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What Are Your Favorite Smells of Fall?

atla-092508-smell.jpgEarlier this week, we blogged our favorite sounds of fall. But fall's also about smell as well, warm comforting smells that underline our ties to friends and family and home. Our list, after the jump...

 
 
  1. The rich amber smell of our fall candles
  2. The spicy smell of cinnamon
  3. The dark mysterious bouquet of complex red wines
  4. The sharp smell of pine in your hand after you've brushed against it.
  5. The cool smell of the night just after the sky darkens
  6. The buttery smell of melted cheese
  7. The fresh smell of new magazines
  8. The smell of the heat when it comes on
  9. The milky smell of a hot bath with bubbles and the warm smell of skin that's just been bathed
  10. The comforting smell of someone else's sweater.

What are your favorite smells of fall? Do you make an effort to change the smell of your home in the fall by adding candles, baking or cooking more or changing the varieties of flowers that you buy? Is there one smell that says fall to you more than any other?

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inspiration, smells of fall

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Comments (27)

I love the smell of wood burning fires inside and out, leaves burning, hot apple cider, that crisp cool air in the early fall mornings as the sun is rising, definitely the smell of apple-cinnamon, and warm baked goods.

posted by Signe on September 25th 2008 at 8:18am
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warm apple cider! hands down!

posted by Piri on September 25th 2008 at 8:18am
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When on a walk, I love the smell of fireplaces burning (even the smell of those nasty preformed logs).

Fresh baked banana bread in the oven.

A hearty soup or stew on the stove.

Hot tea brewing.

The inside of a pumpkin.

Anything baked with apples and cinnamon.

Warm wool blankets and sweaters fresh from storage.

Hot chocolate.

The heater the first time it's turned on for the season (I know - it's burning dust which is gross, but it signals the beginning of cool weather).

The smell in the air after the rain.

A plant near my house that gives off the scent of a pumpkin in the fall. Love it!

posted by LilyC on September 25th 2008 at 8:22am
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My favorite fall sound has to be standing in the woods, eyes closed, as a cold wind blows through the trees.

My favorite fall smell has to be woodsmoke on a cold day; it reminds me of fall as a kid and my favorite red sweater, and then going to this hunting-cabins-turned-community pig roast (even though I am vegetarian)-they would cook apple cider in a big kettle over an open fire and then put Jack in it, the smell of the woodsmoke, the cider, the crunching of leaves underfoot, the wind and the rattling of leaves in the trees; the crackle and snap of the fire....oops I'm waxing poetic here, sorry (I love fall!)

posted by Rndrc on September 25th 2008 at 8:25am
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Dry leaves
Pumpkin innards
Apple cider
School supplies (especially a new box of Crayola crayons)
Woolite (for tights and sweaters)
Cool, crisp air in the country

posted by first5times on September 25th 2008 at 8:26am
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1. fires, 2. the smell of a dewy morning and the leaves, 3. Apple cider, 4. heavy beers, 5. whiskey

posted by BosTonREvolt on September 25th 2008 at 8:27am
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Pungent oak firewood
Wet rotting leaves
Balsam and clove
My dad's pheasant stew
Dried mud on hunting dogs (seriously!)
Baked pumpkin seeds

posted by robertcraig on September 25th 2008 at 8:30am
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*then* meaning as a young adult!

posted by Rndrc on September 25th 2008 at 8:31am
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Crayons
Wet mimio paper (the kind we had in school)
Fires in fireplaces
The plain, crisp cool winds of fall
and robertcraig's dad's pheasant stew!

posted by Sleek on September 25th 2008 at 8:35am
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I also love that (probably very toxic) floor sealant smell that every school has at the beginning of the school year. It reminds me of so many Septembers back in school.

posted by first5times on September 25th 2008 at 8:38am
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I love the smell of burning leaves/twigs that people rake up in their yards, which is a hallmark of fall weather here in Georgia.

I also love the smell of amber/vanilla candles and freshly washed wool blankets.

posted by atlantadesigner on September 25th 2008 at 8:40am
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I just bought some pumpkin and cinammon candles... yummy Fall smells!

posted by xieta on September 25th 2008 at 8:40am
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Anything baking in the oven - it's finally cool enough in the apartment to bake!

The smell of our old heater as it starts up.

The smell of a crock-pot stew when you open the front door after a long day.

posted by valleyval on September 25th 2008 at 8:45am
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Rain is frequent in Seattle, no matter the season. However, in fall the air is cooler and to me, there is nothing more refreshing and relaxing then the mixed smell of the cold morning air and fallen leaves filled with last night's rain.

posted by O Lu on September 25th 2008 at 8:50am
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jewish apple cake

posted by jln3681 on September 25th 2008 at 9:12am
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The smell of hot cider/cinnamon/mulling spices

The smell of dried leaves

The smell of a pot of chili cooking on the stove

posted by Benjy on September 25th 2008 at 9:20am
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Just plain old dry leaves, oak or maple. I grew up in the midwest and moved south, where we really don't have much of a 'fall.' In fact, sometimes I get that fall smell in December or January, depending on the weather.

posted by whytephoenix on September 25th 2008 at 9:21am
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I have to agree with the warm scent of burning leaves is rather soothing...

On another note, my least favorite scent is that of the local sugar beet processing factory. Every Fall its stench covers the entire city in which I work... I can't imagine living near it.

posted by esea on September 25th 2008 at 9:52am
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hot apple cider

posted by worldtraveler22 on September 25th 2008 at 10:02am
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I live in the south.
It does not seem like fall untill sugar cane fields start burning.

posted by rhianna on September 25th 2008 at 10:13am
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Mmmmm....wet wool.....dead leaves...rotten wood...

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a286/MAGNAVERDE/DESK--CPNYsmall.jpg?t=1222371524

posted by magnaverde on September 25th 2008 at 10:40am
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the lingering smell of a bonfire on my clothes and... pinesol. weird, i know, but the smell always reminds me of entering a clean school building on the first day.

posted by thenewmrsw on September 25th 2008 at 12:01pm
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When it stops being in the 90s - 100s! geez it was hot yesterday

posted by SydneyBristow on September 25th 2008 at 12:23pm
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jln3681-- got a recipe for that?

posted by Margiefriend on September 25th 2008 at 12:54pm
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victory.

posted by Seaside on September 25th 2008 at 1:38pm
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from my new england days - that first chilly breeze that comes with the bright blue skies (rare in boston!). how to describe that smell - fresh?

posted by lovelyrita on September 25th 2008 at 1:44pm
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Pumpkin pie scented candles- I stock up each fall.

posted by tamar on September 25th 2008 at 7:45pm
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