Is the autumn aesthetic seasonal fun or a step too far?

Jessica Thomas loves autumn but admits she "falls victim" to keeping up with the latest trend

Pumpkin spice lattes, cosy blankets and every shade of orange under the sun - autumn has arrived and, if you step foot in a shop, it's impossible to miss.

Social media creator Jessica Thomas spends about £150 each year preparing for the season and, while it "fills me with happiness", she admits she can "fall victim" to the pressure to have the perfect home decor.

"It's almost like one-upmanship to stay relevant and on trend, which is sad," the 26-year-old acknowledged.

Recent years have seen a boom in products marketed around autumn - or fall, as this US import is also known - with trending sounds on social media promoting "cosy season" making people wonder if they need another candle, mug or festive cushion.

Now, it extends far beyond spooky Halloween items and has become an entire home aesthetic, strived for by many.

"It's been my favourite season for as long as I can remember," said Jessica, from Caerphilly.

"From the autumnal colours of browns and oranges to the smells of pumpkin and chai, it feels homely."

She spends between £100 and £150 on decorating for the season, double her £50 - £75 budget of previous years.

"My partner and I have recently bought our first home. Getting the chance to decorate my home the way I like has increased my love for the season," she said.

"If it were up to me my home would be autumnal all year around."

With bargain stores picking up on the trend and TikTok and Instagram providing a steady stream of cosy content to people's phones, the home decor pressure is everywhere.

Social media trends encourage people to re-design their homes to be "cosy" for autumn

When her childhood love for Halloween transitioned into a nostalgic appreciation for autumnal decor, Hope Barker, from Cwmbran, Torfaen, found herself forking out £100 a year.

"I have friends and colleagues who say I'm crazy, but it makes me happy," she said.

Hope, 27, has "always been an autumn girl" and now enjoys sharing content on social media, themed around this time of year.

"Previously, when there's not been much in the shops, you couldn't decorate as much, but now there's more it adds to the excitement," she said.

Hope Barker says she was "brought up loving Halloween" so autumn has a nostalgic importance to her

"Over the years, I've built up quite a collection," she said, adding she tried to reuse as much as possible but was prone to buying things like autumnal mugs.

"I understand where pressure can come from and I sometimes do feel it myself.

"Some people may buy things to try and stay relevant on social media, or feel they have to buy certain products, but I don't think that's what makes or breaks Halloween decor.

"I think it's down to nostalgia and the desire to want to take on how America treats the holidays. We see it in the movies and it looks so fun.

"I say 'you do you' - if it's not your thing, that's great."

Content creators say one of their aims is to show people how they can join in with seasonal decorating on a tighter budget

Ellis Bartlett, 34, from Caerphilly has "loved autumn for as long as I can remember".

"It's just so cosy. Cold, crisp days with the changing of the leaves... there is nothing better than being in the house, wearing your pyjamas, cwtched up in a blanket with a nice cuppa," she said.

She said the "natural side" of autumn was the main draw, but seeing lots of decor in the shops gave her excitement "a little extra boost".

The mum-of-two has been creating a series of TikToks to let others know when viral, highly sought-after autumn decor items are available in high street stores.

"This year I've definitely spent a lot more on autumn decor. As a Gilmore Girls fan, I was so excited to see so many shops selling Gilmore Girls merch this year for the 25th anniversary.

"I've also purchased Disney autumn decor, other home decor bits and even items to decorate my front door.

"So, honestly, I don't want to think about how much I've spent."

Ellis said strong marketing and "better trend forecasting" by retailers, as well as the influence of social media, had led to "making autumn aesthetic more prominent".

Ellis Bartlett says she doesn't want to think about how much she's spent decorating her home for autumn

Dr Amna Khan, a retail and consumer expert at Manchester Metropolitan University, said retailers definitely "try to tap into seasonal trends that make their products go viral".

But she said the main factor she noticed was people "using their homes as much more of a public space than they did prior to Covid".

"Whether it's seasonal decor or related to events such as Halloween and Christmas, houses are transformed.

"We have changed the public and private boundaries of what happens within our homes, they have blurred."

Like Hope, Amna said Halloween was something the UK had "inherited from America" and it was becoming "bigger every single year".

"Some consumers will be really savvy about it [and] confidently reuse their products. The stigma of reusing is gone now, it's much more acceptable.

"We have been through a cost of living crisis and we all understand the pinch on the wallet.

"My daughter is eight years old and she wants to get the house ready for trick-or-treaters - that's not something I did when I was younger."