Fall Exterior Decorating: Beyond the Front Door

Another Great Idea

Last time I shared some ideas for decorating your front door for fall.  Now that you’ve developed your theme for this year and have some door décor in mind, it’s time to expand your decorating horizons to include your home’s entrance, featuring 

fall garland, house flag, floral display and yard display. 

Front Entrance

Building on your theme, such as pumpkins, football, hunting, scarecrows…whatever you choose, include more than just the front door in your strategy.  The next item on your agenda will be the front entrance.  This means the area surrounding your door, any steps (if you have some), and the covered roof/overhang (if you have that element). 

Fall Garland

Starting from the top, spin one of the standard Christmas decorating approaches into a fall eye-catcher.  Instead of outlining the roof with white Christmas lights and using pine greenery in this area, use autumn leaf garland and fall lights.  Because these areas typically measure longer running feet than merely surrounding the door, I recommend a more sparse, simple garland for this space to stretch your decorating budget.    Plus, a streamlined garland is more flexible and easier to mount in tricky angles.  Try wrapping fall colors around pillars or outline the peak of a covered entrance. 

Light your fall garland for extra impact.

A relatively new addition to harvest-time embellishment is autumn strings of lights.  These differ from the familiar Christmas light sets in that the string colored brown instead of green.  Another difference can be found in the bulbs which glow a warmer yellow or orange.  Like other holiday lights, fall lights come in a variety of bulb sizes and shapes.  Depending on your situation, you might consider battery powered lights for a small space.  Go with traditional electric plug-in light strings for a long single string or for multiple strings.

House Flag

Adjustable wall mount bracket

Wooden flagpole with clear sleeve, swivel ring

Fly a colorful flag this fall.  It’s an easy way to enhance the appearance of your home from a distance.  Just install the wall mount bracket once, buy a pole once, and you can change your house flags all year long!  For brackets, look for an adjustable model to accommodate different sizes of flags with no hassle.  A pole with a clip and ring that rotates 360 degrees and a clear sleeve helps prevent wrapping and keeps the flag from blowing off!

House flags come in a nearly endless array of themes.  Some are applique, pieces of fabric sewn onto a background to create a bold design. Silkscreen printing in full-dolor creates beautiful complex artwork.  With or without text, a house flag makes a statement and provides motion and color for your outdoor décor.

Fall house flag

A floral element adds color and texture.

Floral Element

Beside the door or by your pillars, you’ll want to add a floral element.  There could be a raised planter, an urn or a pot.  Height and color are the elements you want to look for here.  Depending on your climate, you may want to utilize fresh, live mums, but in colder northern regions, your best bet is faux.  Today’s silk florals look amazingly life-like.  Mix and match sunflowers, mums, and yellow or purple daisies.  Surround your container with an assortment of pumpkins, gourds, squash and Indian corn. 

Build a cheerful yard display.

Yard Display

Moving out from the front entrance you could build a display in your yard.  Get creative!  First, you need an element to anchor your display.  Think of something like a wheelbarrow or a straw bale or two.  Add a tall element, a sheaf of corn or a scarecrow.  Now add pumpkins, a tin bucket tipped with apples spilling over, or a pot of flowers.  For a finishing touch, add a sign or a graphic text.  A solar lantern would be a pleasant addition for nighttime flair.

Embrace all your favorite things about autumn while you decorate this fall.  Take a moment to be thankful for our country and all the blessings we enjoy.

All My Best,

Kay