As the temperature dips and leaves scatter across the lawn, there’s no better time to start cozying up your home for fall. This colorful, cooler season calls for interiors that feel warm and comforting and inspire you to wrap up in a blanket and stay awhile.
But where do you start when it comes to making your home or apartment feel cozier? That’s where we’ve enlisted the help of experts, who shared their best advice for small, subtle touches that will shift the atmosphere.
To embrace the season of all things cozy, take a peek at these ideas. They include everything from stocking up on buttery soft blankets to creating the perfect tray for warm beverages.
Meet the Expert
- Anjie Cho is a feng shui expert, architect, and co-author of the book Mindful Living.
- Wesley Taylor is a home and lifestyle influencer passionate about cozy, purposeful spaces.
- Ruthie Staalsen is the owner of her eponymous design firm, creating relaxed, collected spaces.
Bring in Warm Materials and Colors
The Spruce / Jacob Fox
Now is the perfect time to declutter and replace summer items with cozier ones, according to feng shui expert Anjie Cho.
“Like the trees that let go of their leaves, let go of things to make space for new energy,” she says, adding that you should also start bringing in cozy fluffy warm blankets, pillows, and accessories.
This extends beyond just materials and textures—consider going for warmer color palettes, too.
“In feng shui, we bring in fire and earth element colors in the autumn to create cozy warmth,” she says, which includes reds and fiery oranges, yellows, and browns.
Start by cozying up your living room or an area where you have a fireplace or mantel. Bring in warm-toned pillows, blankets, flowers, and decorative objects—pumpkins and gourds count, too!
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Refresh Your Artwork
@wesleytaylor / Instagram
Home and lifestyle influencer Wesley Taylor points out another way to bring cozy energy into your home that you might not have thought about: artwork.
While the pictures and paintings on your walls may have seen you through many different seasons, it’s a great place to add a few new moody pieces.
“I have a few leaning frames around my space that I easily update with warmer-toned art pieces as the leaves start to fall,” he says. “I’m partial to nature prints from a local vintage store, but this would be a great spot for seasonal family portraits or nature photos you’ve taken during the season!”
Artwork that features colors, shapes, and scenes that evoke the feelings of fall for you can also make a statement. While it can be themed for the season, it can be a little less obvious, too.
Consider the Fragrances Around Your Home
Outside of the visual elements that’ll make your house feel cozy for fall, Cho says to think about scent as well, too. There are so many different ways you can play to this sense.
Essential oils or a fragrant simmer pot infuse your home with fall coziness, Cho explains. As far as general fragrances go, she suggests pumpkin spice, ginger, cardamom, cinnamon, oranges, and bay leaves.
Create a Warm Beverage Tray
@wesleytaylor / Instagram
You’re all set when it comes to soft, cozy pillows and blankets to touch, warm colors to see, and nice fragrances to smell, so why not keep the theme going and tackle another sense?
Taylor says one way of bringing literal and metaphorical warmth into your home is creating a semi-permanent tray for your favorite seasonal sips.
“In the fall, I’m always ready for a warm beverage, so I set up a tea tray on my kitchen island that stays out 24/7,” he says. “It has everything I need for a quick cuppa—my favorite afternoon tea, cups, sugar cubes, spoons, and a perfect three-minute sand timer.”
Forage for Natural Objects
Don’t overthink it—the simplest objects can create a sense of coziness and are even easier to find than you might think.
Ruthie Staalsen of Ruthie Staalsen Interiors says you can take fallen branches from trees outside of your home and place them in a piece of pottery anywhere in your home for instant fall feels.
“I recommend bringing in rich burgundy dried florals and touches of warm yellow and orange and incorporating those arrangements in clusters with other items in your spaces,” Staalsen says.
Opt for Pops of Color
Speaking of color, if minimalist interiors are more your thing or you’d like to lean into the earthier palettes out there, Staalsen says simple is best.
Rather than filling rooms with too much and stuffing every corner with bright, themed decor, opt for simpler objects and subtler shades.
“Bring in mercury glass pumpkins and maybe some wicker pumpkins so the color orange is not over the top in your house,” she says. It’s helpful to keep the main foundational shades neutral and add in small pops of color.
A few other ways you can do this are by switching out your bedding for a more autumnal scheme, placing colorful taper or tumbler candles around your space, or adding new artwork, as mentioned earlier.
