Cozy Corners: Creating your Reading Nook

We move from a heavy week into simple, grounding rituals that help us slow down, reconnect, and rebuild trust at home. Cozy corners become tiny tools for calm, presence, and real conversation without leaning on consumerism.

• drawing a boundary around politics while naming shared values
• seasonal living as a path back to community
• cozy corners as signals for rest and presence
• simple, budget ways to build a nook
• using texture, light, and scent to cue calm
• inviting friends for small, meaningful talks
• shifting from screen time to face time
• weekly action to create your own fall nook

Create your own cozy fall nook this week: choose a spot, add one seasonal touch, and give yourself at least 10 minutes to sit there. Then invite a friend over for tea and talk

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Chapters

• 0:09 From Turbulence to Tender Spaces
• 0:52 Values Without Politics
• 1:37 Community, Nature, and Seasonal Living
• 2:35 Why Cozy Corners Matter
• 4:33 Slow Decorating, Not Consuming
• 5:34 Nooks for Connection and Repair
• 7:19 Budget-Friendly Cozy Recipes
• 9:49 Your Weekly Action: Build a Nook

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:09

Welcome to Novel and Nosh. Today I want to talk about cozy corners. But I also want to not be tone-deaf to what is going on in our world right now. Um, unfortunately, this is two days after Charlie Kirk was assassinated, and um, it just has left me, I think it's left many of us just disappointed in what is happening in our world right now. And that is why I feel it is even more important for me to speak out or speak up about this. I'm not into speaking about politics or religion. I hold those close to my heart because I personally feel that we all have differing opinions due to what happens in our own life. And we are not meant to judge one another based on our own lived experiences. Therefore, it is not right for me to pass judgment on you and your beliefs based on your experiences. So I'm not here to talk about that today. What I am here to talk about is true to what this, what I am creating with Novel and Nash. It's getting back into your community, it's getting back into nature, it's about seasonal living, starting to live with the earth and what is provided for us, no matter what you believe. You know, that that is given to us through the foods that we eat, uh, getting back to looking at your neighbors, speaking with your neighbors, speaking with your community members, buying products from your community members rather than outsourcing everything to our phones and the bigger businesses. That is ultimately what novel and Nosh. I know it seems weird, but that's what this that's what this is about is driving it home, getting you more rooted into yourself. And fall is about gathering. And I really am hoping to build a community of not even like-minded, just people who want to get back to themselves and their communities. One thing, and I know this sounds strange, but one thing that we can do is to create small, cozy corners in our home. Why is this good for us? Well, this is good for us because it provides an opportunity for us to sit with ourselves, to take a moment to relax. We are all so spun up, living so quickly in life that we don't take a moment to just breathe. And many of us don't even allow our minds a moment to relax outside of what is shown to us. And I am also to blame. I noticed this with my other business that I had. I became so consumed with the information um through podcasts. And I know that's kind of odd that here I am podcasting. When I'm saying to myself I was listening to too many podcasts, I had so many podcasts going in my ears that I no longer knew who I was inside myself. So this is just each week I'm hoping to provide a little snippet of things you can do to get back to yourself, your community, your family, and you know, start to make changes there. And fall is my favorite season. I've said this before. It is a beautiful season to lean into comfort. Today I want to talk about how you can create a little cozy corner in your home, tiny nooks that invite you to slow down, breathe, and connect either with yourself or with others. Don't allow consumerism to take over at this time of the year. And I'm saying this as I myself bought cute fall leaf napkins, a new pumpkin candle, and I think I bought something else. I can't remember, but there was something else I purchased. So I don't feel like you do not have to go out and buy all the things to start to welcome fall in. And you don't have to redecorate your whole house to welcome fall. You can, you know, it's easy to scroll Instagram and um Pinterest and find all these cute ideas, but even just creating small little shifts can create that change for yourself. So a soft blanket draped over a chair, lighting a pumpkin or a cinnamon candle, or swapping out bright lighting for a warm glow instead of all the overhead lights, having little lanterns or lamps, I should say, not lanterns, having little lamps strewn around the house can help with that as well. It creates a cosier environment. These little changes act like signals to your body and mind. It's time to slow down, it's time to cozy. When you carve out even the tiniest corner of your home as a cozy nook, it becomes an invitation, an invitation to pause, to read, to sip tea, to journal. It reminds you that it's okay to step out of the busy busyness of the day and just be. Just be with yourself, or an opportunity to invite family or friends over into that space and talk. These spaces aren't just for solitude. They're wonderful for small, meaningful connections. Sitting with a friend, having an intimate conversation, or sharing tea can feel so nourishing in a cozy little nook. And I do feel that this has something to do with what's going on in our world right now. We have gotten away from spending time with family and friends, and probably more friends, I would say. We have a let we have let this divisiveness um rule us. And um many people hide behind screens rather than just talking to people. I I I will always believe that no matter what side you are on in politics, we all ultimately want the same things. I I think we just have a different way of getting there. Many of us believe we have a different way of getting there. And I think the more we sit down with one another and talk and get back to those days where we would sit down and talk with one another, that is the only way we can move forward. And starting small with something as simple as creating a cozy nook in your house to invite a friend over for some coffee or some tea just to chat is huge in starting to make the next step for change. So, what are some things that we can do? I want you to think of like quick budget-friendly ways that you can create a nook. Like I mentioned, putting down a um a blanket, a cozy blanket, just that over a chair. Uh, you don't have to create the whole space, maybe just finding a little corner. Don't spend too much time overthinking this or spending too much money on this. This is really just finding a small space in your house that you, and it can be even like on a back porch or on a front porch, wherever you want it to be, that you can find a few things in your home to repurpose that will create a little bit of coziness. Like I had mentioned, the blanket, putting a cozy blanket in an area, grabbing a little candle, uh, grabbing a favorite mug, a basket for books, pillows pulled from another room to create this cozy fall type experiencing. Layering texture is a key to creating more coziness. A rug under your feet, these things don't have to be expensive. What matters is how they make you feel. If you sit down in your space and it makes you take a deep breath, you've done it right. That's all you need to do. Then invite a friend over, invite a family member to sit down with you and just get back to talking. Sometimes the smallest, simplest gatherings feel the most meaningful. I always like to leave my listeners with something to do. And this week I'm inviting you to create your own cozy fall nook. It doesn't have to be big. Maybe it's a chair by a window, a corner of your couch, even, um, or even a floor spot, a spot on your floor with a pillow and blanket, which I'm gonna bring an aspect of my business here because I do feel like movement is a part of me. Sitting on the floor is so important to do. So grab a pillow. You can create a little nook with a pillow in a corner and sit down on the floor more. Adding just one seasonal touch, a candle, a blanket, or your favorite mug, then give yourself at least 10 minutes to sit there. Read, sip tea, or just enjoy the quiet. Notice how it feels to have a little corner that's just for you. Cozy corners are about more than just decorating, they're about creating small pockets of comfort that support mindfulness, connection, and joy. I hope you'll try setting up a nook this week and see how it changes the way you move through your days.