Moroccan Rugs: How To Basically Decorate ONCE For Fall, Halloween, And Thanksgiving

My name is Royale Ziegler and I am a stylist, entertaining expert, and the Chief Marketing Officer for Party Supply and Home Decor business, Bonjour Fête. Last year I moved from Silver Lake, Los Angeles to Park City, Utah where I recently remodeled my home and am in the process of building out a Salt Lake City warehouse/creative studio for our company. One of my favorite things outside of decorating for parties and holiday parties, is to decorate my living space in accordance with the seasons. After making the move last year, and several storage units later, I truly realized how important/practical it is to purchase holiday decor items that are less single-use and more versatile and reusable.

Another lesson born from the move has been to find inspiration in my surroundings. Okay, so that wasn’t as simple in LA, but in Utah, I wanted to make sure the space felt light and airy like our California-cool home was, but that it also felt organic and woodsy without going full-on log cabin. The four-year-old home we purchased had great bones, lots of light, and a single-story floor plan which I have been dying for now that my son is older and takes a lot of verbal coercion to get ready for school. So much easier to yell in a single story! Unfortunately, a lot of the homes in Park City are all about dark and/or filled with orange wood on wood, wall-to-wall carpet, and multiple shades of beige on the walls, base and case, doors, etc. So, I had to wave my magical neutral wand and introduce some white and light colors to the space.

Wall Paint | Mantel Stone

Now that we are living in our mountain chic dream home, I was more excited than ever to dress it up for the holidays. I wanted to respect the grown-upness of the space and keep the decor more elevated and focused than what I have done in the past. While there is still a lot of fun to be had with rainbow or pink Halloween decorations (I am saving these colorways for Halloween parties) I myself am feeling the need to move in a different direction, one that feels more aligned with the home and skin I live in. I want to be able to hold on to a lot of the seasonal purchases I make and so, that means buying items that are timeless and less trendy, you can pretty much guarantee that black and white will always work for Halloween and that orange can work for both Halloween and Thanksgiving. (It’s all about picking the right orange.) With all of this in mind, I hope to offer you some tips on how to style your space in a meaningful and lasting way for fall, Halloween, and Thanksgiving without spending all your dough.

Tips On Transitioning Your Holiday Decor From Halloween To Thanksgiving:

Stick With A Neutral Color-Story

Incorporate creams, blushes, browns, and blacks with pops of autumnal colors like orange and mustard. This way your seasonal decor feels more evergreen, while still fall-forward, and without catering to a particular holiday. (Clearly, this design aesthetic is applied throughout my home, we’re big fans of neutrals!) If you’re not into neutral, there are a ton of fun black and white and colorful fall items to pick from.

Use Organic Materials Like Dried Florals And Real Pumpkins

Dried florals in vases (which you can switch out to feel more Halloween or Thanksgiving) and in wreaths will last well beyond one holiday. Switch out the ribbon and accent decor on a dried wreath to make it more holiday-specific. We used bats and black ribbon for Halloween and faux leather pumpkins and a gingham fabric ribbon for Thanksgiving. There are also a lot of great faux options out there, we used branches featuring acorns and maple leaves in the kitchen! When you are done with your pumpkins, make toasted pumpkin seeds!

Branches

Mix High And Low Tabletop

Pumpkin Paper Plates

Le Gobble Turkey Melamine Plates

Spend more on permanent, reusable items like table linens and dinner plates, then mix in fun, holiday-specific paper (the ones I used are made from eco-friendly paper) or melamine plates and napkins for a touch of whimsy. Plus, you won’t have to do as many dishes!

Go Heavy On Pumpkin Decorations

They work for both of the fall holidays and come in many different sizes and textures—linen, paper, faux leather, flocked, etc.

Change Up Your Artwork!

White Tassel Garland | Paper Mache Ghosts

Pumpkin Garland | White Tassel Garland

I switched out the screensaver on my Samsung Frame TV to mix up the mantle moments! (Note, these were two photos I took on my iPhone, free to me!) Don’t have a Frame TV? Pop a cute print-it-yourself print on your mantle or shelves from shops like my friend Stacey’s at Threadmama or Etsy.

Shop Small, Local, And Women-Owned When You Can

We shopped primarily with Foundation Goods, Flower Bar Co., and of course, Bonjour Fête. While this may not necessarily be a tip on how to decorate for less, it is still worth mentioning. If you’re intentional about your spending on goods that can be used for both holidays and beyond, paying a bit more to support a small business can go a long way as successful local establishments often help communities thrive. And when a community thrives, home values rise and boom—you stand to actually make some money! Plus, a lot of holiday decor out there is made from plastic, ew, so shopping small and utilizing organic and/or recycled materials means less waste! Lastly, it is all about quality over quantity especially if you’re hoping to use your decor items for more than one season, and small businesses certainly have the edge over big box stores here! (And, if you do go big box for some items, try and shop designer collaborations like Justina Blankely’s Jungalow line for Target, from which I scored the cute tassel garland that was giving me ghost vibes.)

Let’s Get Into These Floral Varieties From Shawn Chamberlain

Another incredible upside from the move has been connecting with an inspiring group of women! The Utah creative/maker scene is ripe with female talent and everyone is so kind and genuine. One of my favorite people is Shawn Chamberlain owner of Flower Bar Co. in Midway (the world’s sweetest town). Shawn joined me for a day of arranging and decorating and has shared some tips for you in case you don’t have a Shawn to call on!

Ghost Arrangements: Curly willow branches, celosia, bittersweet, bleached oak leaf, bleached fern, explosion grass, bunny tail, dried gypsophila, eucalyptus seed.

Thanksgiving Centerpiece: Dahlia, butterfly ranunculus, hydrangea, garden rose, strawflower, spirea, amaranthus, explosion grass, bittersweet

Wreaths: Bittersweet, painted fern, dried broom corn, scabiosa pods, eucalyptus seed, copper beech, curly willow branches

If you want to DIY your florals, here are some helpful tips for arranging on your own:

1. Start with a clean vase and add clean water. Switch up your vases seasonally and obviously we cannot get enough of this paper mache ghost bucket for Halloween! If you do choose a vessel that is not fit to hold water, use a smaller vase inside—here we propped a small vase up inside of a small hatbox!

2. If you are bringing a bouquet home from the grocery store, consider adding fresh foliage and grasses cut from your own yard. Shawn loves to cut and mix in herbs, ferns, small branches (especially fall-colored branches), and even some weeds—yes weeds!—like thistle, grasses, berries, and tumbleweed stems to her arrangements. Bringing in dried elements like yarrow or faux floral spray is a fun touch too! Afloral has a great selection.

3. Cut your stems on a 45 degree angle and then add them to your vase one at a time. Let the stems place themselves, droop, twist or curl the way they want to in order to achieve that effortless, gathered look.

4. Be sure to refresh your water every few days and pull out any stems that are spent.

5. Take lots of photos of your creation and give yourself a high five for creating something beautiful to enhance your space!

There you have it! I hope that this was helpful and that you are excited (like me:)) to decorate, not in any way overwhelmed. The holidays are about joy so however you choose to decorate, may it bring just that. For tons of party decor ideas be sure to follow me on Instagram and for some pretty cute and special supplies stop on by Bonjour Fête. Talk soon!

*Design by Royale Ziegler
** Florals by Shawn Chamberlain
*** After Photos by Lindsey Stewart Photography

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