Guest Blogger: Spaz & Her Fall Decor

I don't decorate seasonally. I just can't bring myself to do it for some strange reason. But that doesn't mean I don't love and appreciate some good seasonal decor! Which is why I wanted to feature a guest blogger. I "met" her on the nest.com about a year ago - she has the most beautiful home and is the best seasonal decorator since Martha Stewart. And to top it off, she's the sweetest woman I've ever "met". Since I lack in the seasonal decor department, I asked her to share all her wonderful fall ideas with you!

So here she is, mrspaz aka "spaz":

Hi! And Happy Fall! Thanks so much to Bryn for having me. I love her blog, decor style, and fashion sense, so I feel very honored to be here hanging out with all of you! Ps. This is my first time bloggin’, so bear with me!

Ok, so a little background…I didn’t realize I would become so passionate about decorating our house when we bought it 2 years ago. Nor did I understand how many great people out there would also share this love of making their living space a reflection of themselves. But now it’s a new found hobby of mine, and I’m having a blast! In general, I’m a “less is more” kinda girl. Our house is a bit contemporary, a bit traditional, and hopefully a lot “us” (can’t forget the husband).

I have always been inspired by nature and love to use natural elements in my home decor. I adore botanical illustrations, little bird statues (a recent obsession), and anything with a floral pattern or leaf motif. I love incorporating natural textures into a room and can’t get enough of the broad spectrum of soft and subtle earth tones that are out there.

My approach with my fall decorating has always been rather simple. I live in New England, and the fall foliage and colors are simply beautiful this time of year. So, why mess with it? Instead, I say “Run with it!” How can you go wrong? Leaves, pumpkins, wheat, gourds, branches, sunflowers, berries, acorns, cornstalks… they are all so beautiful in their original form. Bring the outdoors in - in all its organic, unadorned, pure glory!

And because this strategy keeps things general for “fall”, and doesn’t include specific Halloween décor, all this stuff can stay up right through Thanksgiving. This in turn means less trips to the attic for me and more time to savor the joys of the season.

First step - went to our local nursery over the weekend and bought a ton of pumpkins ($48 worth) – small ones, fat ones, skinny pumpkins, orange pumpkins, white ones and even striped pumpkins!

I wanted to keep things clean outside, so I put 3 big pumpkins on our front step (remember, little vignettes like this always work better with an odd number of objects). Then I put a mini pumpkin in each of the 5 sections of our transom window above the front door. I love making use of this unique architectural element of our house and decorating this spot! It’s so unexpected to find something there…it’s like a little surprise every time drive by the house or walk through the front entry way. (During the holidays I hang an ornament in each window and I put white starfish up there for the summer. Does anyone have any ideas for what I can feature there during the winter or spring?)

Another spot that I love to change up depending on the season is our fireplace mantle. It’s the perfect place to display collectibles, lean picture frames, or group found objects. I always keep a large silver mirror up there to bounce light around the room and then accent it with different pieces. For fall this year I went with….you guessed it, pumpkins!!! Just arranged a few to either side, making sure to balance out the colors, shapes and sizes. To top it all off, I hung a wreath of dried flowers and eucalyptus in the center of the mirror.

Accessories and small accent pieces are the easiest things to swap out for a new look, and/or a seasonal look. I’ll admit, I get bored quickly and like too many colors to stick with only 1 palette in a room year round. So most of my wall colors and big furniture pieces are neutral. Not all beige neutral, but subtle and versatile enough to work with more than one color combination. I broke out my fall throw pillows (copper and burnt oranges and chocolate browns) and changed out the things I had on my ledge shelves to incorporate these new colors in other places around the room. (This bundle of wheat was pretty easy to make – directions from Martha and supplies from Michaels.)

Decorating for the seasons and holidays is so much fun! Any and every style can be reconfigured for fall – it doesn’t matter if you are modern, classic, french country or craftsman, there’s a way to make this season (and all the special times of the year) work for you. Just look to nature for inspiration!