I know we’re all sad because Autumn is almost over and we’ll soon be heading into the depths of Winter. Gone are the spooky decorations, the horror movie marathons and the influx of pumpkin field Instagram photos. But if I’m being honest, I absolutely love Winter. I love the cold. I love Christmas. I love snow and frost that sparkles on the pavement in the morning. I think it’s magical. So today I want to offer some Winter self care ideas to help you try and enjoy Winter as much as I do!

Photo by Taisiia Stupak on Unsplash

Each season is special in it’s own way. They all come with their own set of challenges. Their own positives and negatives. And although self care is an annual thing, there’s definitely ways you can mix it up, depending on the season you’re in. This can relate to literal seasons, like Summer and Winter as well as the seasons of your life.

But Winter can certainly be a tough time for a lot of people. For a variety of reasons. From SAD and the lack of sunlight to emotions around Christmas and having to take extra care of your well-being around the holiday season. As much magic is in Winter, Christmas and the falling snow, there’s also a lot of emotion and sadness and you have to recognize that too.

So let’s all vow to really take care of ourselves this Winter. Especially after the year we’ve had so far that’s undoubtedly made an impact on our mental health.

Here are 40 Christmas and Winter self care ideas for you to adopt in the coming months – and some that you might not have thought of before!

1. Buy a hot water bottle
2. Change your bedding into something fresh
3. Check your boiler is working properly (and get it fixed if not!)
4. Watch a Christmas film
5. Bake something with Christmassy flavours
6. Go to the library and rent Christmas books
7. Start your Christmas shopping early
8. Make a Winter budget spreadsheet
9. Clear out your wardrobe of Summer clothes
10. Learn how to make soup

winter self care

11. Decorate with fairy lights
12. Spend an hour in a hot bubble bath with candles – MyPriceGuide have a great feature on the best candles to buy!
13. Accept help if you’re suffering from SAD
14. Create a Winter and Christmas bucket list
15. Buy yourself some new comfy pajamas (but try and avoid fast fashion retailers!)
16. Clear out your Facebook friends before the end of the year
17. Journal how you feel about this year
18. Write yourself a Christmas card
19. Meet up with a friend for a Christmas drink
20. Consider laser hair removal! If you start their laser removal journey in winter, you can be hair free for summer so it’s the ideal time to do it. Also, you cannot really be tanned when having laser hair removal, so winter works once again.

winter self care

21. Take a brisk walk in the cold
22. De-clutter your home
23. Have a pamper night
24. Wake up earlier to counteract the effects of the early nights
25. Buy lots of seasonal fruits and veggies
26. Do some Christmas crafts
27. Attend a Christmas market
28. Make yourself the perfect hot chocolate
29. Put your pajamas on straight from the dryer
30. Do Yoga in your pajamas 

winter self care

31. Buy yourself a Christmas present
32. Write down your goals for the New Year
33. Write a Christmas story or poem – just get creative with your words
34. Make your own bath bombs
35. Have a day of Hygge
36. Visit a garden center
37. Do a moisturizing face mask to combat dry Winter skin
38. Go for a de-stress massage
39. Paint your nails in Christmassy colours
40. Write down 30 things you’re grateful for this year

How will you be practicing self care this Winter?

115 Comments

  1. I love these ideas so much! I have been doing cozy self care stuff everyday 🙂 I love the idea of making my own eggnog! I usually just pick up some from the store!

  2. Totally agree with how magical it feels and I love the crisp bite in the air too.
    Great list, cosy hot water bottles, Christmas films and hot bubble baths are my go to.

  3. Self-Care is so important! Specially during these tough tiring times. I loved the idea of watching a Christmas movie and baking something with Christmassy flavors. I personally love to buy Christmas scented candles for the house it definitely relaxes me!

  4. Love this list Jenny! I definitely find myself getting affected by SAD at this time of year and I do find that things like creating a cosy space really make a difference (and heading out for exercise as well!). I’ve been embracing the festivities early this year and have been watching some Christmassy films which has been fab! 🙂

    https://www.femaleoriginal.com

  5. These are some lovely ideas! Last night I actually had quite a nice lil cosy evening with hot choco and a festive film – I know it’s probably a little early for that but I very much enjoyed it. I am actually really looking forward to Christmas this year and having lots of cosy nights in watching films. Fab post! x

  6. I am really missing the Christmas markets that usually happen in our area right now. I live in a small town, but there are usually multiple markets held in November and December. Unfortunately, with the COVID restrictions in place, they have all been cancelled at this time. I’m going to do most of my shopping online, but it’s just not the same lol

  7. Love these! I’ve already started snuggling up with my hot water bottle. I’ll pass on the egg nog though! Roll on the Christmas films 📼

  8. I’ve just pinned this to come back to over and over again when I have empty moments to fill. I appreciate all the creativity throughout this post. There were so many ideas I had never thought of – like making my own eggnog! Genius!

  9. I love all these ideas, and I might do a checklist to do them all. 😂 I’ve already made a start as I recently bought a new hot water bottle, fairy lights and some items for a pamper night. Thank you for sharing this post. It will come in handy! 😊

  10. I love holiday smells in the air so baking is a good pastime for me! Having plenty of tea or cocoa on hand to accompany my baked goods and a good book is a must too.

    We always watch National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation for our holiday laughs. 🙂

  11. Jenny, I’m leaving your content these past few posts! I definitely love buying myself a Christmas present! Going to write down some if these other ideas too.

    Giulia

    tidbitsofcare.com

  12. These are such great tips, Jenny! I definitely need to work on waking up early to counteract the dark nights as it affects my mental health so negatively when I wake up around midday and only have a few hours of daylight x

  13. I know this isn’t your latest, but this one really caught my eye. Now the weather is changing, and especially with everything else going on, winter is definitely going to be a tougher one than usual this year. Some great tips here!

  14. These are some great self care ideas for winter! My favourite thing to do at Christmas for self care is to have a nice hot bath with lots of Lush Christmas products and then get into some cosy Christmas pjs.

  15. Lots of good winter suggestions here. I love the one about fairy lights especially. We are moving soon, and I plan on putting them all around my daughter’s new room. There’s something about them that just makes you happy.

  16. I wanted to comment on each tip I wanted to try but there were too many! But definitely, my life needs these – days of hygge, Christmas books, and a Christmas & winter bucket list. On it!

  17. These are some great ideas. Some being so small that you wouldn’t think of but have such a positive impact on your physical or mental health. Self care is so important and these are some great ideas you have shared. During winter months I definitely tend to have more baths than showers and do a bit more pampering. Thank you for sharing Jenny.

    Lauren http://www.bournemouthgirl.com

  18. Lovely tips. Fairy lights, Christmas presents, new year goals, hot bath sound good. And the best one is to get help for SAD. Even talking to someone feels good. I like to do some coloring and recently started embroidery. 🙂

    Via

  19. I have to be honest, I am NEVER going to become a Winter fan. I’m a Summer girl, give me allllll the sunshine, even in a heatwave! But yes to hot chocolate, hot water bottles and going to a garden centre (the latter works for me at any time of year). Fab suggestions, Jenny, thank you! Lisa xxx

    1. Hahaha Lisa I was WAITING for your “I HATE WINTER” comment because you’re exactly the same as me when anyone talks about Summer and I’m like “MEHH I HATE IT” xD I’m drinking so much hot choc at the moment! I do love a garden centre too xxxx

  20. Great post, and fantastic writing 🙂 I think reaching out for help if you have SAD is really important. I try to take Vitamin D to combat some of the “depressing” feelings of winter, but often it can be more intense than this, so letting people know they need to reach out if they need the help is so important!

  21. This was such a nice post to read! Especially this year I think we all need to focus on our own mental health sometimes and do things we love and enjoy and that make us happy.

    I will definitely be coming back to this list and trying a few of them out!

    Jared x

  22. I am so ready for the Christmas season! I live in Australia so we’re going into summer rather than winter 🙂 However I can’t wait for the Christmas markets and painting my nails in Christmassy colours! Love all your ideas, thanks for sharing.

  23. Dear Jenny. I promise to take absoloute care of myself this winter! Haha! Honestly I am not a winter person and the second lockdown in the UK has kind of made things a little more bleak. But your list has come as help! I think I’ll go for the new pyjamas, Christmas present to self and face mask options!
    Thanks for this.

  24. I am SO ready for the festive season – but I am also ready to take it at my own pace and make sure my mental health is where it needs to be following this year and this second lockdown. Having time away from my family is tough at the best of times so I’m going to try to keep myself busy. We always make our own eggnong and some of our decorations!

    such a great post, I hope it helps people!

    Rosie

  25. Fab tips! Deffo need to use some to get properly into the Christmas vibes! I have already watched my first Christmas films of the year over the weekend.

    Shona Marie xo

  26. Great ideas, I’m loving how cosy they all sound. I recently bought an extra long hot water bottle and it’s my favourite purchase of the year! I’m definitely going to try out some of the others from this list 🙂

    Anika | chaptersofmay.com

  27. Aw I love these tips! My fave method of self-care is a nice warm bath, face mask and fresh bedding and pjs!xx

  28. Oh Hello Winter and lovely Christmas times! Autumn is so pretty but I do love Winter, mainly for Christmas if I am honest. But I love the thought that we may get snow, I love crisp walks all wrapped up and being able to hibernate!

    I love this list, so many of these are some of my favourite things to do at this time of year. I watched my first Christmas film yesterday while wrapping and enjoying a lovely festive drink x

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