How To Decorate a Light Airy Fall Living Room

How to decorate for Fall with a light touch. I’ll be sharing how I used simple décor and affordable finds — foraged, new & collected, as well as my best ideas for stress free seasonal decorating. Come join me for tips on how to make your home reflect the changing season, without it feeling like a storefront display… or draining your bank account! 

Hello my sweet Foxes! Happy FALL from the cottage. This year I really took my time decorating. I had too (haha). And I am very excited to share this years seasonal look with you. We’ve been talking a lot over the last couple of years, about how we want things to be easier. Still warm and cozy, but simplified. We want less to manage, less to clean, less to fuss with. And while I know many of us still swoon a little over the “more is more” vignettes, for whatever reason, it’s not the right time in our lives for them.

Because I am blogging much less, I may get a little chatty, I hope you don’t mind. If you want to scroll through my blah-blah and just look at the pictures, I’ll never know. I hope you enjoy either way. 

I started my fall decorating in our living room, since it’s the spot I spend the most of my free down time. With my intentionally white walls, white plantation shutters, and white slipcovered furniture, it’s admittedly pretty easy for me to add in seasonal color and new accents. This year, to acknowledge the slide into Fall, without things feeling too heavy or oppressive, I was careful to decorate with a much lighter hand. After all, we’ve still got all of October and November to go dark and moody. To keep an airier vibe I kept to the softer side of the Fall color palette — using whites, creams, buttery golds and light cognacs.  

We’ve made a few changes since you last visited, one of them being that I’m using my old wooden electrical spool as my coffee table now! I feel like the round shape helps to soften some of the harder, linear angles in the room, plus I still love a little good junque here and there.

For those that have been following my for a long time: I’ve got the wood coffee table with the brass legs in storage on a time out, the black metal and glass coffee table is down at The Little Cottage, and I sold the white wood coffee table that Jimmy made me. I still loved it so much but I was overly large for either of the living rooms. The new owner was so excited to take it home, and that always makes it easier. That, and that I’ve been tucking away my furniture selling and garage sale proceeds to put towards the new bathroom. 

We also got the new brass wall sconces hung! They are absolutely everything I wanted them to be! Yay for taking a few years to find a new set, because boy was I slow in finding replacements. 

• Firstly, and most importantly, I actually use them for light. I’ve had them on every evening since we hung them. The shades make all the difference — the light is soft, diffused and illuminates the whole room beautifully.

• Secondly, they simply plug-in, so there was no hardwiring required. Perfect, since we don’t have any electrical boxes in the walls where I wanted to hang them. Heck, we don’t have an electrical box in the ceiling in this room. Just one of those things you deal with in an almost 100 year old home.

• Thirdly, (and for many of us, often really the biggest factor) they were affordable. At just under 80 dollars a piece, my brass wall sconce lights ticked all the boxes for me. Of course I found a set that was ridiculously stunning during my browsing, but at 800 dollars for a pair, they weren’t something I was prepared to spend the rest of my life with. That extra zero makes a difference when you are trying to keep it budget friendly. 

• Bonus, the new lights are dimmable. Which is a tiny little luxury.

• Lastly, they are much less visually heavy than my previous black sconces, above and beyond the fact that I actually use them. The subtle brass is much softer and gives off a completely different feel. It’s a little more polished. I am very happy with the change.

Since my house is little, I can’t really get back far enough to get a proper photo for you, with the coffee table centered, and the two new sconces sitting evenly in the frame. But in person, they look great! 

And I’m pretty sure I’ve consistently had these tassel pillows out since I bought them. I pair them with other pillows, but they just seem to go with everything. I love them so much for making my life easier. They are really fluffy and soft too, so they are actually comfortable if you use your pillows for more than looks.

The faux leather pillow covers were a pleasant surprise. The color is exactly what I wanted, and I’m glad to be using them again this season. I’ll link them both at the bottom of the post for you. 

COFFEE TABLE STYLING:

To give my “coffee table” a little more of a polished look, I started by topping it with a woven basket tray I found at ROSS for only $16.00 a few months ago. It was an incredible find, as this size usually sells for at least $50 and up. I’d wanted one for years, so I was extra thrilled with my treasure hunting that day. Patience pays off! And I really feel like it makes the acquisition all the sweeter.

• Whenever you can display your décor items on a tray or in a basket, you’ll have an almost effortless vignette. 

ROSS Dress For Less can sometimes get a bad wrap. Our local store is really, really well kept and I’ve found more things than I can count there over the years. I find it’s always worth popping in for a quick look, as stock comes & goes very quickly. And while I don’t shop like I used to, the best practice to find the best merchandise is consistency! I recommend visiting often. 

I kept what I gathered on it very simple. The largest piece is a wood vase, filled with some Lambs Ear. Next, a velvet pumpkin that was made for me by the very sweet & talented Dee from Cottage Comforts Home! It’s the most luxurious, supple velvet, and it’s got a real pumpkin stem. It’s the tippy top, most prized pumpkin in my collection. I’ve had the owl (under $7) and the candle for years, and the leaves were foraged at a friends property last year. Nothing at all elaborate. 

Some of you may notice the new oversized wall mirror. Actually, I found it at ROSS are well. Jimmy had taken me over there to get out of the house for a little bit one day, and since he was with me, he was able to carry it up to the register. So a doubly lucky day, I had him with me and I found it. It was forty-something dollars and it’s a great size, with a very versatile washed wood finish, oh and the mirror is beveled.

This much-much lighter (both literally & visually) new piece will take the place of the fabulous vintage wood door with the beveled mirror, that I had for many years. It had honestly gotten too heavy for me to be able to safely/smartly move on my own. It really was a beast and so heavy. Even when I had two good knees I probably shouldn’t have been moving it alone. haha. But stubbornness will get you far, and I’ve got that in surplus. I sold it on Facebook Marketplace within 30 minutes of listing it. The lady that came to get it was so thrilled, and I could tell she really appreciated it’s vintage patina and special kind of beauty.  

Circling back to the electrical spool “coffee table”, I just happened to have found that on Facebook Marketplace, for the a whole whopping of 20 bucks. Believe me… I’m not trying to advertise for them, but I have had incredible luck both buying and selling using Facebook Marketplace. Over the years, this sturdy little table has been both inside, and outside on my deck garden. 

For Fall, and to gain entrance back into the house, it’s wearing a fresh clean coat of white paint.

And a new set of wheels! Now it’s weightless to move for vacuuming or when I need more space or a different configuration in the living room. All without hurting my knee, gouging my wood floors, or snagging my area rugs. Thank you to my sweet Jimmy for that one! He spoils me in the best ways. 

As much as I’m going for lighter and simpler look and feel in our home… I still like my “stuff”. I just try to make it work harder. This X frame ottoman acts as an ottoman (obviously), but also as extra seating. And if a tray is used for stability, it can be a side table as well. You know Versatile and I are BFF’s. 

Right now it’s topped with my gorgeous teak wood bowl, that’s acting as a magazine rack. It’s easy to slip to the side when it needs to work harder, but is something pretty to look at when it’s being lazy. This bowl is such a beautiful piece. It’s kind of like organic art. I so enjoy its natural beauty. 

Last Fall, my mom happened to mention to me on one of our many phone calls, that Joann’s had the prettiest leather-look pumpkins. She was right. But really… aren’t our moms always right!?

Well, they are one of the only new things I got for the season last year. I was rummaging around my home décor storage room and came across this tasseled tie-back that’s intended for draperies, and thought I’d try using it somewhere in the house. It landed tucked inside this basket, and I kind of liked it, so it stayed. I’ve had them for years & years. I don’t know how they* avoided the cruel and merciless purges I’ve gotten so good at? But here it sits. 

*I’ve got three… odd number, I know.

BORED YET? 

Seriously though, I suspected I’d get chatty but even I didn’t know I how much. Gosh it’s been since July that I shared a brand new post with you, back when I shared The Little Cottage Living Room Reveal! I actually had to look it up, because I didn’t remember how long it had been. Wow, before my knee replacement, I used to share a new post twice a week. I guess I better start decorating for Christmas now! Is it sad that I’m only kind of joking? haha

I’ve had a love-love-getting tired of-love-love again relationship with my shuttered, cottage-style media cabinet for awhile now. Part of me wants a media console. The other part likes having it tucked away out of sight. Neither part wants to budge. So, I put new knobs on it and call it good. Again. It’s a very convenient thing that I’ve got about a half dozen different sets of knobs out in the shop I can pick and choose from. 

We had to shift some things around, in order to tuck the new bathroom vanity down in the sun room until we are ready for it. I don’t know when that remodel will begin, but the good news is, I’ve got the vanity safe & sound and in my house! 

Right now, that meant finding a home for my set of willow chairs. One landed here, and I paired it with my wood table and that Decor Steals gleaming mirror so many of us have. 

The only technically “fall” item is my boiled wool pumpkin. I found this soft washed blue beauty at HomeGoods a few years ago. The throw is a lovely all cotton number, in a toasted wheat color. It really straddles Summer & Fall well. It’s a great, warm buttery tone. 

The candle, that I 1000% did not need, was picked up during Spring, at Big Lots. The glass vessel is what got me. It’s really beautiful and looks much, much more expensive than it was, and it’s also 1000% times prettier in person. Honestly, I think I’ve worn out my poor little camera. Getting really crisp images like I used to, seem out of it’s reach. I’ve had it for many years, but I’m just not working enough to warrant the expense of a new one, so I’m making due. 

Our brass kaleidoscope just meanders around. It was a gift my husband gave to his mom, and when she passed, it found it’s way back to us. I always make it a point to have it out somewhere we can see it daily. 

Well my sweet Foxes… I didn’t realize I took so many pictures, and right now I’ve got well over 2,000 words written. I think I’m going to send you a big hug, and thanks for sticking with me, and I better pick-up where we leave off, and share the rest of the house later in the week. You know, so you can get something else done today besides read my blog, and also so your eyeballs stay inside your head. hehe

Jimmy’s had chili cooking all day, and a football game is calling our name! Plus, I really need to get my legs elevated. I know you understand. xo Shannon 

I’ve included convenient clickable shopping links below for you. Some may be affiliate links. Click here for full disclosure.

SOURCES:

There isn’t much new to share as far as sources go, since I was very frugal about re-using past favorites, but I’ll do my best! Unfortunately some of my items are no longer available.

• My Brass Wall Sconce Lights [here]

• Ivory Tassel Pillows [here] – Available in five additional colors!

• Faux Leather Pillow Covers [here]

• Slipcover Sofa & Ottoman – Grandin Road

• My Jute Rug [ here] I’ve got two, have had them for years, and still love them!

• I’ve got several basket trays sourced [here] for you 

 

Like more good stuff? Check out my Fall Home Tour from last year!

 

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