Fall/Thanksgiving Decorating - 2010

Outside Fall Display...A Little Worse for the Wear

I think I mentioned in an earlier post that fall took me by storm - we had so much going on that I felt like I was on a wave, with no way of getting off...so I just went along for the ride.

Fall is my favorite season - hands down. I love the earthy colors, the sun (typically) is always shining, and when it gets a little brisk, you can put on a cozy sweater, stomp on the crackling leaves, smell the crisp air, just enjoying the outside.


Living Room

I love to decorate inside and outside the house - unfortunately, this year's photos of the outside are post-first frost - sorry folks, this outside shot (above) looks a little sad...

At least the inside of the house is climate-controlled, so you get a better idea of what I did. To follow is a breakown of my fall decorating projects for the fall/Thanksgiving.

Living Room Mantle

Living Room Mantle

For the mantle, I like to use either things found in the backyard or just natural stuff in general - I'm not a big fan of artificial items, but I will say nowadays there are some things I've seen at Michael's or Hobby Lobby that look pretty darn realistic - so to each his/her own.

Urns

Urn Display

I picked up these black urns at Michael's a few years ago - much cheaper than antique ones! Depending on the season, I switch out what's in them.

For this year, I have branches, Chinese Lanterns (real - love these!) and feathers. As I said, I really like to keep things natural looking/use natural pieces. I was hoping to find some new lanterns this year, but no one had real ones in the area, which was a pity, because fresh ones are very vibrant in their orange color - these are actually from a farmers market in Cambridge, WI, that I picked up a few seasons ago and just try to use until they disintegrate...

Wheat Swag

Black-Bearded Wheat Swag

I just love this wheat swag - it was so simple to do and took me about three minutes to do. Just take a small bunch of wheat (I use the black-bearded kind because it was a little more dimension with the black than just the plain wheat), secure with a rubber band right beneath the base of the wheat and fan out. I then make a bow to cover the rubber band. Fall-colored ribbons accent the wheat for a warm glow.

Voila!

Mantle Hurricanes

Glass Hurricane with Hazlenuts

For the candle arrangement, I used 3 glass hurricanes with ivory candles. I recommend having grouppings of anything in odd numbers - a good trick/tip that designers always seem to recommend - and I have to say, it completely works better visually.

The candles are unscented Chapel candles by Tag, Ltd - love these! Tag sells to places like Crate & Barrel and we are very lucky in the Chicago area to have 2 Tag outlets! These candles are excellent: great slow burn, no drip, and a really nice glow.

For the fall/Thanksgiving, I usually add nuts - here I used hazlenuts. Nuts are inexpensive, natural and add a very warm touch to the display.

Front Door

Shaved Wood Wreath

For quite awhile I've been using a grouping of Indian corn with a bow - this looks really lovely and is a very quick and easy display.

But since we were going to the Country Living Fair in Ohio in the fall, I thought maybe I'd find something new for the door. And I hit the jackpot, because this is perfect - its natural (wood shavings) and is a great warm and toasty rust. Plus it's great for both fall, Halloween and takes you right through Thanksgiving.

The wreath is from Nest (www.nestgr.com) in Grand Rapids, MI.

Thanksgiving Centerpiece and Table Setting


Thanksgiving Table Setting

For the centerpiece, I just added just updated the Halloween centerpiece: just deleted the blackbirds and added red birch branches.

The table is our typical "formal" table. This year I also bought some chargers - gold from World Market. The tablecloth is from TJMAXX.

Flower Arrangement

Flowers in Pumpkin "Vase"

I was origionally going to have 2 of these "vases" flanking the centerpiece on the dining room table...but one of the pumpkins was horribly, and I mean horribly rotten - I almost vomited when I started to carve it! Do you think Martha Stewart ever deals with these types of decorating pitfalls???

So I used the non-rotten one and placed it on the living room end table for a little extra fall flair - crisis solved!