There’s always that worry that you’ll go a bit too far with the seasonal add-ons within your home and end up making the space look like it’s something from the set of a Disney film! And however much I love the film ‘Hocus Pocus’ (one of my all-time favourite Halloween themed films…!), I’m not sure I want my home to look like it was used in the making of it!
In this post, I share my tips on how to effectively, yet subtly, transition your home into Autumn by applying some simple changes, swaps and purchases.
Textures
One of the easiest and most effective ways of updating your home for Autumn is to introduce varying textures to your soft furnishing and decor. It’s a great time to switch out linen pillows and throws with materials like mohair, velvet, wool, leather, suede or even sheepskin. Not only does this make your home feel warm, tactile and welcoming, it embraces the natural elements that Autumn has to offer.
Think of your home no differently to your wardrobe (well, to be more precise, the clothes inside your wardrobe). We recycle our clothes throughout the year depending on the season and this method can also be applied to your home interiors. That is however, if you have enough space to store all your items! I will either use my under-bed storage or the space within in my loft to store my seasonal clothes and home accessories. When the new season arrives, I will switch things over and instantly my home feels different. Of course, you can also update your seasonal ‘supplies’ by injecting on-trend colours, shapes or perhaps even objects.
Some of my favourite textural details are ones that are less obvious and as a result, sit effortlessly within your home. The smallest of details can often make the biggest impact. Textural variations on soft furnishings such as throws, rugs and pillows are the obvious ones but also think about textures on vases, flowers, baskets, wall hangings, placemats and coasters.
Layering
With all these gorgeous textures going into your home, the next step is to layer them up. Layering is such an effective way to add comfort to your home and can easily be achieved with the use of scatter cushions, blankets and rugs – perfect for the Autumn season. The best way to layer is to use a mixture of material types, patterns or colours as this helps to differentiate between the layers.
My favourite area to layer within my home is on my dining table. It provides the perfect neutral backdrop for everyday styling and for also event styling. Placemats, table runners, napkins, foliage and candles can all be used to create a layered look.
Colour
Now, don’t be put off by the obvious choice of colour for Autumn (orange), as if this isn’t a colour for you, it really doesn’t need to enter your home. I’ve got to be honest, it’s not my first choice of colour! I prefer to use depths of colour for my Autumn colour palette such as; burnt orange/rust, burgundy, deep blue, grey, charcoal and even black. By contrasting these within your normal decor and with easy neutrals, you can still achieve an Autumn inspired home. Take these images, for example;
Scent
We sometimes forget how powerful our sense of smell can be. A particular scent can evoke all sorts of feelings, whether it be of comfort, joy, sadness, happiness or simply by transporting our mind to another place of familiarity. To fully bring a sense of Autumn to our homes, we should also consider the scents that we have within it.
Changing your selection of potted herbs in the kitchen is an easy, but effective way, of updating your home for the seasons. The natural scents of Rosemary, Sage, Thyme and Winter Tarragon are great for Autumn. Not only will they provide a seasonal scent to the room they also look Autumnal and they are the perfect accompaniment for seasonal cooking!
Use essential oils and pine cones for a pretty, great-smelling decoration. Just add a few drops of essential oils, like lavender or cinnamon, to pine cones gathered from your garden and arrange them in a basket. You only need one to two drops of oil per pine cone, and can easily move the basket from room-to-room if desired. You could even decorate your guests’ place settings with the scented pine cones and some dried oranges for an Autumn inspired dinner party.
My hand soap favourites for Autumn;
Faux Stems
I am a huge advocate of using faux stems in the home. You can pick up such life-like stems these days – my visitors often question whether the ones I have are real or not! It may be an investment up-front, but once you have your seasonal stems, you can rotate them throughout the season with no need to purchase anything else. Below, is the Burgundy Eucalyptus, Damson Berry Twigs and Blush Eucalyptus.
Display cookbooks
Books are a great way of updating a space. Cookbooks displayed on the countertop in your kitchen provide a sense of occasion and inspiration – they may even get you into the mood for some seasonal cooking!
My Autumn cookbook recommendations;
Lastly, items you should have in your home to help you update through the seasons…
- Trays – perfect for styling, whether they are on a table, bed, kitchen island
- Vase – hold your faux stems and can update through the seasons
- Bookends – always have a bookend that you can prop your seasonal books up against
- Glassware – jars, hurricane lanterns – timeless accessories and can be updated through seasons with different colour candles, different beans, rice etc
- Boards – display boards, serving platters
- Planters – update your season plants
I hope you enjoyed this post, if you did, please leave a comment!
Thanks for reading, SJ x
I really did thanks! But can’t seem to find where the faux stems are from? X x
Author
Hi, the names of the three stems I have are clickable links! X
Really inspiring post and beautifully written x
Fab post! What do you mean by display boards?xx
Author
Boards that can display food, condiments (oils, salt & pepper pots etc), herbs, candles… can be wooden, marble, slate or even quartz.
Love the way you have done the table napkins! And all the helpful styling hints. Great cookbook recommendations too.
Author
😄 So glad you liked them!
Amazing! How do I find out where the table runners and hurricane jars and candles are from, are there links? Sorry if you have posted this and I am being useless!
A lovely inspiring read thank you! Xx
Really enjoyed reading this .. now off to go see how I can make my home more autumnal.
Lovely blog post SJ with some very stylish ideas for Autumn decor. I’m not a great fan of orange so I’m always looking for Autumnal ideas using other colour palettes! One thing – the use of pine cones is a good idea but if you pick your own I’m sure it’s a good idea to bake them in the oven first to remove any bugs – there’s info on pinterest!!!
Great tips thank you SJ! Going to start with my table decor 🙂
Lovely post – my favourite time of year!!
A gorgeous read ~ thank you!