Porches of Fall

It's easy to spice up your home with autumnal icons
Reprinted from: The Modesto Bee
By PAT RUBIN
THE SACRAMENTO BEE
Published: November 24, 2007

Sacramento Bee Staff Photo - Florence Low Sara Richardson of Lilygrass, a flower shop in Granite Bay, decorates a front porch for the fall season, November 1, 2007. Sue Ballenger's front porch.

More than any other time of year, fall begs to be celebrated on the front porch.

Leaves have turned dark crimson, flaming red, sunny yellow and deep gold. Bright-orange pumpkins with dark-green stems lie scattered across patches and vegetable gardens. The chilly weather has bleached cornstalks to a straw color, leaving the foliage dry and crackly. Add chocolate-brown coneflower seedpods, purple and red hydrangea leaves, crimson magnolia seedpods and cinnamon-colored sedum flowers to the mix, as well as late-blooming roses, sunflowers, zinnias and marigolds. Together, they loudly and gaudily proclaim: Autumn!

So why not welcome guests with a collage of turban squash, festive in shades of orange, green and white? Surround them with an assortment of shiny gourds or miniature pumpkins highlighted, of course, by a few fat orange pumpkins, clusters of dried cornstalks and Indian corn with its purple, red and yellow kernels. How about a wreath of grapevines, the still-attached tendrils curling gracefully, and a few small yellow leaves hanging bravely onto the dried stems? Add sprigs of red nandina berries for a bit of cheer.

Perhaps a pot of rusty-red mums beside a tall vase of late-blooming sunflowers is more to your fancy. Or how about ivy topiaries flanking the front door, and silver buckets of red or green apples on the landing?

"Your front porch can be a welcoming place for guests and for yourself. It's nice to bring yourself into each season, but especially fall, by decorating the front porch,' says Sara Richardson, owner of a flower and design shop.

Yvette Piaggio, interior designer on HGTV's "Curb Appeal" and owner of Piaggio's Loft, calls the front porch the appetizer of the home.

"It sets the mood and tone. Decorating the porch is like a renovation without the mess. It's a great way to increase the square-footage of your house. A basket made of grapevines loaded with pumpkins or gourds or squashes is such a small touch, but goes a long way to saying, 'Come on in, look what I'm making for dinner.'"

Piaggio and Richardson agree that the first step toward turning the front porch into a fall-themed vignette is to decide what you like.

"Find something that strikes you and try it," Piaggio says. "I do a lot of listening with clients to find out what they love, what appeals to them. What's your style? Is it more contemporary, more casual, more country?"

Look at the architecture and the color of the house, Richardson says.

"You don't want the decorations to look out of place," she says. "You want them to blend, yet be noticeable. You want them to be complementary so that they highlight and enhance the house."

For example, the cottage look might seem out of place on a sleek, modern home.

"Ivy topiaries would be out of place," she says. "Ceramic containers or glass cubes filled with miniature pumpkins or gourds would not."

Combine fashion and function

"If you have a bench that stays on the porch, use it as part of the decorations," Piaggio says. "If your porch is covered, add some spice-colored cushions for a pop of color, or an outdoor throw. Or stack some cushions for color, and you'll also have instant extra seating."

Look for unusual items, Richardson suggests. "I like to use things that are out of the ordinary, but that are fresh and seasonal," she says.

For example, she uses pumpkins as containers for potted mums and sunflowers. Richardson also is partial to fresh flowers rather than silk ones.

"A lot of people like to use the same things every year, but I think it's fun to change it around," she says.

Richardson visits antique fairs, craft shows and flea markets looking for interesting containers or decorations.

"If I'm decorating for the cottage look, I might want an assortment of watering cans or enamel buckets I can fill with mums and pumpkins or gourds."

Monotones can be effective and beautiful.

"Sometimes I'll focus on orange or yellow instead of combining the colors. It's fun finding things that fit the theme, and it has a lot of impact," Richardson says.

Look in your yard for interesting seedpods or greenery. Consider growing your own pumpkins, gourds or winter squash.

"They don't take a lot of maintenance," Richardson says, "and you'll have them for fall and be able to say you grew them yourself."

Definitely use odd numbers, Piaggio says.

"I'm a big fan of odds," she says. "Always go for odd numbers. Don't do four pumpkins, do three or five."

Make sure you don't mix too many styles together, Richardson warns.

"Look for balance. You can have several types of planters, but maybe mums in all of them; or similar containers, but different plants in them," she says.

Perhaps you only have room for a wreath on the front door.

"Who says it has to be round?" Richardson asks. Or it could be a bunch of Indian corn tied together with a beautiful bow.

When you're finished, Richardson says, take a step back.

"When you walk in the door, it should make you happy, it should make people feel warm, like apple cider. It should make you feel special."