I’m sure you’ve all heard already: it’s fall! And though that means local pumpkin spice, local candy, and local scarves, it also means less sunlight.

Being exposed to as much blue light as we are – I’m sure you’re reading this on a screen – combined with the lack and ever decreasing amount of sunlight this time of year, what’s a person to do?

Two things… create and rejuvenate! 

I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but Marion County has a specific Create & Rejuvenate page specifically for creating and, you guessed it, rejuvenating. So what’s it all mean?

Marion County is ripe with art – painting, throwing pottery, painting pottery, buying paintings, buying pottery. 

And that’s not all. We’ve got performing arts to boot! (Which can be found in adorable style at A Pied – the boots, not the performers.)

You may or may not be asking what rejuvenating has to do with creating? Am I right? I’m probably right…

Well, let me tell you! Being creative or artsy-fartsy is a rejuvenating activity in and of itself. Studies show art reduces stress, helps you figure out problems, better understand your emotions – plus pretty stuff for your home and life. 

Try your hand (pun fully intended) at … 

• Arts & Antiques Marketplace – Take a class (or more) each week to learn the art of canvas painting. Landscapes, stills and more are yours for the learning for the simple joy of learning. (Call to ask about their chalk furniture painting classes!)

• Joe n Throw Pottery – This one can be more of a social art. Bring some friends to enjoy a Pints n Pots class with West Virginia beer or coffee

• Nativibes – Paint your stress away in Mannington with seasonal and holiday watercolor painting classes with Ben Kolb. (Outlines provided!) 

• Mountain Creative – Need a light cover? Coffee mug? Travel tumbler? Paint any of these useful items to make life easier and prettier – or paint something pretty like a dinosaur… or a tea set.

But maybe you’re so stressed you can’t create, and that’s where pure and simple rejuvenation comes in! 

• SpaOasis – Float your troubles away in 900 lbs of Epsom salt! This isn’t any ordinary Epsom salt bath but a sensory deprivation experience. Magnesium from the Epsom salt absorbs into your skin, relaxing your mind and body.

• Main Street Yoga – Muscles hold tension. Tension is stress. Stretch the stress out of your life and body with easy movements and poses at Main Street Yoga. 

• Tuscan Sun Spa & Salon – Get a full day of beauty here with wraps, main/pedis, and shopping. 

• Thrive Cryo Spa – Freeze your stress away at Marion’s newest rejuvenation center! A cryo facial treatment will uplift both you and your wrinkles!

• Health Naturally – Rejuvenation shouldn’t be a one-time thing. Load up on healthy pantry staples to give your body what it needs three times a day (plus snacks, so more like five or six).

Do your best to get out in the sun when it pops up this season:

• Valley Falls State Park: Lie out on the rocks and listen to the falls or take to the trails!

• Morris Park: Meander the path or play a round of disc golf here. 

• Rail Trails: No matter where you’re staying in the county, there’s a rail-trail in every town!

Pro tip:

Combat the lack of rays head-on. Go back to SpaOasis for more salt, but Himalayan Salt this time. Pink Himalayan Salt lamps provide soothing colors, boost oxygen levels and thus your mood while decreasing drowsiness. Take that, 7 p.m. sunset!

How do you survive the shortened daylight hours?