The First Cool Morning After Summer Just Hits Different

There’s always that one morning.

You walk outside expecting the same hot, heavy air we’ve had for what feels like forever, and instead there’s just enough chill to make you stop for a second.

It’s not cold. It might even be 80 degrees again by lunchtime. But you can feel it.

Fall is coming.

And suddenly I’m completely over summer.

I’m ready to open the windows without immediately regretting it. I want coffee on the porch without sweating before I finish the cup. I want evenings where you can actually sit outside, a sweatshirt tossed over the back of the chair just in case, and that cool air coming through the house before bed.

There’s something about that first little hint of fall that changes how I want my house to feel, too.

All summer, I tend to reach for fragrances that are fresh, clean, fruity or lighter. But once those cooler mornings start showing up? Give me the apples. The cinnamon. The warm woods. The coffee. The slightly smoky scents that make you think somebody has a fire going somewhere nearby.

Apparently my nose knows it’s fall before the calendar does.

I Don’t Think It’s Really About Pumpkin Spice

Pumpkin gets all the attention this time of year, but I don't think that's actually what most of us are chasing.

We’re chasing a feeling.

Think about the smells you associate with fall.

Apple pie baking. Coffee in the morning. Leaves outside. Cinnamon. A bonfire. Something warm cooking for dinner. Maybe the smell of an old bookstore on a rainy afternoon.

So much of why we love those smells is everything we’ve attached to them.

They remind us of being home.

They remind us of people.

They remind us of places we haven't thought about in years.

Sometimes they just remind us of a time when life felt a little simpler.

That’s probably why one person can smell something and absolutely love it while the person standing next to them wants nothing to do with it. We aren't just smelling fragrance. We bring our own memories along with it.

Fall Makes Me Want to Make the House Cozy Again

Maybe this is just me, but summer doesn't make me want to nest.

Summer makes me want the air conditioner on.

Fall is different.

Once September gets here, I start wanting the house to feel a little cozier again. The blankets come back out. Dinner gets a little heartier. The windows stay open longer. The warmer gets turned on, and suddenly having the house smell good feels like part of the whole thing.

And no, the house does not have to be spotless first.

That's important.

There could absolutely be laundry sitting somewhere it shouldn't be while my house smells like apple cider donuts.

Both things can be true.

I think sometimes we get so caught up in what a beautiful, cozy home is supposed to look like that we forget we're actually living in ours.

There are dishes.

There are shoes by the door.

There’s probably something sitting on the kitchen counter that has been there for three days because nobody knows where else to put it.

A home doesn't have to look like a picture on Pinterest to feel good.

Sometimes opening the windows, straightening up a little, turning on a wax warmer and sitting down with a cup of coffee is enough.

And Then There’s That Smell Coming Through the Windows

This might be my favorite part.

There is a point every year when the air outside itself starts smelling different.

It's hard to describe, but you know it when you smell it.

The ground. The leaves. That cooler air. Somebody burning wood somewhere in the distance.

You open the windows and the whole house gets it.

You can't bottle that exact feeling.

And maybe that's why we're constantly trying to recreate pieces of it inside our homes.

We find fragrances that remind us of apple orchards, rainy afternoons, cabins, bakeries, bonfires or whatever our version of fall happens to be.

Mine doesn't have to be yours.

That's half the fun of fragrance anyway.

So Yes, I’m Ready

Technically, summer isn't over yet.

I know.

But the second I walk outside one morning and think, Ohhh, it's chilly out here, summer has officially lost me.

I'm ready for the windows open.

I'm ready for sweatshirts.

I'm ready for coffee that stays hot longer than five minutes.

I'm ready for the house to smell warm and cozy again.

And if Pennsylvania decides to give us another 90-degree day next week?

I'll be inside with the air conditioner running and my fall wax melts going anyway.

I'm committed now.