Farmhouse Fall Decor: A Few Updates From Last Year

You guys, fall is here. The leaves are crunching under my feet. The air has that smell. I've already had like 15 apple cider donuts and zero regrets. I stocked up on all the Trader Joe's pumpkin stuff. I'm living in my flannel shirts. And I'm drinking hard cider on the weekends. So obviously, it's time to break out the fall decorations.

For the most part this season, I've kept everything the same as last year, which you can read about here. But it's also in my nature to try new things with decor, so I did update a few things for this year.

Right after Labor Day, when apple season began, I put out these faux apple branches that I found at Michaels. I peed a little when I saw them because one, they look totally real, and two, I'd been looking for something just like this as a fun little pre-fall, not-quite-pumpkin season decoration. These little guys were rather elusive; smaller Michaels stores didn't even get them, and my store, which is a larger one, only got 6 total, and I bought them all. I put them in the lanterns we have on our sofa table, and they had their moment from Labor Day until about two days ago when I replaced them with faux leaf branches. I think I want to put them in our kitchen until it's time for Christmas because they're just so pretty.

I will say, though, when I took out the apple branches and added the maple stems, it made the room feel so much cozier. I wish I could grow an actual maple tree in our living room, just for the fall season, so it would be extra leafy (and therefore, more cozy, and also, awesome).

One thing we never do is decorate for Halloween. We actually really enjoy Halloween because we eat fun-sized candy bars all month long, watch scary-ish movies and eat more candy. But, we don't have kids, so decorating for a short-lived holiday just seems pointless when you can decorate for the entire fall season at once and be done with it. However, I spotted this burlap ghost garland on Birch Lane, and I couldn't stop thinking about how cute they would look on our mantel. So, one moment of weakness later, and here they are. And I love them. They're neutral enough that they kind of just go with everything else, and they don't really stand out too much as Halloween-specific. Josh didn't like them at first, but I think they're growing on him.

Last year, I wasn't in love with our TV stand. I wanted it to feel a little more cozy, so I decided to add some taller maple branches on either side, and have them come into the TV a little (so it's kind of like we're watching TV by some pretty trees), and then surround them with pumpkins. And, I like it. I like it a lot, actually.

Night view.

The hanging throws on our ladder are the same as last year, but I decided to keep the cotton wreath up. It was partially out of laziness, and partially because I kind of like the white cotton with the rich colors of the throw together. 

In our little coffee table crate, I decided to fill it with orange and white pumpkins, and add a white pumpkin/acorn greenery stem to the vase inside.

Since finishing our mudroom earlier this year, I've been keeping seasonal decor elements in there since it's the first thing we see when we walk in. Last year, I had this crab apple wreath on our front door, but I really like having it hanging in our mudroom. And I bought two of these plaid throws to hang on our hooks to grab if it's chilly outside for our walks with Betty. I also got this new gather doormat because, well, it was right up my ally.

In our dining room, I actually really liked what I did last year, but I couldn't let go of the idea of these glass pumpkin cloches with flameless candles inside. I bought the greenery at Michaels, and added some little pumpkin picks and real white striped pumpkins to them, and they give off such a wonderful glow at night. I'm not sure if I'll do this every year, but I do love it for now.

Unnecessary photo of what they look like at night. 

In our bedroom I didn't do much, but I found a new garland online that I thought was perfect for our little shelf above our bed (which we finally got back up since taking it down for our bedroom window remodel). I liked how it was mostly green, with white pumpkins and acorns. So it adds just enough fall without going crazy.

I hate to admit it, but I'm also already getting way too excited for Christmas. Like, I already have design visions in my head of a few things I want to change around from last year. Until then, stay tuned.