08 Nov Make Your Home Welcoming and Cozy for Winter

With winter approaching, and the thoughts of spending more time indoors develop into reality, especially if you’re a lover of warmth more than old man winter’s relentless blowing and frigid temperatures, this is the perfect time to glance around your home and make certain that your surroundings make you feel cheerful and glad that you are inside more than normal.

I love the outdoors but sincerely hate the cold (at least for extended periods) so I absolutely want the places I need to be, to draw me into their coziness and make me thankful I’m trapped inside.

There are a few things anyone can do to create a cozy and inviting environment. Here are a few of our favorites, but you may have others to add to this list:

• Make sure every living area in the house (bedrooms, Living/Family rooms and especially any living spaces downstairs), all have a plentiful supply of Afghans, quilts or throws, hanging on the backs of recliners, couches and chairs, for easy reach and access. That way you can keep heat settings down and still be wonderfully warm. I highly suggest investing in a few of the throws that have a soft, velvety side, that make you feel snug and comfortable while keeping warm.

Beds also need extra comforters or quilts in easy access places such as the end of the bed or draped over a chair beside the bed. Not only does this provide warmth and security, but the right colors can accent any room and give it that extra pleasant feel.

• Purchase an extra supply of candles, especially those ones with the “I just baked some homemade goodies,” scents…. ones like pumpkin spice, apple, cinnamon or orange ….Light them and let your home be filled with aromas that make you feel like you just visited grandma or remind you that Christmas is coming.
• Fill a pot with water (plenty of water) to go on a low temp on the stove and put cinnamon sticks in to release their much loved fragrances……just make sure to put on a timer that will alert you to check on the water to make sure it is not boiled away.

• Bake some homemade cookies or cinnamon rolls…. something simple to fill the house with attractive deliciousness and to snack on as you gather around the TV to watch a movie

• If you’re one of the fortunate ones to have either a woodstove or a fireplace, make sure to put in an indoor supply of wood that will last for a long time (if you have a basement storage area, fill a section of it with enough wood for the winter, well ahead of the freezing temperatures) so that you are not having to brave all kinds of nasty weather to stoke your fires. Then go ahead and put that fire on…. nothing like the crackling of wood burning, and the glowing warmth that only these two kinds of heat can provide, to make you so glad you are in and not out!

• Dim the lights, especially in the evenings, and let the candles, fireplace or woodstove provide their dancing lights to accompany the heat.

• If you have hardwoods throughout your home, winter is the perfect time to invest in a few soft carpet pieces to put in strategic places, to keep your feet warm if you are not a slipper fan. Small soft (memory foam) bathmats are great for the bathroom, while soft, Persian area rugs are perfect for bedrooms right bedside the bed as you step out and for Living/Family rooms

• Make sure your rooms are decluttered as much as possible. When the need to be inside trumps facing the blustery outside weather, an open, tidy and organized room brings peace of mind and allows you to feel relaxed in your home

DIETRICH HOMES in the Trails of Lily Lake has some of the very coziest homes you could ever imagine, designed to keep you and your family warm and happy all winter long as you enjoy the winter conservation views from your own home!