3 Easy Weekend Projects To Refresh Your Home For Fall

Hi, I’m Chenoa Osweiler, an interior designer and founder of White Dove Design Studio.

I believe your home should reflect who you are, support how you live, and evolve with you. Here, you’ll find thoughtful design guidance and inspiration to create a home that feels uniquely yours.

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This post is all about weekend projects to refresh your home for fall.

refresh your home for fall

Fall brings change, and with it many of us feel the urge to reset. Whether that’s getting back into routines, decluttering our spaces, or finding simple ways to refresh our homes.

Once we start to spiral into these thoughts, it is easy to get overwhelmed because you want to do it all. But realistically, you can’t, and you shouldn’t.

Doing everything all at once is likely to cause you to become burned out and lose motivation to finish what you started. Taking a weekend to work on some projects around your house to feel ready for fall is the best way to approach this.

Our weekends can be incredibly busy, so choosing things that are manageable is the way to go. Often, it makes you feel motivated to continue moving forward once you complete a simple task because it gives you a sense of accomplishment.

Choosing 3 manageable tasks to accomplish over the weekend is a great start to begin refreshing your home for the fall season. In this post, you are going to learn 3 easy weekend projects to refresh your home for fall.

Let’s get started!

Refresh your Home For Fall with these 3 easy weekend projects

Project #1: Deep clean, declutter, and organize your home

Starting with a fresh, clean slate is always the best way to start any home refresh, no matter the season. When your house is a mess, it is hard to keep focused. And when your home is clean and tidy, it makes fall decorating even more fun because you don’t have to worry about putting things away or wiping down counters as you go. This part is already done, so when it comes time to decorating, you can have fun with it and enjoy the process.

I recommend starting with one space at a time. Consider what areas of your home you will be decorating for fall. Is it your entryway, living room, bathroom, or kitchen? Start with the room that is of the highest priority to you and work your way down.

1. Remove what doesn’t belong:

Remember, out with the old, which is summer, and in with the new, which is fall. Some of these items you could remove could be things like area rugs, decorative objects that resemble summertime bliss, greenery or floral arrangements, and throw pillow covers. Remove anything that doesn’t align with your fall aesthetic and put it away in a tote or designated area for now.

2. Clean Your Floors:

Next, vacuum, sweep, and mop the floors in that area. Starting from the ground up when it comes to cleaning is always helpful. Get your floor surface cleaned so you can lay any new rugs down and have a clean surface to walk on. Cleaning your floors, especially in high-traffic areas, gives you that instant fresh and clean feel.

3. Dust And Wipe Down Everything:

Then, if you have any flat surfaces on furniture pieces like entry tables, coffee tables, countertops, etc. Wipe those down so you have a clean surface to place your decorative objects.

I also recommend dusting all of your decorative objects, greenery, and florals, and giving them a good wipe down. Whether you are keeping them or storing them away, getting everything nice and dusted sets you up for success when it comes time to pull them out for the next season.

Wipe down and dust walls, trim, baseboards, and doors. You will be surprised by how dirty these surfaces can be.

Here are some of my favorite cleaning supplies for this:

4. Give your textiles a good wash:

Wash throw blankets, bedding, throw pillow covers, and curtains. All of those things can be items we neglect or don’t think about needing a good cleaning. When you wash these items, they will have that nice, fresh, clean laundry scent that will fill your home with a beautiful smell. If you want these items to have a bit of an extra smell-good scent, use scent beads in your washing machine. Also, consider spraying Fabric Febreze to maintain that fresh smell after washing these items.

Here are some of my favorite smell-good, laundry go-tos:

Project #2: Decorating for Fall

Once your areas are nice and clean, it’s time for the fun part…fall decorating!

1. Take your decor out of storage and lay it out:

I recommend starting by laying out all of your fall decor that you currently have. Check it over and see what you want to use, want to keep but store away, or get rid of. Doing this step gives you more of a curated look and feel when you are decorating. It is also helpful to visually see what you have or might like to add to your current collection. It is like having your own personal store!

2. categorize your decor by space:

You want to make sure you have a place for each item. So, once you have everything laid out, I recommend categorizing it by each space. Remember, you don’t have to decorate each space in one weekend. It is fun to do this throughout the next few days or even weeks, depending on when and how you like to decorate for the fall season. Some people wait last minute, while others like to get it done right away. To each their own!

3. choose one space at a time to style:

Depending on your time, energy, and decorating style, choose one space and start your decorating process. Take items from the pile you formed and work your way through the process.

Remember, take your time with this and have fun! As you decorate, don’t be afraid to switch things around or pull items you might have had for a different area in your home. A lot of times, as you style, it all ends up playing out in ways you might not have imagined, which is the beauty of styling.

Even if you have had the same decorations for many years, it can feel brand new if you switch up the locations of the decorative objects or pair them with other objects that you have never paired them with before. Get creative! There are no rules when it comes to styling, only suggestions for starting points 😉

3. add to your collection if you’d like:

If you find that there are some missing touches, go out and shop for them. Buy new or go thrifting for items at your local consignment stores. Thrifting finds are so much fun because it feels like you are mining for gold, and you get to curate very unique one of a kind pieces. I love incorporating vintage finds into my fall decor.

For affordable decor, if you want to purchase new, I recommend places to shop like Target, HomeGoods, Amazon, CB2, Pottery Barn, and Crate and Barrel. All of these places offer affordable and beautiful fall decor pieces.

Some great fall pieces to incorporate into your home are fall scented candles, fall foliage, pumpkins, gourds, brass or copper metal finishes, stone trays and taper candle holders, dark wood bowls and trays, garland, and warm task lighting such as table lamps.

Remember to also swap out your throw pillow covers, bedding, throw blankets, and other textiles.

To get inspired for fall decor to incorporate into your home this season, read this blog post: 7 Tips To Effortlessly Transition From Summer To Fall Decor to see what kinds of fall decor and color palettes you can use in your home.

Project #3: Prepping Your Exterior

Now that we have the interior of the house cleaned, refreshed, and decorated for the fall season, it’s time to focus on the exterior. The exterior of your home needs a little love, too, and having that beautiful curb appeal makes your home feel welcoming from not only the inside, but out.

1. Sweep And power wash:

Just like we cleaned the interior of our home, we need to give our exterior a fresh, clean upgrade as well. Sweep areas like your front porch, deck, or patio, and use a power washer if you have one to spray down the siding, front steps, and any other areas that need a good cleaning.

2. Clean Windows:

It is also a great idea to clean your windows, inside and out, especially when the weather is nice. Having clean and clear windows is going to let so much beautiful natural light in, and with the cooler temps, you will want to open those windows to let the fresh air inside.

3. Wipe Down Outdoor Furniture:

Also, wiping down any outdoor furniture is a great refresh. With these beautiful fall temps, you will most likely be spending even more time outside until those winter months come along. Get your porch, patio, or deck fall-ready, so you can enjoy your time surrounded by a warm, crackling fire, wrapped in a cozy blanket, sipping on something warm like a hot apple cider.

4. Update Floral arrangements:

Some very simple and easy ways to freshen up your outdoor spaces without going overboard are swapping out any floral arrangements. I love decorating my front porch with mums. Their fall colors are so beautiful, especially paired with pumpkins. You can also swap out your summer annuals and prep garden beds with mulch.

Here are some of my favorite outdoor planters. I have these planters from Walmart and love them:

5. decorate your front porch, patio, or deck:

One of my favorite activities to do is going to a local pumpkin patch and collecting an assortment of pumpkins of all shapes, sizes, textures, and colors, depending on the fall vibes you are going for. This is a fun family activity that gets you outdoors and spending some quality time with your loved ones while making many memories that will last for years to come. Pairing the pumpkins and layering them with your fall foliage is a beautiful and easy way to decorate.

Swap out your summer wreath for a fall-inspired one. Wreaths are a simple and pretty way to enhance your front door.

You can also swap out your doormat and choose something fall-related. Layering a striped or plaid porch rug that is slightly larger than the top door mat, underneath the actual door mat, adds a bit more depth and texture.

There are so many cute fall-inspired door mats and wreaths. Here are some of my favorites:

I hope these easy weekend projects to refresh your home for fall gave you some motivation to get started! Remember, Rome wasn’t built in a day, so don’t feel like you have to accomplish all 3 tasks in one weekend. We all know how busy our lives are. These tips were meant to be broken up and completed as the fall season approaches, so you can be prepared and fully enjoy the fall season without scrambling at the last minute to get everything done and stressing about it.

This post was all about easy weekend projects to refresh your home for fall.

Hi, I'm Sofia Bianco, a photographer and brand content creator based on the Amalfi Coast. So glad you're here.

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