8 Ways to Get in the Fall Mood when it is Still Hot Outside

Here it is nearly mid-September and I long for the autumn weather in our lingering hot climate. It’s a time of year when the property looks tired from the heat and the monsoon storms. Window sills are dusty and spiders and crickets have left their webs and nests in multiple corners. However, there isn’t much to be done yet about outside work~too hot and multiple possible dust and monsoon storms remaining.

However, in spite of summer like conditions, it’s time to do some simple things inside to mentally transition to autumn.

1. Fall Smells

There are many ways you can make your home smell like fall. Scents that come to mind are apples and apple cider, pumpkin spice, coffee roasting and bread baking. I just ordered the Fall Bundle of candles from the Antique Candle Company with scents of: pumpkin spice, fall harvest, cozy cabin, and autumn woods. Once they arrive, I will let you know if they smell as good as they sound. As I am writing this, I have a Freshly Roasted coffee candle glowing by my computer.

Just so you know, currently I am not an affiliate so I do not get any stipend for sharing their candles.

Or if you prefer a much longer burning (200 hours!) candle, I also love Spiced Apple by Rosy Rings. This candle is so beautifully designed. Actually back in 2017 I wrote an entire blog post about this candle. You can see it here.

Stove top potpourri for the fall is so easy to make. My guess is that you already have many of the ingredients, but the beauty is you can create your own recipe. For fall, I like to use apple cider, sliced apples, cloves, cinnamon sticks, an old vanilla bean, and cardamon (either pods or ground). The apples are from our orchard harvest in June and are a bit wrinkly; the cider is past its sell by date and the vanilla bean is a bit dried up. Simmer it all on the stove or in a crock pot and your home will smell like a crisp morning in October.

2. Slipcovers

I cannot wait to tell you all about the rebuilding/reupholstering of my ancient sofa. We just picked it up today and I am so happy with the results. When I purchased the sofa back in 2001, slipcovers by the same manufacturer were relatively affordable. As a result, I have 4 of them~three denims in natural, a pale yellow denim, and cranberry plus a sage green velvet.

With a busy family and lots of pets, being able to remove and wash a slipcover has been a blessing. Now 22 years later, some of the slipcovers are in poor condition (mostly pet damage). With the new upholstery I also have a new natural denim slipcover! This a great way to change up the look of your sofa or chairs by season.

Remember how I added slipcovers to my yard sale chairs for the dining room? If not, you can read it here.

You can find slipcovers online or a local seamstress may be able to make them for you.

3. Pillows

It’s so easy to add a decorative, fall pillow to your furniture. Once you buy the insert, then the sky is the limit on how many seasonal covers you need to decorate by season.

I often use decorative pillows near the entrances of the house. There is a large selection with Amazon here or you can find them with an online search with Etsy or from many retailers.

Target has a nice selection under the Threshold (Studio McGee) name like this one. You can find it online here for $15.00.

4. Use Natural Materials

If you are fortunate to have leaves turning beautiful colors in your area, gather them and put together a natural arrangement. Or this can be done with faux fall leaves also, for those of us without colorful deciduous trees.

It is a great time of year to collect natural grasses, leaves, and pinecones. You can do so much with what may be in your backyard or neighborhood. In 2020, I wrote a post about how to make your 2 different fall wreaths using natural materials. You can see it here.

My friend, Rachel, from The Ponds Farmhouse, makes this pretty fall wreath using fresh leaves she collected. You can see how she preserves the leaves here.

5. Throws or Blankets

There are so many affordable, attractive throws available in all sorts of colors. Depending on whether your fall palette is colorful or neutral, the thought of cozying with a blanket is definitely a fall behavior.

I use throws inside and out. Here’s one on our front porch that I change up every season.

I am so amazed at how affordable this cable knit one is from the Studio McGee line (Threshold) at Target. I have this one in blush but it comes in 5 colors for only $24.99. Find it here.

6. Bring out Seasonal artwork

Since our wall space is very limited due to all our windows and doors, I rotate seasonal pieces of art throughout the house.

If you don’t have any seasonal artwork, there is a plethora of autumn images you can download from the internet. Here is a sweet one from Anderson + Grant and you can find it here.

And how adorable is this vintage pear acrylic painting from Craftberry? You can find out how to download it here.

7. Get a jump on making fabric pumpkins

With this easy DIY, you can truly make fabric pumpkins in any color to go with your decor.

Last year I made fabric pumpkins to go with the tones in my dining room rug. I love how these pumpkins turned out. If you save your pumpkin or gourd stems from year to year, then it is easy to hot glue them onto your fabric pumpkins.

You can search the internet on how to make fabric pumpkins, or I have a quick tutorial on the ones I made back in 2020. You can see it here.

8. Hallmark Movies for Autumn Vibes

If all else fails, according to Collider, here are the top 7 Hallmark movies to get you in the autumn mood.

• Under the Autumn Moon (2018)
• Harvest Love (2017)
• Pumpkin Pie Wars (2016)
• October Kiss (2015)
• Love, Fall and Order (2019)
• Roadhouse Romance (2021)

or check out the current Hallmark movies on Saturday nights.

If you are living in a climate that is still rather hot, I hope this post gets you in the mood for fall. Thanks for joining me today!

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