Bringing on the Autumn Atmosphere

   

It's crazy how in the winter, we daydream about beaches and swimming pools, but the minute it turns fall, our minds are on chilly noses, sweaters, bonfires, spiced cider, and the coming holiday of spookiness - Halloween. 

Let's go! 


Pop on some autumnal-feeling movies and darken the room. Burn a nice fall candle. 




Movies that embody autumn (*means it's a favorite autumn one for me)- 

Sleepy Hollow

You've Got Mail
Hocus Pocus
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
Practical Magic
In Dreams
The Covenant
October Sky
Half Light
St. Elmo's Fire
When Harry Met Sally
It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown

Many of us get that "tucking in to home and hearth" vibe going as we roll into a series of holiday seasons.  More time indoors, means more nesting, crafting, preparing, cooking, and coziness.

How about preparing your own homemade pumpkin spice hot cocoa mix in a mason jar? 

What about making some autumn crafts for decorating?

Try making scented candles in mason jars? 

candle making kit (Amazon)

jars   (Amazon)

essential oils (Amazon)

Consider lining jars with autumn leaves or bark.

Collecting autumn recipes? 

Making banana nut bread and freezing it? 

Take a walk in the woods to collect acorns, pine cones, twigs, moss, and bark. Collect and cut firewood. Gather some river rocks to paint and lay on an autumn table display.

To shift into the autumn mode, scent and darkness are two fantastic ways to do it. Keep up the autumnal scent of juniper, cinnamon, pumpkin, brown sugar, fig, apple, sandalwood, frankincense....

Here's what I do -- 




I put some essential oils in a diffuser.

I mix 15 drops with some witch hazel or vodka in a small spray bottle and use for linen/body/room spray. 

I take a bag of epsom salts from the drug store (the small bag) and add about 25-35 drops of oil and shake. Use it in the bath.

I put some inside of a tiny terra cotta pot and let it soak in and keep my keys in the pot near the door. When you walk by, the scent remains so you get a fresh whiff when you come home and leave.

I put several drops mixed with shea butter or grapeseed oil makes a great skin massage oil or cream that is scented.

I put some shakes of the oil on pine cones in a bowl and they hold the scent.

I melt old plain candles and add the scent and make new candles in tiny 4 oz jelly jars. The glass is pretty, but you can also use white chalk paint to give the jelly jars a cool look. You can put the lid on when not in use and retain the scent.




Wood wicks (below) are awesome. They burn well, and they also crackle a bit, so it feels like a cozy fire.

Get a double boiler or tiny pot and bigger pot from Goodwill or the Dollar Tree store. Use these for when you're melting waxes. I melt my wax in a small pot atop of a bigger pot that has hot water in it on a low-medium water temperature on the stove.

When all else fails to bring on the autumn mood, consider darkening the house in the daytime a bit more, giving that "long shadows" vibe. Cook hearty scented meals like chili and stewed apples. Put a lap blanket on the sofa. 

And be sure to use some of the foods that bring on autumn vibes like walnuts, pomengranate, grapes, figs, cheeses, pumpernickle, squash, apples, pears, gorgonzola, and caramel....

It may not be here yet outside, but inside it could be near peak season!