How I Winter

It’s cold in London this week. The clocks have changed. It’s dark by 4pm and I’m thinking about winter. In mid-November the gloom still has a certain charm that will fade by March but for now the change in the weather invites introspection, relaxation, and blanket forts.

I grew up in a family that embraced coziness and romanticism like sport. From an early age, I remember winter evenings in our candle-lit living room, all of us sitting on the floor, leaning on oversized pillows beside a crackling fire, eating cassoulet from long-handled stoneware soup bowls and listening to a much-loved LP of Andrés Segovia.

This week, I’ve been revisiting some of my childhood cozy-making tactics. I’ve captured them here for my future reference.

Get weird, get cozy

• Be gentle with yourself and others
• Expect to be less productive
• Don’t work so hard, try to finish working when the sun goes down, or at least take a long break around sunset
• Turn inward, with friends
• Be quiet
• Be loud sometimes (with friends)
• Listen to relaxing music
• Spend more time thinking & staring into space
• Dim the lights (I like my Philips Hue White Ambience bulbs)
• Surround yourself with plenty of pillows & soft things
• Meditate (every day, of course, but especially in winter. Remember: it’s a form of housekeeping)
• Spend lots of time generally hanging out on a yoga mat
• Do yoga with plenty of shavansana
• Find crafty low-stress projects to do (like writing)
• Get outside every day for daylight and exercise in nature
• Take Weird Walks
• Go to bed early
• Get up early (enjoy the morning)
• Drink some caffeine (I like green tea, early in the day, not too much, enjoy the ritual)
• Eat more cake (seriously, a little sugar around 4pm this time is wonderful. Enjoy the ritual and do it with a friend)
• Read good books
• Keep a tidy house (It’s your cocoon; and again, enjoy the ritual)
• Do some chanting with friends
• Turn the heat on (and off when you’re not in the room)
• Invest in insulation:
  • for your house
  • and your body (I have a real “soft spot” for cashmere 😉)
• Surround yourself with friends (all year, actually)

I’ll still be miserable by March but these things help a lot.

What have I missed? How do you winter? Tell me!

For a more scientific take, read Kari Leibowitz’s How to Winter.