Fall Reset, Dolce Vita Style

If you enjoyed my dolce vita reads, here’s another wholesome one, perfect for the fall season.

It’s about the very trendy fall reset, but I promise there’s going to be nothing trendy about it. We’ll look at how the Italian women around me and I get ready for fall, what we do and what we don’t do, so you can take from it whatever speaks to you and leave the rest.

I’ll ask and answer a few questions you likely have around this topic, so you can get a real feel for what an Italian fall reset looks like and shape it into something that’s yours.

When Do Italians Start Getting Ready For Fall?

It all really depends on where they live. In Northern Italy, especially in places like Aosta, Milan, Bolzano, and Turin, fall arrives a little earlier. That usually means September is a good time to start preparing for the season.

Instead, in Southern regions like Sicily, or even further up in Puglia, it’s November that really feels like the season has officially arrived. So everything is delayed by around a month.

What Does An Italian Style Fall Reset Look Like?

If you’ve done a fall reset before, you know there are many facets to it. I think we can break it down into three distinct parts: a home reset, a wardrobe reset, and a pantry and cooking reset. Let’s talk about each one.

The Home Fall Reset

Unlike many Americans who go all out with redecorating their homes, Italians take things way easier. While growing up, the only main things I saw changing in my grandma’s home were the fabrics. She would switch many of them to darker thicker ones, and also swap any bedding for cosier sets.

My mum limited herself to just the bedding.

I do the same, but I also like to switch up a few things in my kitchen and living room. I switch a couple art pieces, the flower arrangements, and the pillow cases. More and more younger Italian women are doing this, mostly influenced by the American culture that has taken over the world. This is also very common in the UK, but I am not sure if it’s because they too were influenced by the US.

For most Italians, there’s no such thing like decorating the exterior of your home for fall. You won’t even see a seasonal wreath, unless it’s Christmas. That’s when we go all out.

If you’re looking for inspiration for your own fall home reset, here’s how I go about doing mine.

I choose one space that I either love the most or spend most time in. For me, it’s my living and kitchen. I feel they are the spaces that get enjoyed the most, outside my office, where the seasonal change will make the biggest impact.

For many years, I limited myself to switching the pillow covers and the flowers. Lately, I’ve also been switching one or two wall prints. My aim is to have a few options for each season that I can rotate through year after year.

When it comes to picking those pieces, I ask myself how I want the space to make me feel, and what I am craving for that season (not food wise). For fall it’s likely something cosy and moody, perhaps reminiscent of a place in Italy I love during fall, like Trentino. I still haven’t picked this year’s prints, and this will be my first time switching them up for fall.

If you’d like to see the end result, I will share it in my newsletter – Buona Settimana. You’re welcome to join, take a peek, and perhaps share your seasonal decor, or anything else you’d like.

For flowers, I usually scroll on Pinterest until I find something that catches my eyes. I try to use what I already have for the arrangements, or maybe pick just a few extra things to finish the look.

The pillows I usually go for tend to be beige or tartan, but this year I might try something more seasonal.

Italian Fall Home Rituals

Here’s a list to inspire your own fall reset planning session.

Swap in wool throws and heavier bedding, so every room feels like an embrace.
Light lamps in the early evening instead of overhead lights, letting the house glow rather than shine.
Bring in small seasonal touches, pears, pomegranates, chestnuts, or a little vase of dried flowers, just enough to remind you the season has changed.
Air out every room in the morning, before the day gets too cold, and let the last of the summer air drift out.
Swap lightweight curtains for heavier ones, so the light that comes through feels softer, warmer.
Simmer orange peel, cinnamon, cloves, or rosemary on the stove, and let the house smell like it’s already autumn.
Deep clean the kitchen before soup and baking season truly begins, an act of care disguised as a chore.
Refresh your entryway, so coming home after a chilly walk feels like a small welcome.
Stock a basket with cozy essentials, a good book, a soft blanket, herbal tea, for evenings that ask nothing of you.
Make your bed with warmer layers, an invitation, at the end of each day, to slow down.

The Wardrobe Reset

This is the most important part for us Italians. We call it “il cambio di stagione”.

Italians take really good care of their clothes, which is why we want to make sure everything that’s no longer needed is organized well, and what we need the most is easily accessible. Most of us prefer keeping everything in the same wardrobe, trying to avoid packing clothing in boxes and taking them to the loft. In Italy, only the bigger older houses have spaces that sort of look like lofts.

One thing that certain Italian homes have is a wardrobe room, that is a room dedicated to just having a big wall to wall wardrobe, or two, one on each side. This is not to be confused with a walking wardrobe. There’s no clutter, no external hanging space, no vanities, and it’s usually not used to get dressed. This room is a luxury not everyone has, but those who do have it, use it to store extra clothing, like coats and jackets, occasion dresses and suits, extra bedding, and most likely also seasonal clothes.

The Fall wardrobe reset is the perfect time to check your fall clothing, see what needs re-washing or just steaming, and what needs mending; perhaps your shoes need polishing, or to be taken to the cobbler to repair any heels.

It’s also a great time to make a list of what needs to be replaced, those things you’re missing, or other things that need topping up.

If there’s one thing that Italians like topping up before the new season is the basics, think underwear, socks, cotton tees, thighs, etc.

While we’re doing all of this, we’re also deep cleaning our wardrobes. I like to do it twice a year: between fall and winter and right before summer.

What about you – when do you deep clean your closet?

Italian Fall Wardrobe Essentials

Trying to think of the pieces you’ve been wanting to shop since last fall? Have a look at this list.

A classic trench coat, ideal for the milder days of early autumn.
A wool coat for the colder mornings and evenings ahead.
A leather jacket, or another leather piece, for days that call for a bit of edge.
Fine-knit sweaters in warm, autumnal tones, tan, olive, rust, maroon, mustard, chosen to suit your own coloring.
Short-sleeve cashmere knits, perfect for layering under blazers, sweaters, or cardigans.
A cozy cardigan you’ll find yourself reaching for again and again.
A well-cut blazer to dress up even the simplest outfit.
Dark-wash jeans that move easily between sneakers and loafers.
Tailored trousers in darker moodier colors, for an effortless, everyday look.
Long-sleeve cotton shirts and a few crisp white button-downs.
A handful of lightweight scarves for those in-between days.
Comfortable loafers to see you through early fall before boot season begins.
Leather ankle boots for cooler, rainier days.
Suede shoes, bags, or even a piece of outerwear, for texture and depth.
White leather sneakers that still feel right against autumn colors.
A quality leather handbag you can carry all season long.
Soft cashmere socks, the kind that actually keep your feet warm.
A few timeless pieces of jewelry, simple enough to wear with anything.

The Pantry Fall Reset

This is the other area of a fall reset Italians focus on the most, and it’s simply because as the weather changes so do the dishes we eat. We move away from salads and towards soups, stews, lots of beans and more cooked vegetables, plenty of baking, savory pies, more pizza and bread making.

All of that requires a well stocked pantry, from flour to yeast and other leavening agents, to dry beans, canned and jarred food, stock cubes, dried fruit, sugar, tomato sauces, and much more.

One kitchen decor piece that most Italian women like to switch is tea towels. I thought I’d mention it here since it’s an essential for cooking and washing up.

In case you’re wondering, it’s very rare that Italians switch their mug collection, or have particular plates or cutlery specific for fall.

Of course, if you see Italians online that do this, remember that these people have most surely been highly influenced by other countries and social media. What I am sharing here relates to the average Italian.

Nonnas and other Italian women who love homemaking go the extra step and preserve their food for the fall and winter season. However, this process usually starts in the middle of Summer, especially when it comes to harvesting tomatoes, figs, berries, plums, and many other seasonal bounties.

Italian Fall Recipe Ideas

Once you’ve stocked your pantry with your favorite fall ingredients, and a few from my Italian list, you can make a list of all the new fall recipes you’d like to try. Get inspired by these Italian fall favorites.

A classic risotto alla Milanese, saffron-gold and unmistakably comforting.
Sausage pasta, rich and a little indulgent, for the first properly cold evening.
Pasta e fagioli, or another hearty soup, the kind that simmers while you do something else.
Lasagna soup, all the comfort of lasagna without the wait.
Your first lasagna of the season, layered with care, and maybe a glass of wine while you make it.
A rustic Italian savory pie, filled with whatever feels right, ham, cheese and potato; broccoli, olives and pecorino; turnip tops and sausage.
Roasted chestnuts, best eaten warm, straight from the pan.
A simple braise, short rib or chicken cacciatore, for a Sunday that has nowhere else to be.
Baked pears, or another warm fall fruit dessert.
A spiced dolce, like a chestnut cake, to end the meal slowly.

What Can You Take Away From All Of This

I think it’s clear that the Italian-style fall reset is done with a purpose in mind that’s not about aesthetics.

The main goal is to make life easier when fall arrives, to have all the comforts ready for you when you need them, and to help with slowing down and living a cosier life.

Here are a few takeaways and questions that I’d like to end this with:

If switching up a lot of your decor brings you joy, no one is stopping you. But you should ask yourself this one question: am I doing it for myself or to keep up with someone else? How much is enough? Am I taking it too far, overspending, and using precious time I could spend doing something else?
What if this year I tried to plan my fall reset around the feelings I want to feel rather than the aesthetic I am trying to recreate?
How can I organize my wardrobe so it serves me better throughout the fall and winter season?
How can I stock up my pantry so that I can cook more wholesome meals from scratch with fresh and nourishing seasonal ingredients that feed my body and soul?
What things can I add to my list that bring joy to other members of my family (visually, for use, and food wise)?

Table of Contents