What Is Soft Prepping? And Why I’m Not a Doomsday Prepper
Hello lovely! I’m Carri, creator of Ready Pretty Living, where beautiful design meets practical preparedness.
My journey to Soft Prepping began in the emergency room. As a nurse practitioner with years of experience as an ER nurse and EMT, I’ve spent my career responding to real emergencies. Through countless shifts and ambulance calls, I’ve witnessed firsthand how preparation affects people during life’s unexpected moments. Through all those years in healthcare, I learned something essential: we don’t live in disaster mode. We live in everyday life.
Ready Pretty Living was born from my own unexpected disruptions: extended power outages during ice storms and even a flooded home after a hurricane. These personal experiences showed me that true resilience doesn’t come from fear-based stockpiling. It comes from creating beautiful systems that enhance your everyday life while ensuring you’re ready for whatever tomorrow brings.
That’s why I created something I call Soft Prepping: a gentle, beautiful, and empowering approach to preparedness that helps you feel ready without panic.
So… What Is Soft Prepping?
Soft Prepping is the opposite of doomsday prepping. It’s readiness without rigidity. Confidence without chaos.
It’s about weaving calm, thoughtful systems into your life that feel good and do good, whether you’re navigating a power outage, a last-minute evacuation, or just a stressful Tuesday.
Where traditional prepping often feels tactical, harsh, or masculine-coded, Soft Prepping is feminine, practical, and emotionally aligned. It’s not about fearing the future; it’s about supporting your present.
Through Ready Pretty Living, I help women create beautiful, resilient homes where:
- A power outage feels like a cozy opportunity for connection, not a crisis
- Your go-bag looks like a lovely weekender you’d happily carry anywhere
- Preparedness integrates seamlessly with your aesthetic
- Your home remains a sanctuary, even during unexpected moments
Why Not Doomsday Prepping?
I’ve lived through real emergencies: extended power outages during ice storms and a hurricane that flooded my home. What would have helped me through those moments (if I had it together at the time) wasn’t a bunker in the basement. It would have been simple systems I could rely on: warm lighting, nourishing pantry staples, a clear plan, and a supportive community.
Through these experiences, I later realized that true resilience comes from creating beautiful systems that serve us daily, not from hidden stockpiles we hope never to use. I combine my healthcare expertise with my passion for home design to create spaces and systems that bring calm confidence rather than constant worry.
Doomsday prepping relies on fear. Soft Prepping relies on beauty, rhythm, and resilience.
Here’s how they differ:
The Philosophy Behind It
At the heart of Soft Prepping are five principles that guide how we prepare: gently, practically, and beautifully. While I share the full framework inside the Soft Prepping Philosophy guide, here’s a gentle introduction:
- We start with connection, not just collection
- We choose tools that are beautiful and functional
- We focus on everyday usefulness, not just “emergency use”
- We adapt to the seasons
- And above all, we practice ritual, not reactivity
These aren’t rules. They’re invitations. Small shifts that create deep peace.
You Deserve Beautiful Preparedness
Preparedness should never feel like a burden or a bunker. It should feel like care.
That’s why Ready Pretty Living exists: to help you build calm, thoughtful systems that support your life today and tomorrow. My sister and I combine our healthcare experience with our passion for beautiful design to create preparedness approaches that feel natural and peaceful.
My goal isn’t to make you think about emergencies constantly. It’s to create calm confidence so that if your power goes out for a week, or if you need to leave your home in 15 minutes, you don’t panic.
You simply grab your beautiful bag, light your beeswax candle, and say to yourself: “We have everything we need.”
Want to start your own soft prepping journey? I’d love to help you create beautiful systems that bring peace, not panic. Explore the Slow Living Emergency Starter Kit or join the Ready Pretty Insiders and receive The Soft Prepping Philosophy: 5 Principles for Beautiful Preparedness Without Panic for free. Because readiness should be soft, calm, and quietly powerful.
With warmth,
Carri
Founder, Ready Pretty Living
Live beautifully. Be ready for anything.
