A Little Bit of Fall

As I said last week, I am not a fan of fall but mostly because it means the end of summer, my absolute favorite season.  So, I have to ease into fall decorating.  This year, I have removed the pure summer stuff - seashell themed stuff mainly.  But, I am not feeling the pure pumpkins, scarecrows, and orange yet.  I just cannot do Halloween in September - same for Christmas in November.  So, I had to find a mix that I could live with in the interim.  I started with the mantel in the family room - where we spend 90% of our time.  I'll work on the living room mantel as I come up with ideas in the next few weeks

I started with a few items from around the house.  I am working on more height on either side of the television without blocking the television.

This was close to being good but was missing a little life, and seems a bit overly balanced.  What I like most is that it doesn't scream "FALL!" and is made up mostly of things that we have around the house in our regular decor - except the pumpkin.  I really liked the red accents, including a decorative plate from REfind, and the non-traditional green-gold glass pumpkin (awesome HomeGoods find for $9.99!) which is nice and low so it doesn't block the TV.  The red pitcher was a birthday gift from a wonderful friend a few years ago - great for the sangria that I never make!  Then I added a little ceramic bird that had been gracing our dining room through the summer.

Such a minor change but I like it so much more.  As you have read and heard a million times before, odd numbers of items always look better and more natural.  It is still a work in progress (like everything in my house) but I will enjoy looking at it until I break out the real Halloween stuff.

Check out these link up parties!
Cottage and Vine
Nesting Place
Thrifty Decor Chick