Fall in Line
Harvest seasonal success with cues from Mother Nature
Image courtesy Krylon
The fall foliage that Mother Nature provides some communities occasionally leaves a lot to be desired. The daffodils disappear. The roses stop sprouting new buds and the daylilies become nothing but tufts of thin green leaves. And it hasn't even snowed yet.
But the urge to decorate - both home and garden - continues even after summer's glory fades away. Despair not. You can, in fact, make both your house and your yard look seasonally festive without resorting to anchoring your d�cor with a cardboard cornucopia in the window. In fact, savvy homeowners, landscape architects and designers say autumn decorating can be among the year's most satisfying because fall plants and fruits last all season long.
Lucian Kowalski, an East Coast-based landscape designer says that odd or misshapen gourds can lend visual interest while small pie-sized pumpkins fit well in flower boxes that have gone empty.
Casey Cooper, the founder of and creative mastermind behind Chicago-based floral design firm Botanicals Inc., suggests at-home decorators look in their yards before heading out to buy a lot of seasonal accessories. Fallen leaves or bright red apples or pears can be displayed along side votive candles as a table centerpiece. Cooper likes the repetition of simple items to create eye-catching displays.
Bare branches, wheat grasses and pussy willows, again grouped together, can provide striking visual interest in a vase atop a mantel or on a coffee table. A wood wastebasket hidden in the basement can make a good container for these bouquets, she says.
It may be too late to plant flowers that will make it through the winter in many parts of the country, but that doesn't mean you should ignore Mother Nature's gifts.
Earth tones are the watchword during fall, but Cooper suggests going one step further, using elements from the earth, such as dried beans and grains or interesting pebbles to fill up a vase or floating candle.
Leather and suede are the fabrics in which you swath yourself when the temperatures drop. Cooper says little touches of these supple fabrics used to wrap the stems of a bouquet, wrapped around the outside of a vase, or as a ribbon on a wreath can add texture and timeliness in a new way. Suede lampshades, leather napkin rings and other small indoor items can bring consistency between indoor and outdoor decorating.
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