flat with no outside space whatsoever. But I still grew my own herbs (on the windowsill) and picked wildflowers for my bedside table. If you've got a tiny balcony or patio there's plenty of space for a few pots, and over the summer months a few seeds and the odd splash water will ensure you are self-sufficient in salad leaves. 

Of course, there are many more tools that you could use on your path to living more slowly. We now own a polytunnel, for example, and I have vases and wreath bases and so on to allow me to bring nature into the home. Your creative outlet might require specific materials and products, or maybe owning a journal is an essential part of your routine. But if you don't have these 4 things, I've found from past experience that slow living can get a little caught up in everyday life and become impossible.

June is the month when the abundance of summer begins. If you grow-your-own, you'll be spending the next few weeks podding peas and trying to resist eating them like sweets from their tiny green cases. Why not try making your own mushy peas to devour alongside a traditional fish supper? Simply blend butter, salt, mint (ideally fresh but sauce will do) and the peas for the freshest mushy peas you've ever tasted.

Broad beans should also be featuring on your plate, but if you can't find them in your veg patch you'll have to search for a local supplier as they're not readily available. You can blitz like the peas and enjoy as a dip to go alongside a Mexican feast, or add to summer soups for a nutty, earthy flavour like no other.

Sticking with veg, June is officially the start of salad season: lettuces are at their best (no wilted leaves or bolting) and you can enjoy alongside new potatoes, flans and lining the sides of your sandwiches. Throw in a few radishes, some slices of cucumber and a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil and you're on to a winner.

You might not find British strawberries early in the month, but by the second half they should be readily available. Don't be tempted by shipped in punnets - they're usually bland and have been stacked high for days before you've bought them from the supermarket shelves - and besides, the anticipation of enjoying homegrown varieties makes the reward so much sweeter. Make sure you make the most of their season and enjoy whenever you can: scatter on your cereal, as a snack to take to work, turned into jams (and stored to brighten up the winter months) or switch things up and add to a salad. 

If you're looking for a simple supper dish, try mackerel kedgeree - the fish is freshly available this month and its punchy flavour will bring a depth to any salad dish. Boil an egg, add onions and peas and wild rice and you'll have a light midweek meal perfect to enjoy after a tiring day at work.

You've probably heard of simple living, of conscious living and of mindful living, but what remains less well known is the concept of slow living. Shifting the focus from quantity and speed to quality of life remains at its core, and its effects have been transformative for me.

I recently reached a point in my life where my to-do list was never-ending and I prioritised by simply choosing the most pressing deadline and ploughing through. At the end of the day I would collapse into a heap on the sofa and waste a few hours trying to regain some semblance of a life. I'd wake feeling fatigued and irritable and would haul myself upstairs to bed before starting all over again; no matter how many good intentions I'd have to escape from my stupor and actually do something, things never seemed to work that way.

When I first discovered the concept of slow living I disregarded the idea, believing naïvely that there was no hope for me to ever live this way because I simply had too much to do, too much to fit in, and there just wasn't enough time in the day to slow anything down. What I didn't know, is that this is the kind of lifestyle primed for a change to slow living.

What is slow living?

It's a process of reconnection: with the world around you, with the seasons, but most of all with the things you love to do, that somehow get so easily lost in the chaos of modern life. Slow living embraces a simple lifestyle full of homecooked meals, traditional celebrations and rituals and time spent wisely. There will never be enough hours in the day, but we can shape and mould the time we have according to our wishes and desires, and once we can do that, we're able to live more slowly, mindfully and with care.

We are a product of our environment, but for many of us that environment is fast evolving into a focus on the man-made, speed-focused and chaotic, and we start to feel misaligned. Don’t be misled into thinking this means you have to ditch technology and the modern world for good - slow living is more about streamlining your reliance and bringing things back to basics in order to simplify and slow down your daily life.

Society dictates that we move at speed: speed typing, fast food, speed dating, fast results… it seems like everything is seen as better if we can achieve it in a short space of time. For some things, I’m sure, that’s accurate. No one wants a slow blood test or a slow job interview. But what about everything else?

What about slow food? We eat without thought, consuming food not meals, and don't take the time to enjoy what's on our plates and really taste what we're eating. This comes somewhat from our over-reliance on supermarkets, ready meals and takeaways, and while there's nothing wrong with these every once in a while, cooking and enjoying something you've cooked from scratched turns a humble dinner into a celebration. And why not celebrate every day? Why do limit ourselves to 'special' occasions?

The path and process to slow down your life isn't an immediate one (it's called slow for a reason). You're not going to wake up tomorrow and realise that suddenly every chaotic thing in your life has disappeared, because it doesn’t work like that. But you can introduce manageable and positive changes that will make a difference.

My approach to slow living is a little different to the norm in that it begins (a pre-process, if you like) with organisation. I've found that cementing routines and plans in place to be essential in beginning to live a slow life that actually has a lot going on. Running a home, working 9-5, seeing family and friends, running Creative Countryside - it doesn't sound like I'm living a slow life! But I am.

Every day I take time to connect with the natural world. I'm able to enjoy the process of cooking and eating rather than rush through it with a panicked notion of running out of time. Sometimes I'll even take the day off. All of this is only possible, though, because I did the work beforehand: I set up meal planning spreadsheets, streamlined my wardrobe and set goals that allowed me to focus on exactly what I wanted to achieve. Following this process took a little while, but good things come to those who wait, and once I'd got to the point where everything was set up and I'd designed my lifestyle to look how I wanted it to look, I could truly say I had embraced slow living.

1. Reconnect with nature on a micro-adventure in the wild.
2. Go and see a play or adaptation outdoors.
3. Make mornings easier: simplify your wardrobe.
4. Explore and find your new favourite walk.
5. Make jams and jellies and preserve the summer surplus.
6. Develop a relaxation routine you love.
7. Leave a part of your garden to grow wild to encourage wildlife.
8. Make your own ice lollies with fresh juice to cool you down on hot days.
9. If you don’t grow-your-own, visit a PYO farm for fresh berries or vegetables.
10. Celebrate Midsummer with a bonfire and family.

June is... gorging on the soft flesh of ripe strawberries, al-fresco cooking, the crackle of midsummer bonfires, thundery showers, and the humming of bees.

Did you know? At one time the days from the 23rd to the 29th of June were all considered as 'midsummer festival', whereas now we tend to see Midsummer's Day as the 24th of June. According to John Stow, in London in the 1590s, doors would have been festooned with greenery: from white lilies to long fennel and green birch. Bonfires were the traditional way to celebrate the season, intended to bring peace and encourage neighbours to converse, and also to purify the air. As June is often the month we migrate outside (in the UK at least), it seems fitting to make time to celebrate the height of summer and nature's bounteous offerings. This year I'm hoping to revive the custom of a week's worth of revelry, with a midsummer bonfire, and green door decorations: will you join me?

Dates for your diary: The summer solstice - or the longest day - marks the turn of the year once again, and falls on Sunday 21st June. A precursor to midsummer, this final week of June means the daylight remains until past 10pm, so make the most of the light before it begins to slip away again.

June in words:

The bonny month of June is crowned With the sweet scarlet rose; The groves and meadows all around With lovely pleasure flows.

(Cornish Midsummer Bonfire Song)

Things to do at home and in the garden:

• Leave part of your garden to grow wild. As a nation of lawn trimmers, we get used to neatly mown grass and not a lot else, but just leaving a small part, or the edges of your garden, to grow wild, will enable you to help a menagerie of tiny wildlife. Wild flowers are integral to our landscape (see here for more on this) and are an essential source of nectar for honey bees (something which we are passionate about with our newly acquired hive!), but so often we hack them down and only admire from afar. This year, make them a priority in your outdoor space.
• Take part in 30 Days Wild. A new scheme for 2015, the plan is for everyone to make room for nature this June - no matter where you are or how busy your life! With tons of ideas for Random Acts of Wildness - record the birds singing for your ringtone, make a hedgerow brew and wild exercise to name just three - it's a fantastic way to introduce nature into your everyday routine without it becoming too onerous. Click here to sign up and receive the free welcome pack.
• It's not too late to start growing some veg. For an easy salad, plant lettuce and radish seeds straight into the ground or in a pot. If you're looking for something more substantial, chard is easy to grow, looks wonderful on your plate (rainbow-coloured stalks!) and lasts right through the summer and well into autumn. Get planting.

Be creative: If you're thinking of celebrating midsummer, then you definitely need to try your hand at Midsummer Cushions - all explained in this month's letter for subscribers.

Today is launch day!

Your Guide to Seasonal Creativity is here, and not only will you receive the free guide, once you sign up you'll also be the recipient of my new monthly email letter that includes: simple living tips on how to reduce the chaos in your life; a reminder of what fruit and veg is in season; what seasonal rituals you could celebrate; and creative projects inspired by nature for you to try.

So what are you waiting for? Join the exclusive seasonal circle to be a part of a wholesome community of fellow creatives.

It’s time to simplify your life, get inspired by nature and enhance your creativity.

I’ll let you into a secret: every month, you could increase your blog readership, guarantee inspiration and enhance your creativity through just one simple change. It’s not difficult to implement, and I’ll make it even easier for you with a helpful reference guide. Sound good?

All you have to do is post relevant, seasonal content.

That’s it!

So why should I be doing this again?

If you’ve ever looked at trending Twitter hashtags, you’ll know that people mostly communicate about up-to-date issues and events, and on social media sites your content is much more likely to be noticed if you follow suit. Let’s use my eat seasonably post series as an example: this set of posts go out monthly and run through everything that is good to eat during those 4 (or so) weeks, and they frequently outperform other content. The best thing about it is that I never intentionally set out to run this as an ongoing series, and the main reason I initially started writing was to remind myself what I should be shopping for. As the posts evolved and improved in terms of content, readers began to let me know how useful they found them, advising that they also use the posts inspiration for their monthly meal plans.

Readership aside, choosing to blog with the seasons is also a way to guarantee a source of inspiration. Let’s imagine you’re reaching the end of May and are running out of ideas on what to post about. You might have an inkling of an idea or a theme in mind but nothing seems to be formulating. The solution? Make it relevant and seasonal.

How does this all link to my blog?

May is the time for tall spindly stems of cow parsley, for fields that glow yellow, for maypoles and floral garlands and for a gradual warming of the earth. So if you’re a lifestyle blogger get out and enjoy the best that the British countryside has to offer at this time of year; take photographs of morning walks, capture outfits in a yellow field rather than in front of a brick wall and take part in seasonal events. If you’re a creative blogger then make something with a seasonal slant (you’ll find more ideas over here) or simply use colours and shapes from nature to guide your design process. If you’re a food blogger then you’ve got it easy! Simply choose recipes with seasonal ingredients, or visit restaurants that serve seasonal and local food.

It can be so easy to forget what’s on our doorsteps once we get embroiled into creating blogging content that must be like this, or should really contain that, but if you alter your focus and instead shift to what you see, smell or hear from the natural word, there will always be something new to discover.

Won’t everyone be posting the same things then?

In short – no! What’s inspiring for one will do nothing for another. What sparks an interest in using colour creatively in one will inspire another to pick out structural features to design something new. You are unique, and therefore your outlook and approach to nature and the world around us will also be. Just don’t be afraid to create something a bit different; those posts you’ve written but squirreled away because you’re afraid to share something that no one else really is, are often the best and most inspiring to your readers.

What other benefits are there to blogging with the seasons?

It’s not only your blog that will profit from your new-found focus; creative acts and your personal life will also flourish. At the beginning of each month I post about how to live seasonally, and throughout the month I will use that post as a guide for what I could (and would love) to be doing. So in May so far I’ve created and delivered a May Day posy, I’ve orchestrated a huge spring clean and I’ve written about seasonal wildflowers and asparagus (as well as eating quite a few stalks too). It’s not about forcing yourself to write or create something you wouldn’t normally; it’s simply a way of guiding your lifestyle and blog to follow a more natural route aligned with seasonal change.

How do I know what to look out for?

If you’ve been reading and have decided that while this all sounds lovely and interesting, you’ve got no idea how to shift your focus and start to blog with the seasons, then panic not, for I’ve created a handy reference guide for you. It covers what to look out for in each season and details any celebrations / events that may also be of interest.

BONUS: Not sure what happens when in the seasonal calendar? You need my month-by-month guide.

If you’re a creative as well as a blogger (and let’s face it, most of us are both!) then you might also like my seasonal creativity eBook – get it over here if you’re looking for even more inspiration.