When the leaves begin to fall, the outside temperature drops 20 degrees in a night, and stores fill with pumpkins and Halloween costumes, there’s no question that fall has arrived.

But aside from all the madness of costume shopping and scavenger hunts, one of the best parts of fall is being able to decorate your home for the season. Whether in a dorm or an apartment, a festive living space can be made easily and cheaply, even for the most frugal and creatively inept.

Glitter pumpkins

When it comes to pumpkins, especially in the Midwest, the possibilities are endless. From the grocery store to the surrounding farms to your neighbor’s front step, pumpkins are everywhere. If you want to spice things up a bit but don’t want the gooey mess that comes along with pulling out the inside of a pumpkin, glitter pumpkins may be the next best option.

What you’ll need:

1. Pumpkins

2. Glitter

3. Adhesive of some kind (spray adhesive or glue stick)

4. Newspaper

Step 1:

Get the pumpkin sticky. Adhesive spray works best, but a glue stick or any type of glue also works.

Step 2:

Pull out the glitter. If you cover the entire pumpkin in glue, you can sprinkle the glitter all over (don’t forget to put newspaper down to capture the glittery mess!). You can also design a special glue patterns, sprinkle glitter on newspaper and roll the pumpkin over the trail of glitter to create a sparkly design.

Step 3:

Let the pumpkin dry.

Candleholders

Another easy project with small pumpkins or gourds is making candleholders. This creative and easy decor trick is mess-free and easy on the wallet. It can also turn any space into a festive, “gourd”eous house.

What you’ll need:

1. Variety of little pumpkins and gourds

2. Sharp knife

3. Spoon

4. Tea lights

Step 1:

Trace the area of the tea light along the center, upright portion of the pumpkin and cut along the traced line with the knife.

Step 2:

Scoop out the piece that has been cut, place tea light in the opening.

Cinnamon stick candles

Another easy and aesthetically pleasing fall decor trick is a DIY fall candle with cinnamon sticks.

What you’ll need:

1. A plain candle

2. 20 to 30 cinnamon sticks (will differ depending on candle size)

3. Glue gun

4. Twine

Step 1:

Fire up your glue gun and spread the glue down the cinnamon stick and stick it on the candle. Do this all around the candle.

Step 2:

Let the glue cool down then tie your twine in a bow around the candle and voila! You have a new cinnamon stick candle to lighten the smell of any college living space.

Frances can be reached at [email protected].