F. Scott Fitzgerald said “Life begins when it gets crisp in the fall.” If this is the case then life must be in full swing when the leaves have all fallen from the trees. November – it’s that month that lies in limbo -bridging the vibrancy of autumn and the colorful spookiness of Halloween, to Thanksgiving where we Americans give thanks to all our good fortune and celebrate by eating masses and masses of food. Thus begins the Holiday Season – a season of lights and merriment, food and drink, parties, entertaining friends and family. I admit to loving this time of the year though my own internal clock can’t quite make heads or tails of these short, dark days.
With Thanksgiving just over two weeks away, we are in full throttle. Now is the time we start to polish silver, copper, crystal and glassware. We clean our homes top to bottom in anticipation of entertaining. We dress up our homes in autumn décor – choosing rich reads, majestic purples, deep greens… oranges, browns, and golds. Any trace of summer is now gone. We bring out candles and light them. We light our fireplaces. We fill our cupboards and pantries with the necessary food and drink to have on hand.
We dress up our dining rooms tables as well. Whether table or home, so much of what we already have can be recycled and recreated into something completely new. Bring the outdoors in. Work with nature and the natural colors of our landscapes. Instead of decorating with flowers, try substituting fruits, nuts and berries instead. Use twigs, branches, and herbs to adorn a place setting or a votive. Recycle a Halloween pumpkin (uncarved!) to serve as a lovely soup terrine. Bring out your silver, polish it up and add fruit or branches to it. Tie a simple ribbon around your silverware.
You may be amazed at how some of these most simple of items can look so elegant.
We hope that these images have inspired your fall and holiday decor. We’d love to hear some of the ideas you’ve come up with over the years.
Images via: 1. Better Homes and Gardens, 2. Pinterest – original source unknown, 3. Williams Sonoma, 4. All Things Weddings, 5. Real Simple, 6. Tumblr, 7. Tumblr