Fall Home Tour

It’s been awhile since I offered an update on house progress. Suffice it to say that we’ve been busy, working on projects that have gone a long way in making this new house feel like home. Would you like to take a little tour with me? Let’s start outside on the front porch.

I can only speak for myself here, but I believe that I have an “it” season. Do you know what I mean by that? Like, I am at my best when I’m wearing jeans and boots and scarves and cute sweaters. Fall is my “it” season. I may be speaking prematurely here because I haven’t spent a winter in Alabama yet but I’m thinking that fall might be my porch’s “it”season, too.

Can we just take a quick break here to reflect on my fall-lite fabric banner? Fall-lite because it’s neither orange-y or pumpkin-y but, to me, the textures and patterns have fall written all over them. I rather love it. I especially love the softness it adds to the pallet.

These pumpkins are a long-time favorite of mine. I bought them on clearance at Target one year after Thanksgiving. That was back when Target still had a garden center. #Throwback. It’s hard to tell from the photos but these things are ginormous. I have a set of three and the biggest one is about three feet wide and two feet tall. They’re made out of twigs which makes them maybe slightly fragile. Jeff hates storing them but he probably would hate storing them less if I didn’t offer countless friendly reminders to be careful with my pumpkins.

Heading inside now, you can check out the entryway. Those acorn twigs there on that cabinet represent the only traditional fall colors you’ll find here in my neutral home. I hesitated even on them but in the end the cute acorns won me over and they earned prominent placement next to my cute little woodland squirrel and a jar full of mixed nuts.

And then, ah, the staircase gallery wall. Top to bottom it tells the story of our vow renewal (and our daughter and future son-in-law’s engagement). It quite literally took an engineering feat to plan, orchestrate and hang those photos but it was well worth the headache.

The dining room is another source of warm fuzzies for me. That table, right? It makes my heart squishy. It was handcrafted by an artisan in Georgia who chooses each piece of lumber by hand. The base of the table was made by Amish without the use of electricity, believe it or not. It has wooden nails, true story. Jeff and I tag-teamed the creation of that ‘gather’ sign. I searched long and hard for the perfect butcher charts for that wall. And then my talented husband threw together that “antique” painting ladder for me in a shimmy of a minute.  Oh, and the dough bowl on the table? It came straight from Hungary. It’s gorgeous. Jeff’s roots are from somewhere in that Hungary/Croatia/Romania region. I’ve wasted more than a reasonable amount of time dreaming up scenarios in which one of Jeff’s long lost relatives turned out loaves of bread from that very dough bowl and then kismet led to it ending up on my dining room table. I can’t help it; it’s the storyteller in me.

Here’s a view of Darla, our resident deer. She hangs front and center in the great room.

We have yet to use this outdoor fireplace. I intend to remedy that this season. We’ve got big plans for a chili and s’mores night out here when the weather cools a bit. We’ve finally given in and started raking the leaves. I loved looking at them and so we let them stay for awhile. Living in a place where I wake up to this view every day is so very a dream come true for these weary (former) desert-dwelling eyes.

I hope you enjoyed your virtual tour. Feel free to drop in for a glass of chai or spicy Zin if you’re in the neighborhood. Happy Fall, ya’ll.