It's Fall Y’all!
Unlike my Southern and Japanese roots, Fall in Southern Canada feels like “iconic” fall. The warm days mixed with the cooler nights foreshadows the changing leaf colors. All this for me is symbolic of the season, and with that comes thoughts and feelings of falls past. I use this as a jumping off point to inspire my fall decorating.
When you think of fall, what words come to mind defining the season for you? For me, the three words that come to mind are harvest, cozy, and change. This is what inspired my decorating this year.
Harvest: When I think of harvest, corn husks, pumpkins, wheat, and apples come to mind. Pumpkin and apple picking were a part of my childhood and I’ve followed this tradition with my own children. Those undoubtedly made its way into my decorating. On the exterior of my house, I put pumpkins (real and fake) at the entrance and a corn husk wreath inviting you into the space. I don’t love the colors typically associated with fall so instead of orange, I opted for a white and neutral pallet.
On the inside of my house, I have punctuated my rooms with pumpkins, gourds and seasonably relatable scented candles. My color pallet stays in the neutral zone. The easy way to achieve this, is to swap out a few things that regularly live on your bookshelves with a few things that are seasonably iconic. PRO TIP: Whatever items you swap out, make sure there is a repeating element either in the items you swapped in, or make sure the items you swapped in, fit in with the existing color story. For example, if you’re using pumpkins, use the same colors of pumpkins throughout, or if you have gold as a repeating theme already on your bookshelves, maybe you incorporate gold pumpkins.
Cozy: The onset of cooler nights encourages me to want to cuddle up in front of the fireplace with a pumpkin spiced latte, a book, and a blanket. On the exterior of my house, I incorporated a bunch of lanterns in my flower boxes and textured rustic flowerpots holding my mums. The soft light from the lanterns and textured clay pots, greatly help in setting a “lived in,” cozy vibe.
On the inside, I used a neutral pallet of textiles, texture, and candles to continue this story. I incorporated scented candles in white and sage on my bookshelf and pillows with a Belgium grain sack stripe to evoke a sense of relaxation. It’s amazing what texture and color can do for a space. Don’t underestimate the weave and natural color of a basket or the pattern on a pillow! These pairings can help make a space feel a certain way.
Change: As the season changes, so does our routine as a family. My kids are back in school, the uniforms are washed and pressed, and the morning hustle and bustle to get to the school bus on time kicks off my day. Whatever your day looks like, fall often goes hand in hand with some sort of change. From a design perspective, a reorganizing of the house to fit the routine is imperative. I have a specific shelf allotted for school snacks and a drawer in the fridge with all the lunch making materials. The bench in the foyer, now houses sneakers and boots instead of flip flops. As my annuals are coming to an end, mums in textured pots, ready to bloom line my entrance.
Using words to inspire seasonal decorating opens a world of interpretation that goes far beyond colors that typically define the season. It also gives design more depth. It’s been my experience that when I use words as a starting point, my design is more dimensional and all encompassing. Your home should reflect who lives there. Color and things are helpful tools in design no doubt, but in my experience, people are interesting, creative and complex beings and color and items can only go so far in telling a story.
Aidan Cusson
AC Interiors Design