We’ve had our first real snow of the year today and even that was only around for long enough for a quick snowball fight before the sun came out and started to melt it!
We made the most of it though and had a family snowball fight in the front garden while the dog looked through the window at us in disgust because he hates the snow. 😉
Even after just a few minutes outside in the cold, it was lovely to come in to our warm and cosy living room and snuggle up under the blankets and it got me thinking of other ways that we’ve made our house into a cosy and welcoming home.
Here’s just a few of the things we’ve done that you can do if you want to make your home feel snug and cosy….
Get those throws and blankets out.
I love snuggly throws and blankets and the cold dark days of Winter are the perfect excuse for getting as many as possible out. We have a couple of big fluffy ones on the beds upstairs which the kids prefer to use instead of their quilts in the Winter and we have some lovely ones in the Living Room downstairs.
Nothing makes a house into a home like family photos!
I have photos in most rooms of the house and they’ve all been carefully chosen from the hundreds that I take every month! They all capture family moments that I don’t want to forget and it would be such a shame to leave them on a memory stick, never to see the light of day again. I have everything from printed canvasses to super modern glass frames with some lovely white shabby chicness in between and I’m currently thinking about adding a photo wall on the back wall of my staircase.
You can’t beat fresh flowers.
Fresh flowers at any time of the year are beautiful but I appreciate them all the more when the skies are gray and there’s a chill in the air. Having flowers in the house makes me smile and I’m sure I read somewhere that it’s a proven way to lift your mood. You can often pick them up reduced at the end of the day in the supermarket and although I’ve seen some really grotty half dead ones reduced before, the majority of them are still in great condition with lots of life left in them. These are my bargain daffodils which cost under a pound for the lot….
Light your candles.
Another thing I love to do when it’s dark outside is to get the candles burning – there’s something so relaxing about the flickering flame of a candle, isn’t there? I also love the smell of my house when I’ve had my favourite candles burning – Yankee Candle Baby Powder is my favourite at the moment.
Declutter your clutter
I’m in the process of de-cluttering in a huge way – I’m doing it room by room and decor wise, I’m trying to only keep the things that that mean something to me. I’ve bagged up so much of the ‘stuff’ that we’ve accumulated over the years since I started and I much prefer the way the house is looking at the moment. I’ve also taken some of my photos out of old mis-matched photo frames that I seem to have collected and have them ready to be framed in nicer frames when I finally get around to my photo wall.
I have these little beauties on a shelf in my kitchen surrounded by my favourite family photos and it looks great as well as being a great talking point whenever anyone comes into my kitchen.
Add your own homemade decorations
I love things like our red and gold pom pom which we made and hung on our curtain rail a few Christmases ago – I couldn’t bring myself to take it down when the rest of the decorations so it’s been up there for about two years now.
White walls with lots of colour
This is probably a bit controversial but I love white walls with colour from wall canvasses and wall art. I’m currently in the process of working my way through our house and painting the walls white. I bought the biggest tub of white paint that you’ve ever seen for about £40 (it cost more as I bought the wipe clean can cope with everything paint) and it’s so far done the downstairs toilet and the hall, stairs and landing. Next week I’ll be doing the kitchen with it and hopefully Master Frugal’s bedroom if I get chance.
What do you do to make your home feel snug?
Don’t miss out on future posts like this – receive updates directly to your inbox by email by adding your email address to the box on the top right of this page and hitting subscribe. You can also find me on BlogLovin, Yummly and Networked Blogs and I’d love to see you over on my Facebook page and on Instagram.
Image credit: Shutterstock, tomertu
I really loved this article! It gave me some new insights I never really thought about before.
What lovely ideas to make home feel lovely and cosy when the weather is not playing ball. Love all these ideas and fresh flowers always brighten the place up 🙂
I love this article and am a big fan of blankets and candles, I will have to try the flowers tip, I tend to give my mum flowers but never really have them for myself! Maybe I should see how they fit in making our home more cosy and comfortable x
I love all these ideas. I think fresh flowers just brighten up a space so unbelievably well. Can't beat a good atmospheric candle either.
I've been lighting a lot more candles recently. I didn't use to bother, but it's amazing what a difference it can make.
My wife just got new pillows and throw blankets for the family room as our old pillows were literally falling into pieces. It definitely changes the room and was a pretty simple and relatively cheap makeover!
brilliant ideas,I love my blankets,candles and a large mug of coffee… and a nice book and ten minutes peace and quiet
Oh wow – I feel very with it! I am doing all of this things at the moment! Just had a massive declutter and also I got flowers on Valentine's day!
All brilliant ideas… there's nothing quite like snuggling under a blanket when it's cold outside x
Fab ideas – I have loads of blankets, and love bringing a bit of sunshine on a rainy day with some bright flowers xx
Lovely tips. I'm all about enjoying the season this year and embracing it (I say that but still catch myself grumbling!), I think tips like these really help!
I love fresh flowers – they really add to the feel of the room too. We are redecorating when we get home, cannot wait for a new look
I love the idea of throws,I have them all over the house .
Fabulous tips. We have lots of throws and blankets and I love fresh flowers. I like candles for the warmth they add too. Your home is lovely. it is filled with joy and love!
I love photos, candles and throws, just like you! I'm not quite so keen on the fresh flowers – prefer the candles for lovely scents.
Such a great post and all so very true, you can't beat snuggly blankets, candles and beautiful fresh flowers, daffodils are my all time fave too and they don't cost the earth. I need to declutter more, I have to wait until hubby isn't around they as he is very much the hoarder of rubbish.
Your post is absolutely right. It's all the little touches that make a house feel like a home and all cozy. I love lighting candles, brightening up the room with flowers and all those little bits that make a room look special. Makes me feel all fuzzy thinking about it!
Sally @ Life Loving
#HappyAndHome
Hi! I've never posted here before but I read your blog and love it. It's funny how you mentioned white walls being your favorite right now. I'm a lot older than you and when we first got married, white walls were the fashion and we painted our apartment all in white and hung up colorful prints in black frames. Now I have gone through the gamit of colors on walls and have come to the conclusion that I like the white walls again. So far I have painted our bedroom and living room. I had the kitchen white for awhile but now it's a soft gold color. I kind of miss the white in there. Thanks for reading this and hope you and your family have a great day! Arlene from USA