Vintage Fall Home Tour: Muted Fall Decor with a Touch of Cranberry
Welcome to my fall home tour. Every year I tell myself I’m going to keep fall simple, and every year I end up leaning heavily into fall. Probably because it’s my favorite season, weather-wise. This year was no different, but I love how my fall home turned out. I leaned into muted fall decor with soft rose, dusty blue, olive green, warm browns, and linen tones. All of it is layered with the cranberry that has been in my living space since this summer.
If you followed along with my summer refresh, you know cranberry snuck into just about every room. And last fall was when I first gave our home a cranberry twist. I’m chalking it up to my tastes continually evolving because I’ve kept the cranberry around. For this fall, I just softened everything around it.
The best part? Most of what you’ll see came from shopping my cabinets, closets, and, of course, my pillow cover collection. Just a few new pieces pulled it all together.
Grab a cup of something warm and come on in. We’ll start at the front door and end up outside, where I’m sharing a space I’ve never shown you before.
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The Entryway: A Plate Wall at Last
You may remember when I recently wallpapered our entryway with Love vs. Design wallpaper. Ever since then, the wall from the door to the stairwell corner has remained empty. I wanted to put something there, but I hadn’t really made up my mind about how to decorate it.
An Accidental Decorating Win
I bought the vintage bench that is now in my entryway years ago from Joy @savvycityfarmer. It spent many years outside on my front porch. When we had a garage sale this spring, I pulled it inside to get it out of the way. I set it down in the empty spot inside the door, and it has never moved. Every so often the best decorating decisions happen accidentally. I never even thought about that bench being in the house and fitting perfectly on the entryway wall. It also is the most practical piece I’ve ever had in that spot. We now can sit down to put our shoes on or take them off.
Hanging an Ironstone Plate Wall
When I finally decided on putting a white ironstone plate display above the bench, I had to figure out how to make it work. I gathered six vintage and antique ironstone platters that I’ve collected over the years and laid them on the floor in front of the bench and arranged them there until I had the configuration that I wanted. Then I used disc hangers with picture hanging hooks to put them on the wall.
Here is something you have to consider when you’re hanging your plates: the hangers sit a little differently on every plate since none of them are the same. Consequently, the hooks won’t land in the same spot. “Handy” had to put his math skills to work to get all the plates to hang level and line up with each other.
I kept the arrangement fairly symmetrical, and there is plenty of room to add more plates as I find them. And you know I will!
After the disc hanger is on, measure from the top edge of each plate down to the hanging loop. Two platters the same size can still hang differently, so measure every one before you nail. PS. Disc hangers are the best solution for hanging a plate wall!
The Stair Landing Still Needs Something
The entry still feels like it needs a little something more, and I keep looking up the stairs at the landing wall. I’m thinking about a small vintage art gallery by the stair landing or putting my family photo gallery going up the stair wall again?? I’m still mulling it over. What would you do? Tell me in the comments. I need your help on this one.
The Rugs I Almost Didn’t Buy
I replaced the rugs in the entry and in front of the range. The new 4 × 7 entry rug is bigger than the one I had before, and it truly defines the space. A matching 3 × 5 sits in front of the stove, and having the same rug in both spots makes the two spaces feel more cohesive. They also coordinate so much better with the wallpaper.
This was one of those decisions I was sure wasn’t going to work, and it turned out better than I imagined. They’re extremely soft; they have enough color and pattern that they don’t show every crumb; and they’re washable, which is a must in front of a door and a kitchen stove. The best part? I found both on Amazon and paid under $100 for the pair.
Brown Transferware on the Kitchen Open Shelves
The open shelving wall in the kitchen got the biggest color change. All the blue and white came down, and up went brown and white transferware, white ironstone, and a few pieces of pink transferware.
Brown transferware is a new-to-me collection. The platter on display was an estate sale find when I was in California for my Blogging Bestie’s Retreat, and every time I look at it I think of that trip. The antlers that I have scattered around both these open shelves and the shelves in the living room I found at the Round Top, Texas Antique Market. I love the natural texture they add for fall.
Where Does the Flow Blue Collection Go?
I have two built-in corner cabinets in my dining area where I house my collections. The blue and white traded places with the brown and pink pieces that were stored there. It’s a seasonal swap that takes an afternoon and costs nothing. It also forces me to wipe down all the shelves when I clear them and put things back on them. Bonus: clearing the shelves forces me to give them a good seasonal cleaning before everything goes back.
The Dining Room: An Ironstone Tureen with A Story
The pink summer flowers on the dining table have been replaced with a vintage ironstone tureen, and it has a sweet story. It was my very first purchase at the Found Cottage Mercantile Market in Holland, Michigan. I bought it from Jama @blackbarnvintage. She sells online, so you can shop her finds too.
I filled it with dried hydrangeas from my garden. My drying method is embarrassingly simple: I cut them, put them in a pitcher with a little water, and leave them alone. The water evaporates as the blooms dry, and they hold their shape and soft color beautifully. Brass candlesticks with battery-operated tapers sit on either side of the tureen.
The Chairs Were Hiding Something
Our dining chairs usually wear white slipcovers, but underneath they’re fully upholstered in a muted pink, green, and blue floral fabric. I took the slipcovers off to wash them and saw that the chairs were made for this palette. Honestly, the slipcovers had been on so long that I forgot what the chairs looked like underneath.
Those white slipcovers were very inexpensive from Amazon, and they’re a good reminder of how much a slipcover can change a room. More about that below.
A Sisal Rug Swap
The sisal rug moved from the living room to under the dining room table. I retired the white rug that used to live here. I loved that rug, but white and grandkids just don’t go well together. After about three cleanings that cost more than the rug, I sent it off to find a new home via Goodwill. The sisal rug is much more forgiving.
Silver on the Breakfront
On the breakfront I added vintage silver pieces, a tray, and a champagne bucket. On the tray, one brown transferware and two pink transferware small vessels hold antique forks, knives, and spoons. It’s a little vignette that makes me smile every time I walk by. The polished silver also has me thinking about a classic old-world upscale theme for Christmas. What do you think?
Muted Fall Decor in the Living Room
Layered Pillows
The summery floral pillow covers went back into the pillowcover storage baskets, and out came a floral in muted pinks, rose, blues, olive green, and linen. They came from Etsy and sadly aren’t available anymore, but I found some very similar ones for you, and I’ve linked them below.
I added new olive green pillows with an off-white olive branch print. They are also from Etsy. The pillow that pulls it all together is a sweet little linen lumbar from Target with tiny cranberries in each corner. That one little pillow ties the whole cranberry story together.
The Persian Rug Came Back Out
I bought this antique Persian rug about 40 years ago for a client when I had my interior design business. She didn’t like it in her home, so I brought it back to mine, put it in our living room, and fell in love. Over the years it has lived in our bedroom, in storage, and even under the dining table, but this fall it has found its way back to the living room. It looks right at home with these colors.
A Foraged Fall Mantel
The mantel is one of my favorite parts of this year’s tour, and I can’t take any of the credit. When two of my friends were here for the Found Cottage Mercantile weekend, I put these creative, talented ladies to work. They started with some faux greenery as the base, then added dried hydrangeas and artichokes that I had on hand to the mix. Then we hopped on the golf cart with gloves and clippers in hand and snagged all kinds of greenery and berries from the side of the road, in our little village. They used our foraged finds to fill out the mantelscape.
The girls did it all. The only thing that I added was twinkle lights for a little sparkle at night. Brass candlesticks with battery-operated tapers flank the Frame TV, which is showing a beautiful fall art piece that I found on Etsy.
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Swapping art is another easy seasonal change to make. I buy digital art on Etsy and have it printed locally, then trade my lighter prints in my frames for darker, moodier ones for fall.
A Tablecloth on the Coffee Table
This might be my favorite new trick. I draped a green and off-white checked tablecloth over our wood coffee table, and I love it. It softens the whole room and makes it feel so cozy for fall. My only wish is that I’d found one a little bigger so it hung all the way to the floor.
Try It: Measure the height of your table as well as the top. Add the height twice to both the length and the width, and look for a tablecloth that size so it reaches the floor on all sides.
The Bookshelf Trick: From Four Shelves to Three
The built-in bookshelves on either side of the fireplace were one of the first projects “Handy” did for me when we got married. He took out a window, we had the fireplace added, and he built custom built-ins to flank it. Always thinking ahead, he made the upper open shelves adjustable, because he knew how much I like to move things around.
For as long as they’ve existed, those built-ins have had four shelves. This fall I had “Handy” take one out and respace the others. The shelves are now about 19″ apart, with the most room at the top so I’m able to lean larger art up there.
It’s subtle, but I’m amazed at the difference. I love to display my stuff, so those shelves can tip into cluttered fast. Giving each shelf more breathing room lets every piece shine, and the whole wall feels calmer.
Most of the Flow Blue went back into the cabinets and was replaced with brown and pink transferware, splashes of green, and just a little blue.
While I was at it, I traded some of the paler books for darker spines that echo the room’s fall colors. It’s such a simple change, but it warms up the living space and ties everything back to my fall palette.
If you want more breathing room on your shelves and you’re able to adjust them, try taking one shelf out. The same space can go from crowded to curated.
The Big Reveal: Our Outdoor Living Room
For the first time ever in one of my YouTube videos, I’m stepping outside the French doors in our living space to share our outdoor living room. We recently hosted an alfresco dinner party, and everything was cleaned up and looked so cozy; I just couldn’t resist.
It’s a covered patio with a stone fireplace looking out to the river, which is right in our backyard. It’s decorated in blue and white (go figure), and I don’t change much out here for fall and winter. Three blue and white little throw pillows that say “blessed,” “grateful,” and “thankful” are the extent of my seasonal decorating.
At night, string lights, candles, and a crackling fire make the whole space glow. There’s a throw on the swing and an antique metal laundry basket filled with throws for snuggling up with on cool fall nights.
That basket is a very special piece. It collapses for storage, and I bought it from one of my favorite little local shops, Tattered Tiques, when they were sadly going out of business. They used it to display pillows in the shop, so it feels fitting that it’s holding throws now.
When we entertain in the fall, we leave the French doors open, and guests wander in and out between the house and the yard. It’s my favorite way to host. The full dinner post is coming next week, so stay tuned! In the meantime, here’s another alfresco harvest tablescape from our backyard.
Throws, Throws, and More Throws
If you haven’t noticed by now, I have a thing for throws. There’s one on the sofa, one on every chair, one on the bench, one on the swing, and even one draped over a chair in the greenhouse. I counted, and I own about 30. I’m not even a little bit sorry. Here’s where they all live:
- A vintage ladder in my office holds about eight at any given time
- A hook wall in the dining room holds around ten
- Five or six fill the laundry basket outside
- Each bedroom has a couple
- Seasonal ones get packed away in their seasonal bins
I love HomeGoods for throws, but I’ve also found great ones at vintage shops, flea markets, and specialty stores. Solids, plaids, florals, stripes, fluffy, fuzzy, wooly, and lightweight—I have it all.
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Shop Your Home First
You may have noticed a theme on this tour: very little of it is new. The bench came in from the front porch. The sisal rug moved from the living room to the dining room. The Persian rug found its way back to the living room. The blue and white traded places with the brown and pink transferware in the corner cabinets. Even the dining chairs just took off their slipcovers.
Before I buy anything, I shop my house. I switch out lamps, small tables, and chairs from room to room regularly, and something that looked ordinary in the bedroom can look brand new in the living room. The little armchair that usually lives in my office came out to the living space for more seating.
Easy Ways to Get the Muted Fall Decor Look
- Keep one color from summer. Carrying cranberry over made fall feel like a continuation, not a whole new look.
- Swap your dishes, not your furniture. Trading blue and white for brown and pink transferware changed the entire feel of the kitchen and living room.
- Change your artwork. I like to buy artwork from Etsy and then have it printed locally, and I switch out lighter artwork in my frames with darker prints for the fall.
- Trade out light-colored books for ones with darker spines. I pulled out some of my lighter colored spined books and replaced them with books in greens, cranberries, and browns.
- Slipcovers! Chances are you don’t have a floral print under your slipcovered dining chairs, but what about adding a slipcover to your chairs or even your sofa? I’ve used double-sized bed quilts as furniture covers with amazing results. The slipcovers I removed from my chairs were very inexpensive from Amazon.
Final Thoughts
I get that my collections aren’t realistic for most people, but for me it’s not only my passion; it’s my job to show you how you can creatively use things in your home. My best advice for creating looks similar to mine is to invest in small groupings. I also move things from room to room for different looks. Shopping my house is the first thing I do when I’m looking to change things up and before I buy anything. Something from your bedroom can look much different in your living room.
If you can find one thing that I’ve shown you, like taking out a shelf for more space, then I’ve done my job. It’s the small little things here and there that can make everything look fresh and new. That’s really the heart of muted fall decor: a few thoughtful swaps, not a whole new house.
Peace and Love,
Things I’m Loving for Fall
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Meet Me
My name is Lynn. I live in the suburbs of Chicago in a 1,300 sq. ft. home with my Handy husband, Keith.
I’m an open book about my life on my blog. You can find out more about me by visiting my “About Me” page.
