It’s mid-August, so it’s time to start getting ready for fall decorating! I’ve been thinking about it since August started and now it’s time to begin prepping.
Our typical fall décor plan includes our kitchen porch and door, front door, living room, hallways, and the office/family room. We want it to feel like autumn, but we don’t want it shouting at us at every turn. Subtlety is the goal!
To keep things subtle but seasonal, I’m planning to build on our foundation of neutrals – black, white, tan, and gray – with hints of autumn color. To help achieve my vision, I’ve created a mood board, which is a fancy way of saying I’ve put together a bunch of pictures and colors to inspire my design.
Creating a mood board helps keep me on track, as I’m prone to spending so much time on Pinterest, that it’s easy to get overwhelmed with competing design ideas. I use Canva, which makes it incredibly easy. They offer free versions if you want to give it a try!
The plaid pillows are the inspiration for this year’s color palette. I love the muted tones in orange, green, and blue, with black and white neutrals woven in. They’ll add soft, warm color that will complement but won’t overpower our existing décor.
The color palette will also be easy to replicate outdoors through pumpkins, gourds, and mums in similar colors and tones. While I love the inspiration image, I’ll probably simplify the look and feel for our place. The goal isn’t to duplicate the images from the mood board, but rather use elements within them to inspire your own unique design.
On another note, I’m sad to report that I won’t be using pumpkins from my garden this year. Ugh! The growing season this year has been simply too wet, so we’ve suffered a lot of root rot. Last year we were in a drought, so our pumpkin patch has been an epic failure two seasons running. Fingers crossed that we’ll see some success in 2024. Till then, I’ll be visiting the local farm stands and taking advantage of their harvests.
Back to the decorating plan! Inside, I’m planning lots of texture, like wood, wicker, pumpkins and gourds, branches, cozy fabrics, glass, and ceramic touches. Incorporating elements already in use helps to keep things simple and subtle. Placing a cozy throw in fall colors on your sofa, for example, adds instant style without a lot of extra effort.
I may even be able to include the farmhouse-style barn door hubby DIY’d for me over last winter!
I’ll also be emphasizing the organic aspect of fall in this year’s décor. Nature grounds me and being surrounded by it keeps me calm and peaceful, so of course it’s part of the plan! Branches of dried leaves, dried grasses and flowers, and the ubiquitous pumpkin or gourd will find it’s way into the house.
And I didn’t even think about it till I came across this image, but pears would be another wonderful element to include in my autumn plans. The gold hue of the Bosc variety is beautiful. Not only that, but the colors in this kitchen are just perfect. Love, love, love!
Finally, I’m inspired by the simplicity of this basket of leaves in lieu of the typical wreath for decorating the front door. We’ll see where it leads me, but I do think it’s brilliant.
I’m excited to have a direction for my fall décor and even more excited to put the plan into action. Stay tuned for the results – I’ll be sure to share in an upcoming post!