5 Steps To Decorating Your Home For Fall: How To Decorate Seasonally

With (some of the) days finally getting cooler, we’re reminded of the seasonal change that fall brings. We’re now moving away from the noise and heat of summer and toward the months that make us realize how important cultivating a beautiful home in which to spend time indoors with our loved ones is. 

This means a shift in decor is in order. How to decorate seasonally is different for everyone; we each have our own unique process. But we’ll provide a few tips and techniques you can utilize to point your seasonal upgrades in the right direction. 

When Should You Decorate For Fall?

The first question people tend to ask is, “When should you decorate for fall?” and the simple answer is that it’s entirely up to you. Some people like to get started at the end of August; those of us who live in warmer climates often choose to wait until November when the weather actually starts to dip into lower temperatures before we get to work. Others skip fall decor entirely because they’re so excited about winter decor (and that’s okay too). 

Fall decor is all about looking inward into what makes us comfortable and into how we can let our personalities shine in the world around us as the seasons change. Having a home that makes us feel supported during times of change like these is something we take very seriously (and have a whole lot of fun with), so follow these five steps and cultivate a space in which you can wind down at the end of a chaotic year for us all. 

Step 1: Set the mood.

Before anything else, when it comes to decorating, you have to know what you want your space to look like. 

Start asking yourself the basic questions:

• “What do I want my home to feel like?”
• “How do I want it to smell?”
• “Who else is sharing this space with me?”
• “What emotions do I want my home to invoke if someone were to walk into it for the first time?” 

Sit down with a pen and paper and start writing down keywords. These could include anything from “cozy” to “bold.” If you live with a partner or have children, you need to create a space that works for everyone, so it might be a fun exercise to ask them how they feel about the decor. 

After you have your key words written down, make your way to the inspiration side of the internet: Instagram, Pinterest, Tumblr, and YouTube (Architectural Digest has some spectacular stuff). Collect images that resonate with you and mold them into a mood board that includes a color palette. By the end of this exercise, you should know how you want your home to look to incorporate the colder seasons. 

We think a great place to start is by combining neutrals like tans, whites, blacks, and browns with deep oranges, emeralds, and even reds as the seasons turn closer toward the holidays. A shock of bright color can also create a gorgeous effect on the decor. At the end of the day, this is your home, and choosing items and colors that make you feel good is what matters. 

Step 2: Take inventory.

This step is important because we all have different budgets, and this is a surefire way to make sure you don’t go too crazy buying new Fall decor. Dig through the seasonal decor you already have, take an inventory, and select pieces that resonate with your style after you’ve found your inspiration. Do you have a beautiful old fall wreath that your mom picked up at a German Christmas market? Maybe hang onto that. 

This can also be a great opportunity to simplify and purge. If you do have children who are now all grown up, getting rid of some of those kid-friendly Halloween decorations, for example, can make it easy to focus on the items that suit your taste better. 

Step 3: Find holes in the inventory.

Once you’ve taken stock of what you have, it’s time to compare what you’ve got to your inspiration. The big idea in this step is consideration. Sit down, close your eyes, and envision the space you have, the decor you can use, and the holes left in that picture.  

Ask yourself: “What do I need to get close enough to my dream idea to make myself happier in this space?”

Step 4: Choose carefully and tastefully.

To decorate a living room for fall, for example, it’s important to nod to your theme without letting it take over your home. We recommend more-neutral fall decor because it doesn’t scream, “HEY! IT’S FALL!!” Instead, we want decor that smiles at anyone who walks into the room like an old friend. This type of decorating says, “It’s already fall? Oh, I almost forgot. It’s a good thing I was already prepared with these beautiful little decorations.”

We want our homes to look effortless, and the trick to doing that is being very careful about your choices. A candle that invokes the scents of fall is essential. A beautiful blanket placed carefully on the right pillows will go a long way. 

You don’t have to inundate your space with polyester leaves (though a few real dried ones placed in a beautiful jar might do you good) and exploding cornucopias to give it the feel of fall. 

Step 5: Experiment and play.

Once you’ve filled the holes in your fall decor, it’s finally time to actually start decorating. This part can be either frustrating or an absolute blast, depending on how you approach it. 

If you walk into this expecting perfection the first time you place everything where you think it belongs, you probably won’t have a good time. Instead, carve out an hour or two, lay out all of your fall goodies, throw on your favorite music, and run around your house playing with looks, placement, and combinations of items.