The In-Between Season: Easy Ways to Take Your Home from Summer into Autumn
There’s something slightly strange about the end of August. One minute you’re throwing open the windows and convincing yourself it’s still very much summer, and the next you’re eyeing up a candle, reaching for a blanket and wondering whether it’s too early to start thinking about autumn.
We say absolutely not.
You don’t need to pack away everything summery and suddenly fill the house with pumpkins. This lovely in-between season is actually the perfect time to make a few small changes and gradually bring a warmer, cosier feel into your home.
Start With Warmer Colours
One of the easiest ways to shift your home towards autumn is with colour.
Deep greens, ochre, rust, burgundy and warm earthy tones instantly make a room feel cosier, but you don’t need to redecorate. A few carefully chosen accessories can completely change the mood of a space.
And don’t worry if your home is already full of colour. Autumn certainly doesn’t have to mean beige. In fact, rich jewel colours, quirky patterns and flashes of gold look particularly fabulous at this time of year.
Bring Back the Candles
If your candles have spent most of the summer looking decorative rather than actually being lit, their time has come.
As the evenings gradually get darker, candlelight is one of the simplest ways to make a room feel warm and inviting. Interesting candle holders are even better – they look good during the day and create a completely different atmosphere once the candles are lit.
We’re firmly of the opinion that practical things can still be a little bit fabulous.
Give Your Shelves a Shuffle
You don’t necessarily need to buy anything new to give your home an autumn refresh.
Try moving things around.
Take everything off a shelf, sideboard or mantelpiece and put it back differently. Mix books with ornaments, add a plant, introduce something with a bit of height and leave some breathing space between pieces.
Then add one wonderfully unexpected object.
A zebra? A beetle? A slightly eccentric animal wearing something it probably shouldn’t be wearing?
Even better.
Those are the pieces that give a home personality.
Take a look at our sideboard accessories.
Add Texture
Autumn interiors are as much about how a room feels as how it looks.
Baskets, natural wood, aged metal, velvet, woven fabrics and textured accessories all help to create that layered, collected-over-time feeling.
The aim isn’t to make everything match. Quite the opposite.
Homes are much more interesting when they look as though they’ve evolved rather than been purchased as one perfectly coordinated set.
Don’t Forget the Entrance
Hallways and entrances are often overlooked, but they’re the first glimpse anyone gets of your home.
A quirky coat hook, an interesting mirror, a decorative wall piece or even a little seasonal display can transform an otherwise forgotten corner.
It’s also a brilliant place to be slightly braver with your decorating choices. If you’ve fallen in love with something unusual but aren’t quite sure where it belongs, the hallway could be its new home.
Get some inspiration for your walls.
Embrace the In-Between
Most importantly, don’t rush the seasons.
There will be plenty of time for dark evenings, blankets and full-on autumn cosiness. For now, enjoy this funny little period where summer hasn’t quite left and autumn is beginning to creep in.
Make a few changes. Light a candle when the sun goes down. Move your favourite treasures around. Add something new that makes you smile.
Because decorating your home doesn’t have to follow rules or trends.
It just needs to feel like you.
And preferably have at least one slightly ridiculous animal somewhere in it.
Skinny Pig Interiors – home décor for people who like their homes with a little more personality.