Fall decorating ideas

Although the temperature is getting colder & colder and the days shorter & shorter, the autumn colours are just breathtakingly beautiful; so, instead of becoming gloomier & gloomier, why don’t you get inspired by nature and make a few fall decorations!..

Firstly, go for long walks in woods, parks and forests and, whilst admiring nature, collect pinecones, acorns, berries, leaves, twigs, nuts etc. At home, put them into a basket to dry out – though the leaves you should put into books to flatten nicely.  You can then make many interesting decorations with them. Here are a few tips and ideas:

• Display bowls – put some leaves into the bottom of a glass bowl then add nuts pinecones, acorns and evergreen leaves. You can also make some autumn fruit displays – combine apples, pears and plum with burnt orange slices and cinnamon sticks. Add some nuts (perhaps roasted chestnuts) – the smell will be sensational for days! Put these displays on your coffee table, dining table or sideboard.
• Squash/pumpkin displays – put them into large baskets, or cut the top off, then take the flesh out and make them into candleholders, vases or even soup bowls (lovely for serving roasted pumpkin or butternut squash soup!) Of course for Halloween you must carve the pumpkin into a scary head lantern! Tips: spraying the inside with hair spray will keep it fresh longer! coating the edges with petroleum jelly will seal in the moisture!
• Ornaments – you can paint-spray the dried leaves, acorns & nuts then hang them in windows or create garlands for the mantel. The leaves you can also use as under-mats for plates & glasses or to display food on them at dinner parties! Or you can glue them onto candles, paper boxes or to decorate scrapbook covers, photo albums, picture frames, wrapping papers and many other craft projects.
• Courtyard deco – make a wreath from the twigs and berries and hang them on the door. Put pumpkins and fruits on the doorstep – these don’t even need to be decorated, jut arrange them attractively.

And finally, don’t forget – winter is just around the corner – you can easily transform your fall decorations into lovely Christmas ornaments!