October 1, 2013

Fast Fall Decorating


Well, yes, I had been intending to take down the Summer 
decor at my house and put up some Fall decorations but 
the end of September rolled around and that had not happened.
With out of town company on the way, I had to do something
about that situation fast. Here are some ideas for fast Fall
decorating if you need/want to get into the new season too.

Last Fall I had snapped some photos of a pumpkin/gourd 
display at a local country club that I thought was beautiful
even though it was rather minimalist.




I decided to roll with that idea because it looked nice but
also looked like it didn't take a lot of time to accomplish.

 A trip to the local farmer's market yielded enough interesting
pumpkins and gourds to help Fall-i-fy the house and yard.
The lady I bought the pumpkins from had just returned from
a trip to Tennessee where she helped an Amish family, who
grows pumpkins and gourds, harvest unusual pumpkins
for her space at the farmer's market. 

The space in the top of the chest in the dining room is so
narrow that pumpkins would not sit on their bottoms in there.
I found that with a mix of real and faux pumpkins, I 
could stand them on their sides in the display case.

The pumpkins remind me of the rosette/pinwheels that 
are popular party decorations these days. 

The grey/green pumpkin (bottom one on the four pumpkin pile)
 is called "Jarrahdale" I think. Some folks call it "Ghirardelli".
 It is a cross between
"Blue Hubbard" and a "Cinderella" pumpkins.

There is a good amount of Fall-ish accent colors in the 
dining room year-round actually with the seats of the 
chairs and the urn lamps in there.  To play those colors
up, I made an impromptu table runner with yellow,
orange and red felt leaves from the Dollar Tree.

Did you know that the pumpkins that are gnarly-looking
are called "Goose Bump Pumpkins"?

The felt leaves were just placed one on top of another.
They are "good" on both sides so your can turn them 
different ways to vary the angle of the leaf. 

These leaves could have lots of uses for Fall decor...even 
as placemats....you should get some before they are gone.

Because the large picture frame that is usually over the buffet
in the dining room is going to be used in the family room for
the next few months, I hung an orange-y toned canvas to cover
up the picture hanger for now.  A muted orange pumpkin from
the Amish farm in Tennessee sits on top of an urn.

In the family room, a trio of green and orange pumpkins
sit on the console which only moments before still had

To take down the chicken wire frames would have only
made me try to think of something else to put there so
leaves that I had dried in books last year got attached
to the wire with tiny clothespins.

The unusual orange-spotted pumpkin is called
"World of Color Pumpkin".  The pumpkin on the middle-sized
candle stand looks like it is a goose-bumped World of Color.

The coffee table holds smaller pumpkins in vases and
baskets that also were used in the Summer decorations.

This tray, along with the felt leaves, are the only things
other than the real pumpkins that are new this year. 
The tray is such a bargain...only $8 at Walmart now. 
It looks and feels like carved wood (but it isn't).

The small white pumpkin with orange spines is
called "Tiger Stripes".


The bookcases in this room just had pumpkins and gourds
placed where shells and nautical items had recently been.

Real pumpkins were used down low and old 
faux pumpkins (some needing an overhaul)
were placed above eye-level.

Envelope pillow covers that were made last Fall for the
family room sofa were brought out of the attic. 

The mantle only had a half-finished project propped up on it.
I wasn't very fast on this project...ran into hanging issues and I
 just had to let this picture stay "as is" while the company was here.

On the kitchen table there is a sparse but interesting grouping 
of pumpkins.  The only one that I know the name of is the 
whitish one..."Bloodshot Eye Pumpkin".

Supposedly, when you look at the pumpkin from above, it looks
like an eye from a soul that has had too good of a time partying.

FYI...don't leave naked pumpkins on a nice piece of furniture
for very long...it can eat through the finish...I know.

I intend to be moving all these pumpkins around soon to start
Halloween decorating, which is another reason I didn't want 
to spend a lot of time getting a little Fall look in the house. 

To welcome our guests to our home, we made an instant
pumpkin patch by the mailbox.

These are nice but not expensive or hard to get pumpkins from 
the grocery store.  I won't cry if they get taken or smashed 
like I would with the unique pumpkins from the farmer's market.

We added a few mums, fluffed the pine straw around the few
plants still alive and added some vines from the woods to 
the stems of the pumpkins to give the impression (maybe? 
if you don't look close driving by?) that they are still growing.

The zinnas and mandevilla in the urns by the front door are
still alive.  I hated to rip them out so faux orange flowers and
leaves from the attic were added to the mix along with, what
else, another pumpkin!

Well, that's my fast and furious Fall decorating for now.
Hope it gives you some ideas if you still need to add some
quick Fall accents to your home too! 

I am sharing this post over at
Fall Tablesetting and Vignette Party @
Centsational Girl and also
Favorites on the First @ PoloHouse
Open House & No Minimalist Here
Tutorials, Tidbits and Tips @ StoneGable blog

11 comments

  1. Who knew there were so many varieties of pumpkins - thanks for the inspiration!! Sally

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  2. SO many lovely things to comment on!

    I must say though --- I am just drooling over your mailbox pumpkin patch and your outdoor urn display!
    WOW! They look fabulous!

    Your pumpkin hutch display is so clever too. I thought for sure it was a display you had snapped in a storefront somewhere. Out of the box thinking --- really unusual and genius!

    Thanks so much for linking up.

    We ALways love to see what you are copying and what you are creating, Miss Kitty!
    xoxoxox
    Alison :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. None of this seems fast and furious. It looks well thought out, well placed and very beautiful. You can come to my house and do this fast and furious anytime you want!

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  4. You may have done this "fast and furious" but it looks anything but! Everything looks totally spectacular and ablaze with Fall colors. Thanks for the lesson on the names of all the great pumpkins you used for decorating. The idea of putting the fall leaves in the chicken wire frames is a really good one. Your visitors probably felt like they were on vacation at a wonderfully decorated resort. Thanks for sharing all this "pretty" with us!

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  5. Well,that may be fast and furious but it sure turned out GREAT! Love the pumpkins on their sides in the hutch...too cute! It all looks lovely- xo Diana

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  6. Love all the different kinds of pumpkins you used! I also like the dried fall leaves pinned to the chicken wire.

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  7. Oh my gosh, I don't know where to begin commenting... everything looks just gorgeous!... love your pumpkins in the little cabinet, and everywhere else... you did an amazing job on your Autumn decorating... really love how you hung your pressed leaves on the chicken wire... and I especially love your chairs in those pretty Autumn colors... your pumpkin patch at your mailbox is so welcoming... well, I just love it ALL!... xoxo Julie Marie PS I also go by "Miss Kitty"... my nieces started calling me that years ago, one of my emails is that...

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  8. You put together some great vignettes! I especially love what you did by the mail box... definitely will have to copy that :-)

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  9. I love your minimalist vignettes with the funky pumpkins! The side stacked pumpkins in your china cabinet are genius! I have a large painting on my mantle that I've never hung, I like it leaning against the wall, plus it's easy to move for seasonal decorating~ I just love love love pumpkins and you have such a fun variety everywhere!
    Jenna

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  10. Qué bonito todo!Me encanta la decoración con calabazas!Son tan hermosas y creo que representan al otoño en todo su esplendor!Saludos

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