Falling Into Fall

by

Goodbye, beach days, and hello, bonfire nights. Goodbye, fruity boat drinks, and hello, football season. Fall is whirling in with its spicy scents and its palette of gold, orange, and brown. For guidance on how to bring that transition into your home, EIL reached out to New York City interior designer extraordinaire, Elaine Griffin. Now a contributing editor of Better Homes & Gardens,

celebrity face on American Dream Builders, and author of Design Rules, Elaine grew up in Brunswick and is proud of her Southern heritage. This Golden Isles gal is ranked as one of House Beautiful's Top 100 American Designers and we're thrilled that she took the time to share her thoughts with us.

Falling into Fall

By Elaine Griffin

Going from summer to fall in Coastal Georgia is a subtle move, weatherwise, but sweater weather will still be soon upon us. And just as the seasons outdoors evolve, your home’s interiors should too. Not dramatically so – it’s about creating an ambiance that says crisp and cozy fall as you put away that clean and breezy beachy feeling until next year. Let accessories be your secret weapon in the game.

Here are some of my favorite ways to welcome fall home:

Be Scentsational

A home should always be experienced on four of our five senses – sight, sound, touch (that’s texture), and smell. As a native Southerner, I am big on a lovely-smelling home – it’s as important an element of style as the décor itself, and I believe every home should have a signature scent. As fall approaches, opt for denser, richer versions of your favorite scents, as a prequel to the headier, Perfumes with pine, cinnamon and cedar notes that will herald the holidays in November. From scented candles to diffuser sticks to plug-in oils to lightbulb scent rings to perfume sprays, the options are endless and it’s great to mix and match them all throughout the house to create your signature scent statement. 

Go For the Picturesque

Create a fun family photo gallery wall in a hall, mudroom or stair hall that changes with the seasons, and put your summer memories on display now until you’ll switch them out later with fall ones. (Remember to shoot pictures both horizontally and vertically when taking them, so they’ll fit in frames appropriately.) 

Say It With Flowers

I love the drama and elegance of a major floral moment on a foyer or entryway table – it’s pure chic and a lovely way to say “welcome home” every day. Fall is a great time to switch out summery and all-white bouquets with more harvest-colored arrangements, whether real or faux. (Trade secret:  Faux flowers, once the bane of every decorator’s existence, are now so brilliantly made that they can be hard to distinguish from real ones. So they get two thumbs up!)

Warm Up Your Textiles

Fabrics are what give a home its personality, and although changing your draperies seasonally would be a pricey proposition, swapping out throw pillows is delightedly not. Have one or two seasonless options that anchor your sofas year-round, and then switch the others out as the weather changes, opting for darker versions of your room’s color scheme (yellow becomes mustard, mint evolves to olive or hunter, swap out pink for raspberry). If you keep the same throw pillow style and size, you can use the same inserts and just switch out the covers.

Don’t Forget The Front Door

A well-dressed porch always ups your curb appeal, so don’t only show it the love during the holidays. Wreaths, hangings, baskets and planters can be displayed year-round and changed out to use seasonal colors, plant material, flora, and other garden bounty.