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I wrapped myself in a soft thick sweater on October 1st. The weather was gloomy, rainy, and freezing cold, as if it knew we’re in the middle of fall. As I feel the warmth of the fibers on my skin, I look out the window. Autumn is now visible. There are leaves on the ground, raindrops on the window, puddles on the streets, and you can see your breath in the cold air.
It’s time for my fall wardrobe to fill the closets. I also find my fall-themed cookie cutters and get the dough ready for the first batch of cinnamon rolls of the season. I get my winter duvet, all the blankets, and fall candles. This is how I prepare to welcome fall in every corner of my home and heart.
If you’ve been wondering how to prepare for fall to make the best of the season, I made a little guide to help you find ideas and inspiration. Let’s enter the cozy season together!
How to Prepare Your Heart for Fall
Fall is my favorite season and that is glaringly obvious, ehm… I named my blog after Autumn & I was born in November. Yet still, each year, I feel the need to prepare my heart for what the season brings.
If I could live my dream life in the fall, I’d take all the road trips, eat all the cinnamon rolls in the world, cozy up in different cafes each day, read books, plan my fall outfits, buy fall candles, and spend my free time doing fall baking and DIYing.
I’ve been carrying this idealized version of fall in my heart for decades. Some seasons, I’ve done some of these things, but most of it is just a dream I hope to live someday.
Nowadays, life looks a lot busier for me. Between navigating motherhood, a day job, and the day-to-day responsibilities, there’s not much time or space left for carefree leisurely activities.
This is why I find this season equally magical and overwhelming. I want to do all the things and experience fall with all my senses and still be a present mom, wife, friend, daughter, and slow living blogger.
If you love pumpkins, cozy candles, and warm drinks, then my soft pink cozy fall collection is for you!
Find the Just a Girl Who Loves Fall + more cozies, coffee mugs, & home decor HERE
So, how do you prepare your heart for fall if you, too, find this season overwhelming and tiresome?
One thing I find grounding is being thankful for yet another fall and yet another birthday. This helps me look forward to the beautiful, cozy, simple things I want to do this season.
I recently found some lovely autumn journal prompts and have found this simple practice to be so soothing for me. I like to do one prompt in the morning, and if I feel inspired, I’ll do one at night before bed as well.
I also like to plan fall activities because I want to create new memories with my family. Whether it’s a walk in the park on a perfect autumn day, a cozy early breakfast in my favorite cafe, or a fall festival of some kind, these are all things I’m excited to put in my calendar.
How to Cozy Up Your Home for Fall
For me, it’s officially autumn when I get all my fall home decor out and turn my home into a warm, cozy, inviting place. I try to add something new each year without going overboard. I really like foraging for natural decorations like acorns, pumpkins, tree branches, pinecones, leaves, and conkers.
I don’t really have a system for decorating my home for fall. I just go with my instincts and the feel of the room.
Since the living room and kitchen are the heart of the home, I like to add fall scented candles and fall themed cushions, as well as a table runner with a soft fall motif. As for tableware, I try to keep it simple and cohesive and only use accent pieces like mugs, plates, or napkins.
I always try to match everything and stick to neutral, earthy colors. This is how I create a soothing, relaxing atmosphere and invite autumn inside.
Here are some a few soft neutral fall home decor ideas:
How to Create Simple Healthy Habits for Fall
Fall is a time to reset your life and be gentle to yourself as you move towards the end of the year. With the holiday season just around the corner, it can be hard to navigate everything and still find a pocket of time to yourself.
A good way to ease into fall is to look at your habits and discover some gentle ways to create new ones.
Here are 5 things you can do to create new simple healthy habits this fall:
- Take inventory of what works for you at the moment and what doesn’t. This can include things like your current habits, lifestyle, relationships, goals… Then, write down the reasons why something works or doesn’t work for you and how you’d like to change it and move forward.
- Get clear priorities in the main areas of your life you’d like to improve. For example, if you want to feel calmer, more relaxed, and more rested this season, what are the top 3 things to prioritize to achieve this? If you want to start a new job or career, what are the main things you need to do in order to move towards your goal?
- Think about how you want to feel inside and out and how to achieve that feeling. I firmly believe we experience life through the senses. We internalize the events and things we go through, process them, and then decide if they’re good, bad, or neutral. So how do you want to feel this fall? For example, I want to feel more present as a parent, so what do I need to do? I need to remind myself to leave my phone, stop thinking about work too much, and do some fun activities with my daughter.
- Ask yourself what you need most this fall. Is it more slowness, health, community, love, etc. Clarity is one of the fastest ways to achieve your goals and improve your life. When you know exactly what you need, you’ll outline the steps with ease. If I want community, I need to connect with people in a different way, I need to sign up for some classes, send more newsletters, join FB groups etc.
- Use my Soft Life Planner to help you create slower routines and more breathing room in your life. There are 37 pages of daily, weekly, and monthly reflections, prompts, self-care reset, and soft life goals pages for self-reflection to help you fill your days with what truly matters
The Soft Life Planner ($7) is designed to be your daily companion to a softer, slower way of life. Let it guide you to what truly matters, leaving space for slowness, and practicing the art of doing less.
Prepare For A Cozy, Slow, and Healthy Fall Season
If you’re also starting to prepare for fall and want to make this season as simple and as joyful as possible, I hope my tips will give you a few ideas on how to approach it.
There’s magic to be found in the mid-autumn quietness and the lead up to winter. As we prepare our pantries and homes for a season of deep rest, maybe we can fill up our hearts with cozy, warm, beautiful things this fall.
If you want to connect with me on socials, you can find me on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest. I’d love to hear how you prepare for fall!
You can also sign up for my newsletter below to get my cozy soft life letters once or twice a month. I share monthly favorites, soulful musings, and wonderful things I come across that I think you’ll love!
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