More Winter Inspiration + Winter Tag

 

Winter is starting now, so it's time from some winter inspiration! In past years I've done a post on getting ready for winter, and a round-up and inspiration one. You can read them below:

Getting Ready for Winter: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2017/12/getting-ready-for-winter.html

Winter Round-up + Inspiration: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2018/12/winter-round-up-inspiration.html

Note: If you're in the Southern Hemisphere you might like this post about celebrating summer and Litha/the Summer Solstice:

Summer Round-up + Inspiration: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2019/07/summer-round-up-inspiration.html

 

So here's some more inspiration for this winter! Plus a Winter tag. (Scroll down for the tag). :)

As I mentioned in the Getting Ready for Winter post, there are two "official" starts to winter- the meteorological one (1st Dec) and the astronomical (around 21st December), which is the shortest day of the year, aka Yule/the Winter Solstice. This year Yule will be 22nd December.

Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is something many people (including me) struggle with during this time of year. Although some people also get it during summer). The shorter darker days and colder weather can cause us to feel more depressed. I shared some links for coping with SAD in the September, October and November update posts and thought I'd link to them again now, plus include some extra posts:

 

Update 6/2/24: I've removed some inactive links. Will update when I can.

When Autumn Makes You Sad: https://www.backwoodsmama.com/2017/10/when-autumn-makes-you-sad-5-proven-ways-to-conquer-seasonal-depression.html

Practical and Spiritual Methods for Coping with SAD: http://www.obscureclouds.com/practical-and-spiritual-methods-for-coping-with-seasonal-affective-disorder/

Ways to cope with short daylight hours (not for people with SAD but still useful): https://homespunseasonalliving.com/5-ways-to-cope-with-short-daylight-hours/

Self care tips for the colder months: https://www.itslaurenvictoria.co.uk/self-care-tips-for-the-colder-months/

Self care to beat the winter blues: https://leisurehacker.com/10-ways-of-self-care-to-beat-the-winter-blues/

Winter Self-Care Guide: https://moxiethelabel.com/blogs/the-blog/winter-self-care-the-ultimate-guide-to-channel-your-inner-gwyneth-paltrow-solve-your-cold-weather-blues-and-start-everyday-fresh-and-focused


More winter self care tips: https://apointoflight.co/winter-self-care-tips/

 

A few of them mention getting outside, which is good advice. I do struggle with getting myself motivated during winter, especially to do something like go to the park, but it is worth it because you feel better getting some fresh air. :)

This is another post from Homespun Seasonal Living (also see the 5 Ways to Cope with Short Daylight Hours post above) with ideas for getting outside in winter: https://homespunseasonalliving.com/get-outside-winter/

I like this post with tips for liking winter: https://www.backwoodsmama.com/2018/01/stop-hating-winter-unleash-your-inner-yeti-with-5-essentials-steps.html

And I came across this post last year about the magic of winter: https://www.growingupherbal.com/magic-of-winter/

I liked it because it made me think of winter in a new way. I do struggle with the shorter days and cold weather, but it's good to see the magic in winter too. I wrote a bit last year about feeling magical at Christmas. 


Holiday Inspiration

Talking of Christmas, an enjoyable thing about winter are the festivals such as Yule/the Winter Solstice, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa etc. Here's some holiday inspiration. :)

In last year's Winter Round-up post I linked to the previous Yule and Christmas posts on the blog. Visit it here to see them. And here are the 2018 Yule posts:

Celebrating Yule and Christmas: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2018/12/celebrating-yulechristmas.html

Yule 2018: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2018/12/yule-2018.html

Christmas Vanilla Roll Cake + New Year Gingerbread:  https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2019/01/christmas-vanilla-roll-cake-new-year.html

 

And here are my two Christmas themed post on my entertainment blog Star Sparkle:

Christmas Round-up (2016): https://starsparklex.blogspot.com/2016/12/christmas-round-up.html

Christmas Round-up 2 (2018): https://starsparklex.blogspot.com/2018/12/christmas-round-up-2.html


Check out Uptown with Elly Brown's Holiday page for holiday content inspiration: https://www.uptownwithellybrown.com/holidays/

Holiday bucket list: https://theeverygirl.com/2019-holiday-bucket-list/  (Redirects to a 2023 Holiday Calendar post)

Christmas bucket list for families: https://www.livewellplaytogether.com/christmas-bucket-list-families/ 

Christmas Hygge: https://mbasahm.com/adding-hygge-to-your-christmas-10-ways-to-make-christmas-even-happier/

If you feel drawn to a minimalist Christmas check out this post on Simply Fiercely:
https://www.simplyfiercely.com/minimalist-christmas/

Family ideas for Hanukkah: https://www.aish.com/h/c/f/Eight-Family-Ideas-for-Hanukkah.html

Ideas for celebrating Kwanzaa: https://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/820743/family-friendly-activities-for-kwanzaa-celebrations/  

Update 16/1/22: Above link is gone, so here's another post with Kwanzaa celebration ideas: https://www.cosmopolitan.com/lifestyle/a34125087/how-to-celebrate-kwanzaa/

If you get anxiety during the holidays here's some advice from Lemon Stripes about coping with it: https://lemonstripes.com/lifestyle/tips-holiday-anxiety/



I'll finish off with a couple more winter themed links.

I liked this post about the last week or so of the short days before Yule: https://cauldronandbrew.wordpress.com/2013/12/15/last-of-the-short-days/

And here's a post from Rachael Kable with some soothing mindfulness techniques for winter: https://www.rachaelkable.com/blog/soothing-mindfulness-for-winter

She's in Australia, so they're starting summer now, but it's good for us in the Northern Hemisphere! :)

Hope you enjoyed the post and it gave you some winter inspiration! I do find winter the hardest season to be inspired by, but there are lots of good things about it. I'm planning to do a Yule inspiration post soon. See below for the Winter Tag.

Hope you have a good start to winter! (Or summer depending where you are). :)



A Cozy Winter Tag

I saw this tag on the site Vibrant Dreamer and thought I'd take part:
https://www.thevibrantdreamer.com/cozy-winter-tag/


#1: Green Christmas or White Christmas?

White Christmas! We don't get much snow here in Sussex (although there has been more in recent years) and there's hardly ever any on Christmas itself. I think one of the last times it snowed at Christmas I was about 7!


#2. Would you rather snuggle up with a blanket or play outside in the snow?

Snow is a novelty for me, so I'd play in the snow (and take pictures), then come inside!


#3. How do you typically celebrate New Year's?

With some food and drink at home and watch the countdown on NYE, then have a turkey with my family on New Year's Day. I tend to find New Year a bit of a letdown.


#4. Favorite winter food?

Umm...not sure. I like having turkey at Christmas and usually bake some sort of cake. I like lebkuchen stars.


#5. What is your favorite seasonal drink?

Starbucks gingerbread latte. I like to have one every year just before Christmas. I also just tried Costa Coffee's gingerbread cream latte and that was quite nice as well.


#6. How early do you tend to decorate for Christmas?

Don't tend to get a tree till about the middle of Dec, so around then. But I might start putting a couple of other decorations up before. As I said in the November Update, I tend to leave the Hallowe'en/Samhain decorations up for most of November, lol.


#7. Do you enjoy the cold weather or do you get anxious for spring to come?

I don't like being cold at all! Although it does make a change to have snow. Definitely look forward to spring.


#8. Do you have any special holiday traditions?

I like to watch the film All I Want for Christmas (1991) just before Christmas and Beatrix Potter's The Tailor of Gloucester on Christmas Eve.


#9. What is your idea of a perfect winter's day?

Um...going out in the snow for a bit and then being cosy inside!


#10. What's the best part of winter?

Seasonal festivals such as Yule and Christmas. And when we get a bit of snow.


#11. What's your favourite movie set in the winter season? (Not necessarily a Christmas movie). 

I like the ones mentioned in #8 (although The Tailor of Gloucester isn't a film), also The Santa Clause and Christmas with the Kranks.

#12. What do you hate about winter?

The cold!! And don't like the shorter days.



P.S. If it's summer for you, here's a Summer Tag I did in 2017 (plus some summer drinks): https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2017/08/more-summer-drinks-summer-tag.html



Photo: Buckingham Park, Shoreham-by-sea. Moonsparkle 2019.