Bringing Autumn Indoors

There is a point at the end of summer when the light begins to change.

The afternoons are still warm, but evenings come a little earlier. We begin reaching for warmer materials, deeper color, and the rooms that make us want to stay awhile.

Bringing autumn into a home does not have to mean changing everything. A few small shifts are often enough.

Warmer color

Autumn naturally draws me toward colors with a little more depth. Olive, tobacco, faded blue, warm brown, rust, and natural linen all seem to settle into a room this time of year.

It can be as simple as changing a pillow, adding an upholstered piece, or bringing pattern to a window.

Jetty is a woven with a quiet ribbed structure. In Punch it reads warm and a little faded, which is exactly what a room wants this time of year.

Small-scale pattern

Checks, small florals, woven geometrics, and organic motifs feel especially at home as the season changes.

They bring warmth without asking the entire room to change.

Nectar brings the warmth of a woven textile and a small repeating motif that feels familiar and easy to live with. In Raisin, the browns and soft greys sit quietly against white linen.

Daffodil is a small stamped floral with an easy, repeating rhythm. In Copper it sits warmly beside marble, pale wood, and natural linen.

Pattern works best when it has something simple beside it.

Natural linen. Warm wood. Woven upholstery. A heavier throw.

I especially like printed linen mixed with woven fabrics in fall. One brings pattern, the other brings structure. Together they hold a room together.

Hemlock is the quiet one — a needle-fine stripe on Belgian linen that gives pattern without demanding attention.

A nod to the landscape

Some of my favorite patterns begin with what is happening outside the window.

Grasses, branches, leaves, natural markings, and garden forms bring the landscape indoors without making a room feel themed.

Eden is the tangle of branches and garden growth just past the window. In Autumn, the greens soften into gold and rust.

Let the house shift slowly

You do not need to redecorate for autumn.

Add a deeper color. Bring out a favorite throw. Change a pillow. Introduce a pattern.

Small changes can be enough to make a room feel ready for the season.

As the light changes outside, the house begins to change with it.