If I’m honest with you, autumn is my favorite season. In the early weeks, there’s still time to enjoy the dahlias and the sunflowers. As the season progresses, colorful leaves and pumpkins take center stage. But no matter how far along in the season, fall is the perfect time to dress up your garden shed and porch.
Come along with me as I dress up my garden shed for fall. It’s easy to decorate so you can switch out items as the season goes by.
Read… Inspiring Ways For Living By The Seasons This Autumn
My Secret Tool
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Before we get into the actual decorating process, I want to share a few tips with you on how I do this. First, even if you don’t have a decorating bone in your body, you can still create a lovely setting to enjoy this fall. You don’t need a special degree or talent. You just need to be willing to try. Second, it’s okay to use ideas from other people. The secret tool I’ve used for many years is magazines. They can provide so much inspiration for your decor.
I often gather ideas by browsing through the latest seasonal magazine or even looking through older magazines. Have I ever told you about my weakness for garden magazines? My husband might call it a “hoarding problem”.
It’s amazing the amount of wonderful decorating ideas you can glean through magazines. And you don’t have to purchase new magazines. I often find vintage gardening magazines for sale at yard sales, library sales, thrift stores, and antique shops. A few of my favorite magazines are County Living, Country Home,, and Farmhouse Style. Country Gardens Magazine is no longer in print but you can still find older copies.
Spend a relaxing afternoon browsing through your magazine stash and you’ll be amazed at the inspiration you come away with. Grab an autumn beverage such as this homemade pumpkin spice latte, choose a cozy spot and just soak in the ideas.
TIP… When you hoard collect garden magazines, organize them by seasons to make it easier to access the ones you want.
How to Dress Up Your Garden Shed for Fall…
Clean It Up
Start your seasonal change with a good cleaning. Summer is such a busy season that we often neglect keeping the garden shed cleaned and organized. In mine you’ll find piles of this and that… tools, drying seeds, last season’s decorations, and drying flowers.
Organize your supplies, wipe down the surfaces, and sweep the floors. Clean off your porch as well. Put away your summer decorations and sweep off the debris. Before you decorate for the new season, you want to start with a clean slate.
You can find more ideas on cleaning and organizing your garden shed in this post… How To Organize Your Garden Shed.
Gather Your Supplies
When it’s time to decorate for the season, you might not know what you need. Gather a variety of supplies that could work. I bring out my stash of seasonal items, so I have plenty to choose from. I won’t use everything, but at least this gives lots of options.
Items to consider for your seasonal decorating:
- Blankets
- Pillows
- Side Table
- Crates
- Books
- Lighting
- Containers
- Wreath
- Bunting
- Flowers… fresh or faux
- Greenery or dried materials
- Fun decor items
For more information on how to decorate your garden shed or porch, see this article… How To Decorate Your Garden Using What You Already Have.
Work in Layers
When decorating an area such as your porch, work in layers. Each layer offers a level of decor that adds to the overall arrangement. Keep in mind, there is no right or wrong here. This is strictly a personal preference. While a professional decorator has “rules” they follow, when it comes to your porch and garden shed, do what makes you happy.
- Base Layer—The base layer is one that can remain for the whole season. It’s the bones of your display. Your base layer includes your chairs, side tables, rugs, and lighting.
- Middle Layer—These are items that add a bit of solidness to your display. Some of these items can be switched out as the season progresses. This layer could include items such as blankets and stands for elevating or grouping decorations.
- Top Layer—These are the items you can easily change over time, such as a bouquet of flowers or a decorative pillow.
- Whimsy—To finish your display, sneak in a fun item or two just for a smile.
Stand Back
Once you’ve finished decorating, stand back and look at the whole arrangement. Then ask yourself these questions…
- Does the space look cohesive? Try to maintain some consistency in containers, colors, etc.
- Are there any holes in your arrangement? If you notice areas that just don’t look right or look empty, try rearranging.
- Ask yourself if the area feels cozy. Is it warm, inviting, and intimate?
- Does it make you happy?
At this point, I will often walk away from my decorating efforts. I let the project sit for a while and then eventually I come back and look things over. Taking a break can give you a fresh view of what you’ve created and can help you to better assess the area.
Remove One Item
Do you remember the old adage to remove one item of jewelry when you’re getting dressed? This helps prevent you from overdoing things. Keep this thought in mind and see if you can find one thing that doesn’t fit or seems a little too much and remove it. But if your area feels just right, then keep it that way.
When All Else Fails, Just Use Flowers
I do not claim to be a decorator and I don’t even feel that I have a knack for it. But I do like to have touches of each season around me as a reminder of God’s faithfulness. So I work at it. Sometimes I get overwhelmed because I lack the time I want to spend on decorating for the season. Or I’m not pleased with the end result.
When this happens, my answer is to create a lovely seasonal bouquet to display in the area. A beautiful arrangement of flowers is really all you need to brighten an area and make it feel special. If you don’t have flowers in your garden, you can use store-bought flowers. You can even create a seasonal bouquet from faux flowers. When I need a touch of beauty and I don’t have the time to decorate, a bouquet of flowers can always provide seasonal inspiration.
You probably know from previous posts that I absolutely love the changing seasons. I try to embrace each season as it comes. This helps me to settle into the current season. Although autumn is my favorite, I don’t want to dread winter. And I don’t want to live my life always looking toward future seasons. I want to live in the here and now and make the most of this time we’ve been given.
One way to do that is to embrace the current season. I find that decorating helps me keep that focus. So take an afternoon or even a weekend if you need it to dress up your garden shed for fall. Create a lovely space that relaxes you and helps you focus on this new season.
Happy Fall, my gardening friends!!!
