2015 Fall Home Tour: Part One

There’s nothing more I love, than decorating for Fall and Christmas. For some reason, I get really excited to switch things up for the seasons, all while still keeping it neutral and fitting with the rest of the house. I don’t consider myself an “over-decorator”. I like to keep everything on the simpler side of things, and what you see here is exactly what our house looks like if you ever came for a visit. I don’t like staging things in unreasonable places just for the sake of pictures, and I don’t like buying items just for pictures. What you see in these pictures is exactly how it looks, and will look, until I decide to switch things up again, probably for Christmas decorating. I think it’s important for you to know, the house is not staged just for these pictures. This is how we live.

Now onto the tour! Thank you so much to Rachel of Maison de Pax for inviting my to join in on her fall into home, home tour series!

 If you’ve followed my blog for any amount of time, you will probably notice a bunch of new/different things throughout the house. There are several new items, furniture changes, etc., that I haven’t blogged about yet. This is like the ultimate sneak peek of projects still to come. 🙂 

My theme this year was fresh and simple. I didn’t want to go over the top with my decorating. I find that I’m always a bit overwhelmed by actually decorating for it, but I also get tired of it quickly when it’s too over the top. This year, I gathered the majority of my inspiration from the gorgeous Russian Olive Tree. It’s not your traditional fall color, but our property is surrounded by several of them and I absolutely adore their wispy, clean look. The trees are absolutely full of lush leaves scattered with beautiful white berries. There was no way they weren’t going to make an appearance, and truth be told, they’re my favorite thing to decorating with, and have been my favorite thing to decorate with all year. Now if only they were around at Christmas… I could call it “A year of decorating with the Russian Olive Tree”. Hahaha. 🙂 

Let’s start with the kitchen, shall we?

Things actually haven’t changed much in our kitchen. I’m still without a backsplash, but I’m honestly completely fine with it. I change my mind about every other minute, so we’re not doing a single thing until I’m absolutely sure. 

I did switch up our shelving display a bit, but I honestly love the Russsian Olive so much, it’s stayed the main focus of the shelf. I did add in some wooden spoons I bought at our local craft store, and I must admit, the combination of the branches with the spoons makes me a bit swoony (is that a word? If not, it should be). 

But then, I added in the white ironstone and my mind kind of exploded. This arrangement will be staying. Forever. 🙂

I just can’t even get over it…

The other side of the kitchen leads into our breakfast nook, which has gone through a bit of a makeover lately, but more about that a bit later in the tour…

I know our cabinets look  like they’re black, but they’re actually a really dark brown. Anthony and I couldn’t’ agree on white cabinets when we were building the house, so I settled with him on the darkest I could get without them being black. I am always torn about them not being white, but honestly, they are gorgeous. I’ve grown to love them, but I do have some changes I’d like to make in the kitchen, so we’ll see how they co-exist with what we already have going on. 

I just recently added the white dishware to the glass cabinets and it’s something I should have done sooner. They pull your eye up to the top, which makes for a bigger statement.

It’s honestly been really fun to see how many changes we have made in the four years we’ve since the house was built. Every year, I feel like the house starts to feel more and more like us.

The breakfast nook is totally becoming my favorite room. Lately, I’ve been feeling a slight pull to add a hint of modern style to my mix. Don’t worry, no big style shift is going on, I just like the way things are coming together. I’m following my gut, which is the best thing to do with decorating.

I decided it was time to hang a few plates from my collection on this little wall. Every single day I smile seeing it. 

I created this little Russian Olive wreath and hung it over the largest plate. Swoon.

And the other side of the room has a matching one, just bigger…

The chalkboard is new too. I just finished making it, and we are planning on selling similar ones at the Vintage Whites Market show, and possibly online.

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And you’ve probably noticed the difference in chairs… They’re quite different from the chairs that match this set, but I’ve been thinking about switching them out for these tabouret chairs since I bought them late this Spring for our patio area. Since we’re not using the patio as much now, they’ve made their way inside. I am loving the new change.

It’s honestly made a huge difference to the house, not just this room. They are mood changers, and this room felt instantly fresh and rejuvenated. 

I did mix in some flannel pillows too. They always make me feel warm and cuddly. 

Really, this room has changed night and day. It’s so funny to see how a few new accessories can make a room feel completely different. I’m thoroughly enjoying the change, and I’m glad I listened to my gut. It kept nudging me to make the changes, but I was slow to listen. Ah, well. Everything in due time.

Next up, is a small sampling of the dining room. I’ll share more of it in Part Two, but here’s a few peeks to tide you over. 🙂

I really, really pared the shelves down. I’ll talk more about that later, but whoa. They felt naked at first, but now they’re just right. 

And if you want to see more fall home tours, this is the week for it!  

Monday
Maison de Pax | Everyday Enchanting | Just a Girl and Her Blog | The Happy House | Finding Silver Pennies

Tuesday
Blesser House | Migonis Home | Cherished Bliss | The Woodgrain Cottage | Design, Dining and Diapers

Wednesday
Rooms for Rent | Shades of Blue Interiors | House by Hoff | The Sunny Side Up Blog | The Blissful Bee

I always love looking at these home tours. It’s not only very inspirational, but I love seeing how we all celebrate the seasons differently. Enjoy touring them! 🙂

Alright, that’s all for Part One. Part Two will cover the dining room, the living room, the entry, and the whole view of the house. Stay tuned for more on Thursday!