How to Add Cozy Falloween Touches to Your Home

There’s something special about that sweet spot between fall and Halloween: what I like to call Falloween. It’s when pumpkins and mums mingle with a few playful ghosts, when cozy harvest colors start mixing with a little spooky charm. If you’re like me, you don’t want your home to turn into a haunted house, but you do want to sprinkle in just enough magic to make things festive. Here are a few easy ways to bring Falloween decor into your home.

Playful Ghosts
Ghosts don’t have to be scary. Think whimsical instead of frightening. A set of white ceramic ghosts on a shelf or some felt ghost garlands across a mantle give that Halloween touch without overwhelming your space. You can even drape a few gauzy fabrics over lamp shades or mirrors to create that “boo” effect in a soft, cozy way.

Witch Hats with Charm
Witch hats are such a simple way to nod to Halloween fun. Try hanging miniature black felt hats from your dining room chandelier with fishing line so they appear to be floating in the air. You could also tuck a single witch hat on a coat hook by the entryway or use them as table accents for a seasonal dinner. They make a space instantly playful.

Glowing Jack O’Lanterns
Pumpkins are the heart of fall, but carved jack o’ lanterns add that little Halloween wink. Instead of carving every pumpkin, mix in a few pre-lit jack o’ lanterns (battery candles make them safe indoors) along with your stack of gourds and real pumpkins. Place one on your front porch to welcome trick-or-treaters or keep one glowing on your kitchen counter for a nightly dose of cozy-spooky.

Balance Cozy with Spooky
The trick to Falloween is balance. Blend your classic fall pieces: wheat bundles, plaid throws, amber bottles, with just a few whimsical Halloween touches. A cozy corner with candles and pumpkins can feel instantly festive when you add a cheeky ghost pillow or a little ghost figurine. Adding in cozy Halloween touches like witch hats on top of vintage creamers is a great way to add some cozy with a touch of spooky.

Falloween is about enjoying the harvest season while letting a bit of Halloween magic sneak in. It’s festive, it’s cozy, and it’s just plain fun. Whether it’s a glowing jack o’ lantern on the porch or a line of floating witch hats in the dining room, these small touches invite everyone to smile and settle into the season.

The Cozy Magic of the “Ber” Months

The second the calendar flips to September, something shifts in our house. Maybe it’s the cooler nights that call for an extra blanket, or the way the light slants just right in the evenings, but there’s no denying it: the Ber Months (September, October, November, and December) are the coziest stretch of the year. Around here, we lean into them fully, every month with its own little rituals and ways of making our home feel warm, inviting, and ready for the season ahead.

Making Home Cozy During the Ber Months

For us, cozy isn’t about perfection. It’s about small changes that make the house feel like it’s giving you a hug when you walk through the door. A few things we always do once September hits:

Add layers of texture: soft throws on the couch, baskets of blankets in the living room, and maybe a few flannel pillow covers.

Keep natural touches in every corner: a crock of dried hydrangeas on the table, a vase of branches from the yard, pinecones collected on a walk.

Switch out lighting to something softer: candles (real or battery), little lamps, and twinkle lights that we sometimes forget to take down because they make the evenings so peaceful.

Fill the kitchen with seasonal scents: a simmer pot of apple peels and cinnamon sticks on the stove makes the whole house feel like a bakery. Or grab yourself a cozy PUMPKIN BREAD candle from ANTIQUE CANDLE CO. (Use my link and code BRYAN20 to save 20% off) Antique Candle Co

A Cozy Little List for Each Month:

September
The start of it all. Pumpkins begin sneaking into the decor.

Go apple picking and turn the extras into cider applesauce or pie.

Create a cozy apple cider bar outside with blankets and candlelight. Invite friends over for a backyard bonfire.

Make the first soup of the season. (That is definitely a Jameson job…he’s the cook!)

Take evening walks when the air is just starting to crisp.

October
By now, we’re fully in autumn mode. The porch gets lined with pumpkins and mums, and inside the house, I bring out all the cozy plaids.

Visit a pumpkin patch and carve jack-o’-lanterns.

Have a family movie night with all the classic fall favorites. Our favorite is Hocus Pocus for sure!

Decorate the entryway with cornstalks and a big fall wreath. Add some orange lights for a cozy glow!

November
This month feels like the heart of cozy. Warm colors, candlelight at dinner, and gathering with family.

Set the table with vintage stoneware, a basket of gourds, and brass candlesticks.

Bake pies (even if it’s just one, the smell alone is worth it). Apple is for sure my favorite but I love the smell of pumpkin pie fresh out of the oven.

Make a “thankful tree.” Gather some branches from your yard. Place them in a vintage crock. Precut leaves for your family to write one thing you are thankful for each evening. Add the leaves to the branches and by Thanksgiving you will have a beautiful centerpiece!

December
The grand finale of the Ber Months. The show. This is the moment to shine. The house feels alive with evergreen garlands, twinkling lights, and little traditions we look forward to all year.

Make homemade ornaments for the tree.

Take a drive to see holiday lights around town.

Bake Christmas cookies. This is a huge tradition for me. I took on the baking when my grandmother passed and now I bake many different varieties for our family and friends.

Sip hot cocoa under a pile of blankets while reading or watching a Christmas movie or two. Our list always includes: Home Alone, Elf, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, and The Santa Clause.

The Ber Months remind us to slow down, gather together, and enjoy the comfort of home. Every season has its beauty, but these four months feel like pure magic. They’re the ones that fill our home with traditions, warmth, and plenty of cozy evenings by the fire, and I wouldn’t trade them for anything.

Jameson and I always say the Ber Months are our favorite stretch of the year, and December is the one that steals our hearts every time. There is something about the month of December that slows everything down and makes us so grateful for this season.

We love the way December holds both the bustle of the holidays and the calm of cozy nights at home. It’s the month where home feels the most magical, where every room glows a little warmer, and where we’re reminded of just how much joy these four little Ber Months bring to our family.

XOXO

Bryan and Jameson