I love Fall. I love the cooler weather, the anticipation of back-to-school (yes even at my age I still get excited about the promise and potential of fresh school supplies!), and the traditional Fall colors of deep reds, golds, and bright yellows.
But last year, I fell in love with a very different Fall palette, inspired by the silvery blue ofBlue Moon pumpkins and the soft faded green of my curb-picked dried hydrangeas.
My new Fall palette was also inspired by this photo by Courtney at French Country Cottage, which I pinned on Pinterest.
Autumn vignette by Courtney Allison of FrenchCountryCottage.net, via Pinterest.
I was able to acquire a silvery blue pumpkin of my own for a small display on my front porch, but it was late in the season by the time this happened and I didn’t event attempt something like Courtney’s sweet little centerpiece.
This year, I’m again captivated by one of Courtney’s images – this time, her beautiful wreath that features, of all things, faded peonies and artichokes.
Beautiful Fall wreath by Courtney Allison of FrenchCountryCottage.net, used with permission.
This piece offers up unexpected – but completely Autumnal – colors, and challenges me to upend my attachment to red, brown, yellow and gold, and embrace a new softer palette not of traditional Autumn but rather of Faded Summer: sage, coral, pale butter yellow, and silvery blue. Courtney’s designs and color palettes – and indeed so much of the Fall decorating inspiration I found last year on Pinterest and elsewhere… make me realize: it’s not just the muted hue of a new pumpkin variety that has me excited for Fall. It’s that all muted tones in nature can work together to create real anticipation for the drying flowers, crisp leaves, and dormant sticks and strands in the garden.
Welcome Fall! And Courtney, if you’re reading this, THANK YOU for continuing to create and showcase beauty each and every day at one of my all-time favorite blogs, French Country Cottage!
