Early Fall Decorating Ideas: 8 Ways to Decorate Before Pumpkins
If you’re ready for a little seasonal change but not quite ready to bring out the pumpkins, these early fall decorating ideas are the perfect in-between. Think late-summer flowers, candles, natural elements and pretty displays using what’s in season right now.
The abundance of natural elements to decorate with is what makes me love decorating for Fall. It’s a great way to combine a love of gardening with a love of decorating!
The fall decorating ideas have been spinning in my mind for weeks already. Though it is a bit too soon for pumpkins, I’ve put together this list of ideas to get started before going all out.
Late Summer to Early Fall Decor: Making the Seasonal Transition
What I’ve been planning for myself cuurently involves garden containers and any interesting baskets or vessels I can find. I want to use those as the base for displaying all the beautiful bounty that comes with late summer and early fall. Think flowers and clippings from the garden, seasonal fruit, dried elements and anything else nature is giving us right now.
It’s an easy way to start making that seasonal transition without jumping straight into traditional fall decor. And honestly, sometimes these simple, natural displays end up being prettier than anything you could buy at the store.
With that in mind, here are some simple ways to start bringing a little early fall into your home now.
1. Decorate With Late-Summer Flowers
Late-blooming summer flowers are some of my favorites. From coneflowers to sunflowers, there’s so much available to work with this time of year. Simply adding a bunch of sunflowers to your table is an easy way to bring in a touch of early fall decor without going all-in on the season just yet.
I especially love them displayed in something old or unexpected. Here, I used a rusty vintage tin, which adds just the right amount of warmth and character for this time of year.
Or go with deep reds and burnt orange colors to warm up your space.
Even dried sunflowers make for an amazing, rustic display.
2. Make a Transitional Fall Wreath
Now is the time to plan your fall DIYs, and a wreath is always a good place to start. You don’t have to wait for pumpkins and colorful leaves either. Using dried flowers, grasses, or other natural elements will give you that early fall feeling while still fitting right in with late summer.
This dried floral wreath (shown below) is one I made several years ago, and I still love the soft, natural look of it.
Or, if you’re ready to get a little more seasonal, this natural Fall wreath is another easy idea to try.
Either way, making your own wreath is a simple way to start transitioning your home for fall before the season is fully underway. There are lots of easy Fall wreaths you can make in under an hour.
3. Bring Back the Candles
One of the first things I find myself reaching for as summer starts to wind down is candles. After months of long, bright evenings, that soft candlelight instantly makes the house feel a little cozier.
You don’t have to go full-on fall just yet. even a few simple tapers or votives tucked into your everyday decor can add that warm, early fall feeling without bringing out a single pumpkin.
I particularly like taper candles in warm colors this time of year.
A couple of candles can also make a pretty display on your dining table. Place them in vintage candle holders and tuck in seasonal fruits for a simple arrangement that feels warm and just right for early fall.
Candles also look beautiful grouped with vintage silver for an easy coffee table display. The warm glow of candlelight plays off the aged silver and patina, making even a simple grouping feel special.
Add a small stack of books or a few natural elements to keep the arrangement casual rather than too formal.
4. Use Seasonal Fruit Instead of Pumpkins
If you’re not quite ready to bring out the pumpkins, seasonal fruit is an easy way to hint at fall without rushing the season. You will see that idea repeated in this post.
I love decorating with natural elements. They add color and texture in a way that feels effortless.
Apples, pears, and figs bring in those rich, warm colors we associate with fall while still feeling perfectly at home in late summer. Pile them into a favorite vintage bowl, scatter a few across the table, or mix them into a simple centerpiece for an effortless early fall look.
One of my favorite ways to use seasonal fruit is as a simple centerpiece. Pile apples, oranges, or other seasonal fruit onto a tiered stand and tuck in a few fresh flowers or leafy stems. It gives the table height and color while still feeling casual and natural.
It’s perfect for that in-between time when summer is winding down but it’s not quite pumpkin season yet.
You could even tuck in a few faux fruits into a vase for a simple yet interesting display.
5. Add Dried or Foraged Elements
Another easy way to ease into fall decorating is with flowers and greenery gathered right from the yard. In late summer, there’s usually plenty to work with, and even a loose handful of garden clippings can make a beautiful, effortless arrangement.
As the season moves along, dried flowers are another favorite of mine.
Whether arranged in a vase or used to make a wreath, they bring in that slightly faded, textural look that feels like fall without being overly seasonal.
Dried flowers are great for your early fall decorating ideas but will also last all through the season!
6. Add Fall Color OUtside
You can start adding hints of fall outside long before you’re ready for pumpkins and full-on fall porch decor. A few mums tucked into the garden is usually the first sign that fall is arriving.
Or add pops of color to your porch with whatever seasonal plants you can find available at the garden center.
Or keep it simple with a beautiful fall wreath placed somewhere unexpected outside.
7. Create an Early Fall Table Centerpiece
You don’t need traditional fall decorations to create a centerpiece that feels seasonal. A large arrangement of fresh greenery, branches, and berries is a beautiful place to start. Add a few apples for that first hint of fall color and you have a display that feels abundant and seasonal without looking like you’ve skipped ahead.
Vintage pieces also make the best vessels for seasonal flowers. Here, a pretty soup tureen filled with flowers turns something normally tucked away in a cabinet into a centerpiece. It’s an easy way to bring together two of my favorite things vintage finds and whatever is blooming at the moment.
And don’t forget about outdoor tables while the weather is still warm enough to enjoy them! Sunflowers are perfect for this in-between season, especially paired with colorful table linens, like the checkered tablecloth below, and pretty plates. The combination still feels bright and summery but brings in just enough golden fall color to hint at what’s coming.
8. Display Fall Bounty in Unexpected Containers
One of my favorite ways to make a simple fall display feel a little more special is to skip the obvious containers. Pedestal bowls, urns, footed planters and other interesting vessels can turn even the simplest collection into a beautiful seasonal display. Forage your yard or the nearest farmer’s market for things like apples, pears, flowers or garden clippings
This next group of ideas came straight from my imagination. I kept thinking of all the vintage pieces that could be repurposed into beautiful fall displays. But there was no way I had time to actually create and photograph every one of them!
So, I used AI to help bring my ideas to life and give you a visual of what I had in mind. The images below are AI-generated, but the decorating concepts are my own and hopefully they’ll inspire you to look at some of your vintage finds in a whole new way.
I especially like pedestal/footed containers for this because height immediately makes a pile of fruit or other harvest finds look like an intentional arrangement.
I’d look for things such as footed stoneware bowls, aged-looking urns, pedestal planters, antique-style compotes, terracotta vessels and interesting metal containers. Bird cages are another fun idea to experiement with.
Whether it’s a weathered old colander or a grouping of vintage trophies, pairing garden elements with rustic and antique vessels always creates a beautiful, collected display.
Bring the Look Home – Early Fall Decorating Ideas
If you’re feeling inspired to add a few early fall touches of your own, I’ve gathered some pretty finds to help you get the look. These pieces make it easy to bring in a little warmth and texture now, while still working beautifully throughout the fall season.
Let Nature Do the decorating
Fall has always been my favorite season to decorate for, partly because nature does so much of the work for us. There’s an abundance of beautiful things to gather and bring inside this time of year. Abundance is key in fall decorating!
It makes decorating feel easy and a little more creative, especially when you mix those natural elements with your favorite vintage pieces. I hope you found some early fall decorating ideas you can use here today.
Sometimes the prettiest fall displays are the ones that didn’t cost a thing.
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