Easy Summer to Fall Decorating with Collected Decor

That in-between time when summer is winding down but fall hasn't quite arrived can be tricky when it comes to decorating. I'm ready for a change, but here in South Carolina, it's still very much summer outside. The last thing I want to do is pull out pumpkins and full-on fall decor when it's close to 100 degrees!

Instead, I've started making a few subtle changes around our home with warmer colors, rich textures, vintage books, candlelight, and collected pieces.

It's really just a little prelude to fall.

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What is the Pinterest Challenge?

Each month, we are given either a topic or a photo to use as inspiration. Think of it just like saving a beautiful room on Pinterest or Instagram and then figuring out how to recreate the feeling of it in your own home.

Our fabulous host, Cindy from County Road 407, organizes our monthly Design Challenges. It's always fun to see how everyone interprets the exact same inspiration in completely different ways.

This month, our inspiration comes from Eleanor Rose Home and her cozy fall living room. I was immediately drawn to this sweet little vignette with its vintage books, candles, classical bust, warm wood, and simple natural elements.

If you're visiting from Cindy at County Road 407, welcome! I'm so happy to have you here.

My Takeaway from the Inspiration Photo

Whenever I recreate an inspiration photo, I don't try to copy it piece for piece. I look at the overall composition and make a mental list of the elements that catch my eye.

For this one, I noticed:

• Three candles
• One large horizontal book
• A grouping of vertical books with some of the spines showing
• A classical bust
• A small collection of natural objects
• Florals with a subtle fall feel
• A neutral table runner
• A vintage chest or cabinet as the foundation

From there, I shopped our home.

I didn't have one oversized horizontal book that gave me quite the same scale, so I stacked my Van Gogh and Monet books. Instead of the acorns in the inspiration, I filled a small urn with wine corks that I've collected.

That's the fun of an inspiration photo. You aren't trying to duplicate it. You're looking for ways to recreate the feeling with things that tell your own story.

Creating a Subtle Summer to Fall Transition

August always makes me crave a little change inside our home. I'm starting to think about fall, but I'm certainly not ready for pumpkins everywhere.

One of the easiest ways I've found to bridge the seasons is simply to warm up the color palette.

Look closely and there's really very little “fall decor” here.

The hydrangeas are soft and muted. The vintage books bring in deeper greens, rust, brown, and black. Amber glass and candlelight add warmth. Even the creamy stone finishes on the bust and urn help soften the blue and white that stays in our home year-round.

I didn't remove my blue and white lamp simply because fall is approaching. Instead, I surrounded it with warmer pieces. Plus, this little area helps to light the space into our home since we don't have a foyer to place furniture in with it being open in each direction.

That's a much more natural way for me to decorate seasonally.

Use Books to Add Instant Fall Color

Books are one of my favorite decorating tools.

The inspiration photo used a wonderful mix of old books, and I knew I wanted to recreate that feeling.

I pulled together books with black, green, blue, rust, and warm brown covers. I purposely turned some with the spines showing while allowing others to simply show their aged pages and covers.

There's nothing perfect about the arrangement, and that's exactly why I like it.

For the large horizontal book in the inspiration, I didn't have one book that was quite substantial enough. My oversized Van Gogh and Monet books stacked together gave me the height and visual weight I needed.

It's such a simple reminder to look at what you own differently. Two books worked just as well as the one oversized book in the inspiration.

Add Something Classical and Unexpected

The classical bust was probably the element in the inspiration photo that caught my eye first.

Luckily, I already had one!

I love the way a bust adds a bit of old-world character to a room. It feels collected and traditional without being overly formal, especially when you mix it with everyday things like books, flowers, and candles.

Rather than treating it like a precious object that needs to stand alone, I tucked mine right into the arrangement.

That mix of high and low, old and new, and serious and casual is what keeps traditional decorating from feeling stuffy.

Bring in Warmth with Candlelight

The three candles in the inspiration photo were another detail I wanted to repeat.

I used a combination of two different sized votive holders. Once lit, the warm glow immediately changes the feeling of the vignette.

This is probably one of the easiest summer-to-fall decorating tricks there is.

You don't have to change an entire room. Light a few candles, bring in a little amber glass, and suddenly the room starts to feel cozier.

I especially love the amber glass against the blue and white lamp. The combination lets me hold onto the lighter feeling of summer while introducing just enough warmth for the season ahead.

Decorate with Personal Collections

The inspiration photo included a little collection of acorns. I could have easily gone outside and gathered something similar, but the small urn filled with wine corks felt much more personal to our home.

I've saved the corks over time, and I love seeing them displayed rather than tucked away in a drawer.

They're neutral, natural, and have that same organic quality as the acorns without screaming fall.

It's also a good example of why I don't think you need to recreate every detail of an inspiration photo literally.

Use what makes sense for your home.

A bowl of pinecones, shells collected from vacations, old keys, matchbooks, wooden beads, seed pods, or another small collection could accomplish the same thing.

Let Florals Ease You into the Season

Hydrangeas are one of those flowers that transition beautifully from summer into fall.

Instead of using bright summer blooms, I went with these soft, faded hydrangeas. Their muted green and creamy tones feel appropriate right now but will work just as beautifully as we move further into fall.

They add softness to all of the books, stone, metal, and wood without introducing an obvious fall color palette.

And that's exactly what I wanted.

Later in the season, I can easily replace them with something richer or add a few branches from the yard. For now, they're just enough.

Keep Your Year-Round Favorites

Here's something I think is worth mentioning: you don't have to put away everything you love just because the season changes.

Blue and white is part of our home year-round.

Rather than removing this lamp and replacing it with something “fall,” I changed what surrounded it.

The warm books, amber glass, candlelight, aged gold mirror, and muted flowers completely change the way the blue and white feels.

I think that's one reason collected homes transition so easily from season to season. The foundation stays largely the same. We simply change a few layers.

Shop Your Home First

Most of this vignette came together with things I already owned.

Are you curious to know if there are any thrifted or consignment shop finds? The two urns, flower candlestick, mirror and lamp are all collected treasures.

That is always my favorite kind of decorating.

Sometimes we get so used to seeing an accessory in one particular place that we forget it can have an entirely different life somewhere else. Move your books. Bring a vase in from another room. Stack something that usually stands upright. Fill an urn with a collection you've had tucked away.

You may discover you don't need nearly as much new seasonal decor as you thought.

The original Eleanor Rose Home post also embraces decorating with pieces already owned or pulled from storage, along with vintage finds and natural elements. It's one of the things I loved about this month's inspiration.

A Collected Look for the Season Ahead

Stepping back, I love how this little area now hints at what's coming without rushing the season.

There isn't a pumpkin in sight.

Instead, it's the deeper colors, aged finishes, books, muted flowers, and glow of candlelight that make the room feel warmer.

And when the weather finally does cool down, I'll be able to build right onto this foundation rather than completely redecorating.

That feels much more like the way I want to decorate our home these days—slowly, seasonally, and with things we've collected and genuinely love.

Up next on today's hop is my friend, Wendy from WM Design House.

Check out more ideas from this month's challenge!

I hope this inspires you to ease into fall in a way that feels right for your home. You don't have to rush the season or completely redecorate. Sometimes a few old books, faded hydrangeas, candlelight, and treasured pieces are all it takes to make home feel just a little cozier for what's ahead.

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