Tactful Thanksgiving Decorations for Your Home

Are you tired of decorating your home with turkeys for Thanksgiving? Avoid that overdone, tacky decor this year. Purchase classy fall-inspired pieces or make your own from nature. You will be thankful for your beautiful, original home interior. 

1. Anything fall-inspired

 

Fall decorations will last all season long. Replace the turkey and cornucopia decor with fall leaves, wreaths, and warm autumn-inspired colors. Decorate with red, orange, and yellow - or plum, chocolate, gold, and any other hues that strike your fancy. 

2. Words of gratitude

 

You may already have inspirational words decorating your home in the form of a plaque or wall clings. Live, laugh, love: These are nice words to live by, but they are not your only option. Something as simple as "Count your blessings" is a good reminder during this holiday season. 

3. Fruit bowl centerpieces

 

Fruit is a yummy way to decorate the table or countertop. Get creative with your fruit bowl centerpiece by selecting a unique basket to display your fruit. Or, surround the apples and oranges (or pomegranates, pears, etc.) with foliage to create a sweet masterpiece. 

4. Inspiration from nature

 

Nature provides inexpensive options for home decor. Step outside your door and find fallen sticks or pinecones to decorate the home for Thanksgiving. A vase filled with branches is a simple but elegant accent, as is a shallow glass bowl with a candle surrounded by a handful of pinecones. 

5. Candles and flowers

 

Candlelight is pretty any time of the year, but it is especially lovely in the fall and winter. Pair candles of any size with flowers (real or artificial). A shallow bowl or basket provides the perfect container for several candles, surrounded by flowers in fall hues. Protect your flowers from the flames by keeping the candles inside a clear jar or vase. 

6. Front door decor

 

Thanksgiving wreaths don't have to be the standard rings covered in fall leaves. Change up your door decor by making a creative accent; this pinecone-and-ribbon door piece is charming and easy to make. It consists of eight pinecones, each of which is hanging from a wide purple ribbon. The ribbons are tied together and the "wreath" hangs on the door. 

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Photo courtesy of Flickr / HomeSpotHQ

Fall Home Decor Shopping Tips

Fall home decor embraces the cooler season with cozy decorating touches in the home. Decorate your home interior with fall-inspired decor, from rich colors to pretty accent pieces. Need some help shopping for fall home decor? Consider these five shopping tips. 

1. Get great deals once the season is over. Prices always drop at the end of a season, and sometimes in the middle of a season. Rather than buying fall home decor a month ahead of time, why not keep it simple and wait to buy for next year at reduced prices? 

2. Showcase the fireplace, dining table and so on. These are common areas of the home to decorate during any season. Use these areas to showcase your fall decor and, when the season is over, you can clear it out and re-decorate with winter centerpieces.

These two polka dot fall pumpkins would look adorable in front of the fireplace, or even on the front stoop.

3. Incorporate Halloween and Thanksgiving accents. Who says you can only decorate for these holidays over a few days around the actual holiday? Decorate with holiday-inspired accessories and leave them out during the entire season. 

4. Change up the accessories in your home. Do some of your accessories remind you of spring or summer? Swap out brightly-hued decor for pieces that remind you of autumn. This may include wall art, accent pillows, candles and more. 

Check out this gorgeous Ty Pennington medallion orange fabric that would make the perfect accent pillow for fall.

5. Remember to include outdoor decor. Sure, the changing leaves might be enough of a visual cue that fall is here. But if you are going to spend the time decorating your interior for the season, why not take it a little further with a few outdoor fall decorations, as well? 

Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links, and I will receive a small commission when you make a purchase. Thank you in advance.

Visit my main blog for more home improvement ideas.

Photo courtesy of Flickr / peapodsquadmom

Unique Ways to Decorate the Mantel for Fall

As fall draws near and the weather grows cooler, the fireplace will once again become the center of attention. Fireplace mantels are a great place to display decorations, especially seasonal decor that can be easily changed to showcase relics of each season. Are you looking for ways to decorate the mantel for fall?

There are dozens of autumn-inspired items that can be displayed this time of year. Let's begin by looking at a few things that work great as fall mantel decorations. 

Fall-inspired mementos

 

These are just a few items that will look good on your fireplace mantel in the fall. What else could you add to the list? 

1. Pumpkins
2. Gourds
3. Fruit
4. Candles
5. Leaves
6. Pine Cones
7. Acorns
8. Mini Scarecrows
9. Corn
10. Sunflowers 

Ideas to decorate the mantel for fall

 

Your options for fall mantel decorating are limitless. Here are a few ideas to get you started: 

• Leaf garland with mini pumpkins: Place a few mini pumpkins in random places on the mantel. Weave leaf garland around the pumpkins and place a couple candlesticks somewhere in the arrangement, on one end or the other. 

• A walk in the woods: Choose items that can be found in nature. Go out and find pine cones, leaves, acorns and berries for your mantel centerpiece. Arrange them in a clear, decorative vase or a shallow dish and center the arrangement on your mantel. 

• Pears, pine cones and leaves: Arrange some plastic pears and leaves in a shallow dish. Add a couple pine cones. Center it on the mantel, and surround with garland and randomly-placed pine cones. Place a couple candlesticks on either end. 

More mantel decorating tips

 

Here are a few more tips for decorating your fireplace mantel in the fall. 

1. Arrange any fall-inspired items along the mantel; don't be frugal with your fall decorations. 

2. Fill jars and clear vases with smaller fall-inspired items, like acorns and berries, and line them up along the mantel. 

3. Be careful that garland or anything else does not hang down from the mantel while the fireplace is lit. 

4. Decorate the wall above the mantel with mirrors, photos or anything else you like, whether they have a fall theme or not. 

5. Do not light candles and leave them unattended, especially if they are surrounded with dry leaves and garland.

Visit my main blog for more home improvement ideas.

Fresh Home Decorating Ideas for the New Year

Small Ways to Start Anew and Freshen the Home Interior

Copyright: tommerton2010 / http://www.flickr.com/photos/58842866@N08/

As we enter a new year, we are often inspired to make a fresh start in our homes by decorating in new ways. It doesn't take much to get a brand-new home atmosphere; taking a small step such as clearing clutter in the home can make a big difference. Or lift your spirits by changing out your accent color. And do-it-yourself decor has become popular recently. Try one of these fresh home decorating ideas for the new year.

Add fresh pops of color to your decor with accessories

 
Something as small as changing out your accent color can have a big impact on the overall look of a room. Choose a new accent color to complement your existing decor in the main living area. Adding a few pops of a fun, new hue will freshen up your space with minimal work. Consider these sophisticated ways to decorate with purple, the 2014 color of the year.

Copyright: tommerton2010 / http://www.flickr.com/photos/58842866@N08/

 

Streamline your home by clearing the clutter

 
It may seem obvious, but clearing the clutter in your home can greatly improve the way you feel about your space. Don't just temporarily clean it up, though; prevent future clutter from building up by thinking up ways to organize it. This may involve baskets for incoming mail, toys, and miscellaneous items that pile up in specific areas of the house. You may need to get a pantry-style cabinet for storing small kitchen appliances or a magazine rack to minimize the piles of clutter. Think of the area that frequently gets messy in your home, and streamline that area with new organizational tools.

Copyright: tommerton2010 / http://www.flickr.com/photos/58842866@N08/

Upcycle by re-purposing useless items into home decor

 
You will find numerous ideas online for re-purposing something that you might otherwise throw into the garbage. As you go through the house to clear clutter in the new year, take something that you no longer need and find a new way to use it as a unique decorative piece. Can you paint or decorate that vase to use as a brand-new table centerpiece? Or can you take the ugly picture out of that neat old frame and replace it with something you like? Pinterest is a wonderful resource for fresh DIY ideas.

Freshen your home decor for the new year by adding pops of color, clearing clutter, and upcycling old items into new decorative pieces.

Visit my main blog for more home improvement ideas.

More from Tonya:
Home improvement resolutions for the new year
Color psychology of warm hues: Red, orange & yellow

Purple: 2014 Color of the Year

Ideas for Decorating Your Home with Purple

Purple is a majestic hue, the color of royalty. Being my favorite color, I am in love with the chosen 2014 Colors of the Year from Sherwin-Williams and Pantone.

"Pantone, one of the world's foremost color authorities, just announced its 2014 Color of the Year today: Radiant Orchid, what Pantone calls a "captivating, magical, enigmatic purple."...That echoes Sherwin-Williams' recent choice for Color of the Year 2014: Exclusive Plum. The paint company's director of color marketing, Jackie Jordan, told Yahoo Homes that she chose Exclusive Plum for its "mystical" and "experimental" qualities." (read the full article at Yahoo! Homes)

Are you looking for some fun, sophisticated ways to add pops of purple to your home in the coming year? Consider these great ideas.

For the Bathroom

A purple and gray shower curtain will make a sophisticated addition to the bathroom. Complement this color scheme with a purple bath mat, white towels, and gray painted walls.

For the Bedroom

A purple lampshade will provide the perfect pop of color next to the bed. You can pair this sophisticated hue with neutrals, such as gray or beige, or with a rich earthy tone, like olive green.

For the Kitchen

A purple stand mixer is a fun accent piece in any home. It would work well with either a cool or warm kitchen color scheme.

How do you plan to incorporate the 2014 Color of the Year into your interior decor? Whether you choose to decorate your home with lots of purple or just a few accent pieces, it is sure to be a hit in the coming year!

**Disclosure: Although this post contains affiliate links, all opinions are my own.

Need some help with summer decor?

Yesterday was the first day of summer 2011, but if you're in Fargo, you might never have guessed. Since the beginning of spring, we have really only had a few warm, sunny days -- and the summer started out with a large dose of rain. It still hasn't stopped raining.

But summer will be here. Eventually. Even though it doesn't seem very summer-like (to me) right now, you might be itching to give your house a fresh, summery feel. Let's start out with some color palettes.

At some point, you will probably need to escape the summer heat. Sure, air conditioning feels great after spending some time outside, but the colors you choose for your decor can help cool you off even more quickly. In color psychology, "cool" colors -- blue, green -- can make a room feel much cooler. Learn more about using cool colors in your home.

In the summer, less is more when it comes to accessorizing. A clean, open space gives your home a fresh, summery feel. So, what kind of accessories should you use, then? Find out here.

Each person might be looking for something different: new paint color ideas, simple accessorizing ideas...or even as much as a kitchen or whole-house remodel. But if you are just looking for some quick and easy ways to decorate for summer, try making smaller changes with new paint colors and accessories.