The arrival of fall finds many homeowners in Connecticut in the mood to make some changes to their decorating scheme. With a bite in the air and dry leaves on the ground, we prepare to celebrate the end of another beautiful year. Now is the time when autumnal colors and trappings of the season make an appearance indoors as well as out.
Found objects have decorative as well as symbolic power. To acquire your own natural decorations, go foraging for items in your own back yard, or purchase them at home décor centers. Once you have an attractive collection of dry gourds, nutshells and vibrant fall leaves, place them in arrangements on your table tops, window ledges and book shelves.
The days are growing shorter already, and soon we’ll be facing the long nights of winter. Use candles to bring mystery and romance to indoor spaces and to help light your home in the dark. Thick, sturdy pillar candles make the perfect centerpiece on your dining room table, especially when protected by a shapely hurricane sleeve or when centered in a simple fall wreath of dry twigs and ribbon. Place candles on your hutch, in recessed nooks, on your mantel piece or on your night stand. Of course, safety first. If you plan to burn the candles, purchase high-end electric models to prevent fires.
Your outdoor spaces will naturally start to show fall colors and signs of the coming winter. Accentuate that natural beauty by building a seasonal display on your porch or front stoop. Use a bale of hay or straw as your platform, then cover it with token reminders of the season. Pumpkins and gourds, a scarecrow and a cornucopia all can be used to show signs of the year’s prosperity.
Decorating with food at this time of year is a subtle way of showing that we are fortunate to have yet another successful harvest. Dried foods, nuts and berries contained in glass jars or put on display in hand-woven baskets serve as an attractive symbol of all that we have to be thankful for. If you don’t wish to put actual food on display, crystal or porcelain sculptures of food can easily stand in place of the real thing.
With Halloween just around the corner, many people are in the mindset of ghosts. Add a hint of scary charm to your house with subtle suggestions of the supernatural. These decorations don’t have to be overtly spooky. Old black and white photos, vintage glasses resting on old stacks of books and hanging bouquets of dried black flowers all point to old loss and nostalgic feelings that people experience when they remember the departed.
This is the time of year when you’ll want to wrap up indoors and stay warm. In fact, just putting warm objects on display will make your home seem more pleasant and inviting. Displays of firewood, quilts, comfortable throw pillows and blankets emphasize the warmth and comfort of hearth and home.
Pumpkins are so common they’re almost cliché—but they don’t have to be. Heirloom pumpkins come in a variety of colors, shapes and textures, some of which are quite striking. If you want your autumn décor to stand out, avoid the look of a standard orange pumpkin. Select unique, multi-colored specimens that catch the eye.