Yes, I know we’re two-thirds of the way through October. And I know many families began decorating for Fall on September 1. But just in case you’re like me, just in case you can’t seem to get your decorating ducks in a row, just in case your decorating ducks – and well, all your kinds of ducks – are still waddling around pooping on stuff, I thought we might review my:
Top 5 Tips for Fall Decorating
(or Remedial Fall Decorating for the Rest of Us)
Ready?
OK.
Tip #1:
GET ORGANIZED!
Sure, it’s obvious, but organization is important. Without organization, how will you find what you need? Or gather all those ducks? Now, there are lots of ways to organize things, and you need to find the method that works for you. As for me, I prefer to make sure all our stuff is out all the time so we can see everything and know exactly what we have to work with. For example, our garage is organized like this:
In the fall, this method is especially helpful, as it gives the house a very authentic, and yet terrifying, look. Haunted Chic, I call it.
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Tip #2:
Create a Dead or Dying Landscape
With this project, you’re looking to create a sort of Haunted House effect, but on the outside instead of just everywhere inside. The more dead plants, the better.
Even if all your plants aren’t quite dead yet (“I’m not quite dead yet!” <– name that movie), be creative! As an alternative, consider cultivating perennial weeds. Or, like me, you can let your the blackberry vines run wild which creates an intimidating barrier not unlike Maleficent’s Impenetrable Castle where Sleeping Beauty waits in a near-death state for the kiss of her one true love. Just gorgeous.
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Tip #3:
Use Leaves Generously
The trick here is to maintain a generous number of leaves on the ground at all times. You’ll see other people raking theirs up, SQUANDERING decorations that took an entire summer to grow. Don’t follow their lead! Whimsically scatter leaves, or, better yet, let the wind and your children do the work for you.
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Tip #4:
Use Lots of Silk
You want to be sure not to skip this one because it’s always a good idea to create a sense of luxurious living, especially we parents of young kids. Sometimes we just need a little something that says I’m Not a Total Train Wreck, you know? So use lots of silk to decorate. Fabrics. Pillows. Whatever. I prefer to get mine from spiders.
Lots and lots of spiders who make gorgeous silky designs just everywhere.
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Tip #5:
Make a Statement
Make a statement! A signature piece, if you will. Something that’s unique and speaks to who you are as person. The options are endless! For example, I made my front door into a chalkboard this year so I can make actual statements. I included the nice one here, for my twins’ 7th birthday. As opposed to the one I wrote today which says BEWARE ALL YE WHO ENTER HERE.
Now, I admit, the process for this project takes quite a bit of time – approximately 10 years – but isn’t at all labor intensive, so I highly recommend you try it.
Here’s how you can make one, too:
1. Don’t wash the door. Like, EVER.
2. I mean, for 10 years NEVER wash, buff, repaint or otherwise care for the door.
3. Use chalk on the destroyed surface.
Optional: make sure the dog escapes regularly & scratches the hell out of the front door to get back in.
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So there you have it! Five easy-peasy ways to decorate for Fall. And like all my helpful How To posts, I offer a full money back guarantee if you’re not able to make my system work as successfully as I do.
Happy Fall, friends!
Beth
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Do you have an easy Fall decorating tip to share?
Leave it for us in the comments, please!
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This is Part 3 of How to Decorate for Fall. You may also want to read:
How to Decorate for Fall, Part 1, where I write with sincerity and vulnerability about being enough, even without fall decorations,
and
How to Decorate for Fall, Part 2, in which I confess that my house is actually decorated with flatulence.
You can see all of the 40 Days of Grace posts
here on the Five Kids blog and here on Facebook.
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11 responses to “5 Easy Ways to Decorate for Fall”
This is brilliant. Too bad I live in an apartment and someone else gets paid to clear all the fall decorations out of the yard. Maybe I’ll get the kids to scoop up leaves and dump them on my balcony.
I got distracted and forgot to add
“She turned me into a newt!”
“A NEWT?!?!”
“I got better…..”
You make me proud to call myself a woman Beth Woolsey. Your decorating tips are going to take Pinterest by STORM!
Oh! My! Lands!! I just found a link for your blog through our MOPS page, and I’m so glad that I did, because I needed YOU this morning! I needed confirmation that I’m not the only mom who is doing such a good job of decorating for fall. (Why, just yesterday morning, when the bathroom sink wouldn’t drain, I had my husband check into it. He pulled the guts of a zombie out and said, “How on earth do you lose this much hair without going bald??!!” So that’s a little bit of how we spruce up for fall around here.)
Anyway.
And so on and so forth.
I hope you don’t mind, but I’ll probably become a crazy blog stalker here, because cute ballerinas ARE overrated, and messes really do happen, and I like to read REAL blogs. (Although poop smeared on the walls really does scare me.) But don’t worry about me and my status of “crazy blog stalker.” It’s better than being a crazy cat woman, with forty-six kitties and a litter box that can’t handle it all. I simply do NOT have the time necessary to dress up in a black trench coat with my sunglasses and sneak up on you at your house. I’ve got laundry piled so high, professional climbers are calling me to ask for permits to climb the mountain in my walk-in closet. I’ve got carpool to drive, and a toddler who climbs EVERYTHING and constantly needs rescued before we meet our insurance deductible. I’m pretty harmless.
Oh! And the other thing that caught my attention was ALL THE ADOPTIONS at your house! Adoptions are near and very dear to my heart, as our first boy was born the old-fashioned way (he’s 13), and our second son came to us through a miraculous adoption story (he’s 19 months old now). They keep me and their daddy hopping, that’s for sure, and sweet mercy! We are so in love with both of them and so overwhelmed with thankfulness that Jesus chose US to be their parents!
Happy Monday. Thanks for the laughs first thing this morning. I’d love to stay and read more, but I have to go switch laundry loads now so that people will stop hounding me for clean socks.
Wait til the jack o lanterns start rotting on my front porch in a few weeks. Truly creepy!
You’ll be hearing from my lawyer. You’ve stolen ALL my ideas!
Maybe someday I’ll post a picture of my scary attic….dunh dunh DUNH!
“I don’t want to go on the cart!” “Oh don’t be such a baby!” Great movie reference! 🙂 And great tips! I have the leaves scattered one in practice as well as the dead plants and everything-out-where-I-can-see-it garage! I’ll need to work on the silk though…hmm.
“BRING OUT YOUR DEAD!”
Nailed it, Kayla. Nicely done.
Totally pinning this.
Please do apologize to the people on Pinterest for me. 😉
That’s about how I do it too! Internet hi-five!