Beyond
your tabletops and front porch, there are other soft spots at home to add in touches
of fall shades with their seasonal feel without overdoing it or investing a lot
of money. Think about ways in which you
can change out décor items that offer you a warm, cozy look and feel now and
can be easily switched back for the next season.
Window
drapery panels can be swapped with no sewing and no custom fitting. If you hang ring clips from your drapery rods,
you can switch the fabric panels as often as you like when you use flat bed
sheets instead of custom drapery panels.
Use twin flat sheets or queen sheets for a fuller look, iron them, and
hang them from the clips. Flat sheets
can be sold separately from a regular sheet set, and you can select colors and
print choices that extend beyond what you would ordinarily use in your
bedding. Consider fall shades like
browns, dark oranges, reds, and yellows.
Add in some thrift store throw pillows in complimentary colors, and
you’ve changed the look of a living area on a budget.
For
a seasonal swap, change out family photos hung in a collection of frames with
fall craft paper or fabric and faux leaves.
Cut scrapbooking paper or fabric remnants to match the frame display
sizes in two or three different patterns.
Remove some leaves from a craft store swag. Arrange each behind the glass to display a
different look until Christmas time.
Other
soft fabrics can go a long way to add a fall feel to your rooms. Drape a lush throw blanket in a warm shade or
print over the arm of an upholstered chair, a coffee table ottoman, or the foot
of your bed. Get those placemats out of
storage and add them as another layer under your chargers and place settings. Or cover the table in a tablecloth and let it
stay that way through your Thanksgiving dinner.
Put out cloth napkins for show to further soften the look of your dinner
table.
If
you have more than one set of towels on hand for each bathroom, put your most
seasonal set on display. Chocolate
brown, sage green, or cream colored towels add a fall touch over everyday
white. If you have darker bathroom rugs
put away, bring them back out, too.
Look
around your home and contemplate what other simple swaps you can make to give
each room a little different look for the next couple of months. Some low cost purchases or a little digging
in your storage space can both elicit some visual variety for fall in your soft
surfaces.
DesignInMind column; appeared in the Valley Morning Star October 14th.
