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A Hygge Home by the Sea
New England Home

Hygge (pronouced “hooga”) is a word the Danish use to describe the sense of coziness they create for themselves, friends and family in their home.

Cozy blankets, candlelight, natural elements, the warmth of the fire and a mug of steaming hot soup in hand. Welcome, fall. That whole situation inspires me in every way!

Experiencing Hygge isn’t just about staying inside by a fire, though. It’s also about getting outside and letting our natural surroundings and the benefits of nature lift our spirits. That might involve taking a walk in a park, visiting a forest or even heading to the coast for a walk on the beach!

I find the coast to be a very Hygge destination. Now, keep in mind that a visit to the ocean where I live in the northwest may not be quite the same experience as you might have in other parts of the country (like Florida or San Diego, for example!).

The coast here is often quite chilly. Unless its an exceptionally warm summer day, most people don’t run around in a bathing suit on our beaches! We’re more often bundled up in jeans and windbreakers.

When we go to stay at a beach overnight, we love to find a beach house or hotel where we can curl up by the fire in the evenings. If a storm is brewing, all the better for a Hygge evening!

A Hygge Home by the Sea
New England Home

Cozy inside, stormy outside. What could be more Hygge?

As I am puttering around my house in the fall, I am daydreaming that I live in a cozy cottage by the sea. The storms might be brewing outside, the winds could be howling, the waves all splashing, but I’m safe and warm inside, happy and cozy as can be.

Yes, I’m a daydreamer and a putterer.

Are you?

At our home here in Seattle we get our share of gray days and fall and winter rain (gratefully mixed with sunshine, though, too….), so Hygge really appeals to me.

Even though we live in a big city, we are also surrounded by nature. Through the windows to our backyard we can see a beautiful forest and the snow-capped Olympic mountains towering over the salty waters of the Puget Sound.

The natural surroundings of where I live have definitely impacted how I feel about my home, how we decorate for the seasons and even our everyday experiences. I’m sure the same is true for you and where you live.

Years ago I wrote on the blog about how your surroundings might influence your home design choices in this post about our family’s northwest beach house.

You might live on the east coast, or in the south, or in another country! You could live in a mountain home or a city apartment or a beach house. No matter where you live, you can make your home cozier in your own way!

That’s the beauty in trusting your own creativity. You can draw upon our unique surroundings, our own memories, and so many other personal influences as you are creating a home. You don’t need to decorate like anyone else, or follow someone else’s idea of what a home should be like.

Just can just be YOU! You can make your home authentically your own in every season.

I’d love to hear more about YOU and YOUR HOME in the comments!

Tell us where you live and how it impacts how you feel about your home and decorating in fall?

A Hygge Home by the Sea
New England Home

If you want a home where you can feel your very best in mind, body and spirit, you may want to read my new book Dwelling this fall! It’s just $10 on Amazon right now!

Previous Fall Nesting Post (and a list of links to the whole series):

5 Ways to Bring Hygge to your Home

Did you join our Inspired Room Community?

PS. One of my favorite coastal stores is having their big 20% off Friends and Family Sale right now!

I rounded up some of my favorites here as well as in the graphic below.

A Hygge Home by the Sea

Click here for my favorite 20% off sale finds!

23 Comments

  1. Isabel Z

    I would definitely feel cozy in this beautiful home. Just looking at the photos brings me joy. Thank you.

  2. Patty

    Living in South Dakota, we most certainly have 4 seasons….sometimes they seem to overlap even! But a favorite thing to do now is have that fire going in the evening to take some chill off before turning on the furnace. I miss having doors and windows open, but the fire and a few candles scenting the home make a good trade off.

  3. Angela G.

    South Texas is warm 9 months out of the year and so we celebrate fall and sometimes winter with our AC still running. This means that fireplaces are more for decor than function and all blankets have to be lightweight. On the upside we can finally enjoy a meal on the porch when most folks have put away their patio furniture for the season!

  4. Pam

    Indiana has 4 seasons and they are all in! Ha! My home is in a suburb but I have lots of trees and wildlife to enjoy in my yard. I garden with hostas and I bring in bouquets of hosta leaves in the summer and we hygge in the fall and winter with throws and I always put a crochet table cloth over the dining room table to cozy it up. Warm colors in fall and winter and brighter in spring and summer, I love making my home fit the seasons its fun. Nothing can compare to a gorgeous view like yours though, lucky you!

  5. Carolyn

    I live in Southeastern Wisconsin where it is finally starting to feel like fall. I bring out cozy throws and change my color palette to richer tones with pillows. I also use my diffuser more often during the colder months to neutralize cooking odors :)

  6. Kerry Fountain

    I live in central North Carolina – the beach is my favorite regardless of the season!!! I grew up minutes from Lake Huron in Michigan, so water is my go to for finding peace, calm, focus, serenity. I have coastal pictures, paintings, memorabilia throughout my home as it is what speaks to me the most.

  7. Brittany Romero

    We live in Glendale, right on the Phoenix border. I love our little neighborhood… it’s a tiny pocket of farm property with about 40 houses. We have all grass and giant trees and people say all the time when they come here that they feel like they’re in the country, not the desert! I love that. ❤

  8. Rachel

    I think where you live greatly impacts how you feel about your home and the seasons which makes moving even more difficult. I lived in Southern Arizona for 16 years where the weather and the seasons are very unique. Now for the past 2 years I’ve lived in Utah County where there are actually seasons and drastic changes in weather. It has not been easy. I’m still slowly transitioning, it’s a big change. I’m trying to focus on making the inside of my home cozy and hygge which can happen anywhere and I’ve learned I love nature whether it’s the desert or the mountains.

  9. Heather

    I live in the South, but I grew up in New England. I like to style my home with lots of white & blue. I love all your product picks. They’d go perfect in my home.

  10. jen S

    I dont live near the coast, but my home is decorated like it is. Coastal style all the way! When you are in my house you feel like you are near the water. My house makes me happy!

  11. Mercedes

    Chilly or warm it doesn’t matter but I do know I need to live near the ocean to be happy ?

  12. Mary Stewart

    I love navy blue and white decor. That bathroom is especially gorgeous!

  13. Helene

    I live on the east coast of Central Florida in a brick ranch. We’re about 30 minutes from the ocean. The ocean and the river are beautiful…but unlike most Floridians I prefer the ocean and beach during the winter —I’m not really into sunbathing or swimming but prefer strolling along or in the shore break.
    I am incorporating more blue and white into my decor and recently purchased my first white, slip-covered sofa which is in my living room (your blog gave me the courage to buy it). And I love it! My style is pretty eclectic but I am incorporating blue and white throughout….
    we just recently purchase six acres in NC not far from Asheville, and I am hoping we can eventually build a small second home there in the near future. While I appreciate the ocean’s beauty, the mountains and cooler weather speak to my soul.

  14. Lorrie

    I live on Vancouver Island where we get much of the same grey winter weather that you do. It’s great for making home a cozy place, and I love it. Being able to drive a short distance to the ocean is a wonderful perk and sea air never fails to invigorate, even in blustery weather. It makes coming home to a fire and tea or hot chocolate even more appealing. Love the homes you’ve shown here.

  15. Beth

    I live in northern Indiana. I learned of hyyge several years ago from you and connected right away with that concept. I do not like the colder months of the year, but it makes such a difference to focus on making our home and our lives cozy and content. Curling up with my soft blanket and a cup of hot mint tea is very soothing.

  16. Bonnie Stoltzfoos

    I meant to post my comment yesterday but must have missed the submit button! :) I feel really inspired by living right in town… our house is small but it just feels like our safe place. It was dark but when bought it and we used a lot of white paint to brighten it up. We live within walking distance of a coffee shop, the town square with a few cute shops… and also within walking distance of family. :) I love that feeling of being connected to the town where you live, having routines like going on a walk for coffee or a treat then coming back to your own sweet space again.

  17. Shari

    I live very close to where you visited in Utah last week. From my home I can look out across the lake and I’m surrounded by beautiful mountains. We definitely get all four seasons and I love fall here. I grew up in Mesa, Arizona. I don’t remember fall ever really being a thing for me there. I guess fall just meant school and football. I love fall here I. Utah, but I sure wish I had my Arizona winters back!

  18. Amanda

    First of all, thank you for putting the pronunciation of hygge in there! I’ve definitely been mentally pronouncing that one wrong. And I do notice that I decorate differently on the west coast than I did in the Midwest. The architecture is just different, the light is so different, and the vegetation outside is different – it all adds up to create a different effect.

  19. Susan

    We live in Michigan where we get to enjoy all four seasons. Of course in Michigan you can drive out to a lake and enjoy the fall season. We’re actually in the suburbs with lots of tree lined streets.

  20. Angelita

    I love a good range of colour palette to work with in decorating our little home. I use mostly light and cobalt blues and glass coloured green. Candles and Hygge are a must! Various collected eclectic decor graces throughout. Lots of draping throws, blankets, burning candles and joss. We live in an old harbour town in Ireland on the coast. It doesn’t rain as much as you’d think it would, but when a good hurricane or storm blows in it is lovely especially when the sun reflects off the rain on the windows.

  21. Veronica Nightingale

    I live in southern NH but I gfrew up on Long Island where I was never more than 20 minutes from the beach and that was with traffic! I live on a road that is only partially paved and there are woods close by though we are in a sizable town for these parts. My favorite place is still the beach however.

  22. laura

    You turned me on to New England Home magazine, you should get commission. I even tracked down the chandelier from this house for mine :)
    Luv your style,
    laura

 

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