Fall is officially upon us, which means the time for fall décor has begun. Decorating is one of the best ways to celebrate fall because through decorating, you can completely immerse yourself in the season based on your own interpretations and experiences of fall. This allows people to express themselves in their own unique way, meaning that no two people’s spaces look the same.

Decorating can be difficult though, especially for people who don’t have much experience with it or just don’t consider decorating to be their forte. Anyone can decorate, though, and if you consider yourself one of those people who believes that they lack décor skills, take a look at this beginner’s guide to fall decorating, and hopefully, you will find ideas and inspiration for decorating your own space. Happy fall!

Bring the scents of fall into your home
One of the easiest and most effective ways to make your space feel more like fall is by immersing it in the scents of fall. Fall smells different to everyone, so there is no right or wrong scent for your home. A few fall scents that many people associate with fall include cinnamon, pumpkin, and apple, but those are just a few ideas, and this is by no means a comprehensive list.

I find that candles most successfully capture and distribute the scents of fall. They also make spaces feel more cozy, comfortable and welcoming, which are all themes consistent with the fall season. If you live in a dorm or somewhere where candles aren’t allowed, wallflowers are another great option.

Channel the outdoors
Some of fall’s most defining features come from the outdoor scenes we experience during the fall season. Throughout fall we see leaves change color and fall from trees, carved pumpkins on front porches and other autumnal flora.

A great way to channel fall is by bringing these outdoor items into your own home. I like to buy mini to medium-sized artificial pumpkins and place them on shelves, tables and ledges. Many stores sell different colored pumpkins that help add variety to spaces, as well as a twist on the classic orange pumpkin. Target and Michaels sell different colored artificial pumpkins, but you might be able to find some at GoodWill or other thrift stores, too. You can always buy real pumpkins and carve them out, too, to make your space even more unique.

If you’re not feeling the pumpkin look, though, consider purchasing fake leaves. They often come in bulks, which is great if you want to decorate with them individually. One way to do this is by filling up mason jars with the leaves and placing them around your home. If you want to go above and beyond, you can put decorative string lights in the mason jars as well to spice it up even more.

Another great way to decorate with leaves is with leaf garlands. You can buy these at craft stores and they’re perfect for mantles, light fixtures, tables or really anything with a ledge.

Spice up your space with throw pillows and blankets
Fall would not be fall without its warm, vibrant colors, so bringing these colors into your space is another great way to channel fall. One of the easiest ways to bring color into your home is with throw pillows and blankets. I find that adding a few accent pillows and a matching colored blanket to your normal bed or couch setup is a great way to spice up
the area. Typically, fall colors include different shades of red, yellow, orange and brown, but the colors you choose to decorate with are completely up to you.

Light it up
Lights might be the one décor piece that transforms a space the most. How lit up you want your space to be and what type of lights you want to use are completely up to you. You can keep it simple and just use candles to add some light, or you can buy strings of lights and go all out. If you really want to make your space feel like fall, try decorating multicolored lights or buying colored lightbulbs. Lights come in a variety of colors, styles, and shapes, so be creative and don’t be afraid to go all out.

Don’t be afraid to get spooky
The arrival of fall means that Halloween is not far behind. This means that spooky decorations are officially acceptable. Since there are so many ways to decorate for Halloween, choosing a theme is the best place to start. For example, maybe you want your space to look and feel really scary. Halloween stores usually have the biggest variety and range of scary decorations, so this allows you to decide how scary you want your space to be. Other Halloween themes you could decorate around could include a
pumpkin harvest, which might be more fall oriented rather than spooky, which I would consider to be a more light-hearted version of the hardcore scary theme. You can, of course, create your own themes or combine some aspects of different themes, but I find that the best way to start is by following a theme and buying decorations that fit within that theme. This helps to narrow down the many décor options stores have and ensure that your space will be cohesive and look put together.