The Fall Home Reset: 7 Things I’d Do Before the Holiday Season Hits

September in Kansas is funny.

It's still 90 degrees outside some days...

but mentally?

I'm already decorating for fall. 😂🍂

And once fall arrives, everything seems to happen FAST.

Halloween.

Thanksgiving.

Christmas.

Family coming over.

Decorations coming out.

Extra food going into the pantry.

Coats appearing by the door.

Amazon boxes multiplying overnight.

And suddenly we're wondering:

“Where did all this STUFF come from?”

Before the holiday craziness begins, September is actually one of my favorite times to give your home a little reset.

And I'm not talking about remodeling.

I'm not telling you to buy new furniture.

You don't need matching storage containers in every cabinet.

This is about making the home you already have function better and feel better before we start piling pumpkins and Christmas trees into it.

And trust me...

I'm definitely bringing out the pumpkins. 😂

1. Pick ONE Area That's Driving You Crazy

Don't start by saying:

“I'm organizing the whole house this weekend!”

Because we both know how that ends.

Six hours later you're sitting on the bedroom floor surrounded by clothes, looking through pictures from 2007 and wondering what happened. 😂

Start with the space that annoys you the most.

Maybe it's:

• The kitchen counter
• Pantry
• Coat closet
• Entryway
• Laundry room
• Bathroom cabinets
• That one chair that has somehow become a closet

You know the chair.

We ALL have the chair.

Pick one area.

Finish it.

Then move on.

Small wins make you want to keep going.

2. Do the “Would I Put This Back?” Test

This is one of my favorite ways to declutter.

Instead of asking:

“Should I get rid of this?”

Ask:

“If I emptied this cabinet completely, would I intentionally put this item back?”

That changes things.

Because suddenly you're holding a random plastic cup from a restaurant your kids haven't visited in 12 years thinking...

Why DO I still own this?

😂

You don't have to become a minimalist.

I'm certainly not telling you to get rid of things you love.

I want you to make room for the things you actually use and enjoy.

There's a difference.

3. Make Room BEFORE the Holiday Stuff Comes Out

This is a big one.

We're about to add more things to our homes.

Fall decorations.

Halloween decorations.

Thanksgiving serving dishes.

Christmas décor.

Gifts.

Wrapping paper.

Food.

Coats.

Boots.

Extra people.

If your house already feels full in September, imagine what December is going to feel like.

Before you bring out the seasonal totes, remove some everyday décor.

You don't need your regular décor AND every fall decoration you've collected since 1998 sitting out together.

Let the seasonal pieces have some breathing room.

Your home will feel decorated instead of crowded.

4. Look at Your Furniture With Fresh Eyes

You would be amazed at what moving furniture can do.

Sometimes a room doesn't need anything new.

It needs a different layout.

Can you create a better conversation area?

Is a piece blocking a walkway?

Is the sofa making the room feel smaller?

Could a chair move somewhere else?

Do you have too much furniture in one room?

This is something I do constantly with Design with Jen.

People sometimes assume decorating means:

BUY MORE STUFF.

A lot of the time, I'm doing the opposite.

I'm taking things away.

Moving something.

Reusing something from another room.

Turning a rug.

Changing artwork.

And suddenly the entire space feels different.

Shop your own house before you shop the store.

5. Get Your Guest Spaces Ready NOW

If family or friends might stay with you during Thanksgiving or Christmas, don't wait until the night before they arrive to discover your guest room has become a storage unit.

You know who you are. 😂

September is the perfect time to take inventory.

Does the bed need fresh bedding?

Is there somewhere to put a suitcase?

Can your guest actually hang clothes in the closet?

Does the lamp work?

Are there towels available?

You don't need to create a luxury hotel room.

Just make the space feel intentional and welcoming.

And if your “guest room” is also your office, workout room, craft room and Amazon-return holding facility...

We have some work to do. 😂

6. Don't Forget the Entryway

Your entryway works HARD during fall and winter.

Shoes.

Coats.

Bags.

Dog leashes.

Packages.

Scarves.

Gloves.

People coming and going.

Take a few minutes now and think about how that area functions.

Maybe you need a basket.

Maybe you need hooks.

Maybe the coat closet needs cleaned out.

Maybe there are 14 jackets hanging there and you wear three of them.

The goal isn't Pinterest perfection.

The goal is:

Can we walk through the door without tripping over something?

That's a perfectly respectable design goal. 😂

7. Make Your Home Feel Like YOU

This is the most important one.

Your home doesn't need to look like Instagram.

It doesn't need to follow every decorating trend.

And you absolutely don't need to replace everything because someone decided your cabinets, flooring or furniture aren't “in” anymore.

I believe your home should tell your story.

Family photos.

Things you've collected.

Furniture you love.

A ridiculous number of pumpkins if that's your thing.

And yes, that's my thing. 😂🎃

The trick is creating balance.

You want your home to feel lived in and personal without feeling like the walls are closing in on you.

Sometimes that means adding something.

Sometimes it means taking something away.

And sometimes it means moving the exact same things you already own into completely different places.

Here's My Favorite Part About a Fall Reset

You start because you want to clean out a closet.

But then something happens.

Your kitchen counter stays clear.

You can actually find things in the pantry.

The living room feels bigger.

You walk through the front door and the house just feels...

better.

That's what good organization and design should do.

It shouldn't just make your home prettier.

It should make living there easier.

And If You're Thinking About Selling...

Here's the bonus.

Everything we just talked about also helps prepare a home for the market.

Decluttering.

Organization.

Furniture placement.

Creating inviting rooms.

Improving flow.

Making spaces feel larger.

So even if selling isn't on your radar today, you're taking care of things that could make life easier if that changes later.

And if you ARE considering selling your Wichita home soon?

Don't go buy a bunch of new stuff.

We can probably work with quite a bit of what you already own.

Ready for Your Own Fall Home Reset?

You don't have to remodel your house to fall in love with it again.

Sometimes you just need another set of eyes to walk in and say:

“Move this here.”

“Take that out.”

“Let's use this in the other room.”

“And WHY are we keeping this?” 😂

That's the part I love.

Through Design with Jen, I help with decorating, organizing, decluttering, downsizing, staging and making homes function better for the people who actually live in them.

And when it's time for a completely different home?

Well...

I'm a Realtor too. 😉

Jennifer Timmermeyer
Owner | Design with Jen
Realtor® | Real Broker, LLC

Serving Wichita, Kansas and surrounding communities.

Love where you live — whatever chapter you're in.