
As the leaves change color and a crispness fills the air, it’s time to embrace the cozy comforts of fall. This season invites us to turn inward towards our home with warmth and comfort, creating a cozy haven for the chilly days to come. With just a few steps, you can transform your space into an inviting haven. In this post, I will show you my simple steps for preparing my home for the cozy days of fall. From adding soft blankets to creating an inviting atmosphere with beeswax candles and natural decor, you will see how simple it is to create a warm and welcoming environment. Say goodbye to summer and embrace the fall by cozying up your living spaces. So, grab a warm beverage, get inspired, and get ready to fall into cozy with these simple steps to prepare your home for autumn.
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More Than Buying New Decor
Preparing your home for fall goes deeper than heading to the Home Goods store and buying cheap autumn decor. For me it is a shifting of the atmosphere in our home to match the seasonal changes outside. It is prepering to thrive in the cooler, darker days to come. It is a way to nourish our bodies, minds, and souls.
This includes decorating for fall with natural items, cozy blankets, and plenty of candles. But it also includes stocking up the pantry with ingedients for cozy meals and warm drinks, seting out the autumn picture books, and creating a playlist of music to set the mood. Here are 10 ways I prepare my home for fall.
Stock Up the Pantry with Staples and Seasonal Favorites
Of course one of the first things on my list involves food. As we try to eat more natural, from scratch, and local food having a well stocked pantry is important. Late summer and early fall is a natural time to stock up the abundant harvest for the leaner winter days ahead. This is the perfect time to preserve the last of the harvest as well as purchase bulk items like grains, meats, and more. Azure Standard is one of my favorite places to help stock my pantry.

Purchase or Make Beeswak Candles
As the evenings grow darker there is nothing cozier than the glow of a candle! However in a effort to reduce the toxins in our home I try not to burn too many commercial scented candles. Over the past few years my plain beeswax candles have become my very favorite. They burn cleanly without any added chemicals and they have a nice sweet honey like scent. I love any kind of beeswax candles but I tend to gravitate toward simple tapers in antique candle holders. There is something both rustic and elegant about taper candles.
Beeswax candles can be a bit more expensive than regular candles, but I have found that if I use them strategically they can last quite a long time. I purchase my candles from a local beekeeper as well as from Azure Standard. I also enjoy dipping a few of my own, and the children like rolling candles with premade beeswax sheets.

Decorate with Natural Seasonal Items
I love decorating for the seasons. But I don’t love spending money on decor or having bins of decor to store. So… I solve this problem by decorating very simply with beautiful natural items. Autumn brings pumpkins ands squash in all shapes and sizes as well as a variety of colorful fruit. Vibrant branches of fall leaves and unique seed stalks also make lovely decorations.
Pumpkins and squash are some of my favorite autumn decor. Usually I grow quite a variety in my garden or if like this year they don’t do well, I buy a few from a local farm. Real pumpkins make great decorations because they store for a long time. Over the season I slowly cook them to include in our meals and desserts.
I also love to place baskets of fall fruit like apples or pears on countertops and tables. Not only do they look lovely but they invite my children to have a healthy snack!
Colorful autumn leaves can be used for many autumn crafts as well sa decorating. One of my favorite ways to use them is to simply place branches in a jar or vase as an autumn bouquet. Dried grasses and unique seedpods can be added to create a charming effect.

Set Out Piles of Beautiful Autumn Picture Books
Being a bookish family, we of course love to read. What could be cozier than reading aloud together on a firelit evening or a crisp sunny afternoon?
Beautiful fall picture books is a wonderful way to get back into the routine of reading aloud that may have slipped by the wayside ofer the summer. We have many favorite autumn stories including the Tale of Squirrel Nutkin, The Ox-Cart Man, and Woody, Hazel and Little Pip.
Don’t forget to have a few cozy books just for mom to read by herself in a few moments of quiet!
Plan Cozy Meals like Soups and Stews with Homemade Bread
Autumn cooking is my very favorite. As the weather cools I find myself enjoying my wark kitchen so much more. Plus the food of fall is so cozy and nourishing.
Fall is the time for simmering soups, crusty sourdough bread, or roast chicken and root vegetables.
Bake Sweet and Spicy Treats
Along with cooking cozy meals, I also love baking in the fall. I love all the spicy flavors of autumn baking. Cinnamon, nutmeg, clove!
From apple pies or cake, to rich gingerbread, to gingersnap cookies, there is nothing more delightful than the smell of a spicy, sweet treat, baking in the oven. An added bonus is we then have snacks on hand for our poetry teatimes or if unexpected company drops by.
Start Collection of Your Favorite Teas
Hot drinks are on of my favorite things about fall! There is something soothing and comforting about going beyond my morning cup of coffee to having a hot drink several times a day! I love drinking my morning coffee while chatting with my husband, but once autumn arrives I have several cups of tea a day as well!
Each Autumn I take stock of what teas I have and re stock so that we have a good supply for fall and winter. We drink a variety of teas including black tea and herbal tea.
I buy some teas at my local grocery store. Theseare in tea bags and are easy and quick, especially for the children.
However loose leaf tea is my favorite! I love the ritual of measuring out the tea leaves and then allowing them to steep. My favorite flavored loose leaf tea is Winterwoods Tea Company. For plain tea for mixing myself or medicinal herbal teas I like Mountain Rose Herbs or The Bulk Herb Store.
To make loose leaf tea I often steep it in a tea ball. However small bits often slip through into the tea. Recently I have been trying reusable fabric tea bags and so far I really like them.
Get Out Cozy Blankets and Quilts for Cuddling
Warm blankets and quilts make chille autumn mornings or evenings extra cozy! I have a small collection of blankets that stay in a small cabinet most of the year, but the first chilly fall morning out they come! My children call these “cuddle” blankets, and many mornings you can find us cuddled together reading under them.
Once autumn truly arrives these blankets mostly live folded on the arms of chairs( or strewn on the floor)rather than in the cabinet.

Make a Playlist of Favorite Instrumental Music
Music is a wonderful way to set the mood in any season. There is certain music that can just makes us feel like fall. For me it is a variety of instrumental music featuring a lot of fiddle and violin.
Ever since I was young Scuttish Fiddle music has been a favorite of mine, especially Alasdair Fraser.
I also love the fiddle music of Mark O’Conner and Jay Unger as well a hymns played on the violin.
Check out my favorite autumn playlists on Spotify:
dancing in the firelight: celtic fiddle music
the harvest gathered:beautiful melodies for harvest season
autumn glory: hymns for the season
Have a Basket of Puzzles, Games, or Crafts for Chilly Evenings
As the evenings of autumn darken earlier we are drawn toward quiet activities we can do with our hands. A small basket with a few puzzles and games is an invitation to enjoy each others company.
Fall is also a wonderful time to begin or continue handicrafts a basket of colorful yarn and a pair of knitting needles makes a cozy and attractive addition to a living area. It is also an inspiration to create something lovely.
We have enjoyed learning several handicrafts including crocheting, knitting and this fall needle felting! There are many wonderful tutorials on YouTube to get you started!
Preparing Your Home For Fall Is More Than Decorating
I hope this post has inspired you to dig deeper as you create a cozy haven for your family this fall and winter.
What are your favorite things to do to prepare your home for fall?
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