Tonight’s sky will be illuminated by the Harvest Moon (the name given to the full moon in October), so it feels like perfect time to kick off what has become a household favourite over the years – Hallomass.
While I acknowledge that Thanksgiving is a controversial holiday, I am sometimes envious of Americans for having a November festivity to fill the gap between Halloween and Christmas. Inspired by House of Hackney’s Witchmas Festival, I decided that Mark and I should coin our own term for this spiderwebs to snowflakes transitional season. And so it was that Hallomass was born.
Hallomass, which starts today and will run through to Twelfth Night, is a celebration of all that is good about the autumn and winter. It’s curling up with the cats on the sofa to watch a spooky film. It’s adding cinnamon to breakfast and smoked paprika to hearty stews. It’s reading Jeanette Winterson’s Why I Adore the Night by candlelight. It’s eating your body weight in M&Ms with that friend who loves Die Hard as much as you do (because I will fight anyone who says it’s not a Christmas film). It’s bed socks and flannel pyjamas.
In summary? It’s perfect.