7 DIY FALL DECOR IDEAS WITHOUT SPENDING ANY MONEY
I’ve collected these DIY fall decor ideas on how to beautify your home without spending any money. So, if you want to decorate for fall for cheap or even for free, keep reading!
Decorating your home may become expensive, especially with the changing seasons’ decoration. My motto is: Everyone deserves a beautiful and cozy home.
When my brother and I were children, my family couldn’t afford a lot of things. But I remember, when we finally could make a smaller house make-over, we were so thrilled and happy. Even a small change, an art piece, a table centerpiece, or a new coat of paint on the walls can change the whole look of the house and improve your mood with it.
Nobody likes to come home after a long and exhausting day to a cold, ugly house. So, I’ve decided to collect the best tips and hacks to decorate for fall on a budget.
How can you decorate your house for fall cheap?
#1. Collect from nature
Nature is the best place ever! I love walking in nature to relax and unwind after a noisy and busy week. I’m fortunate that the woods and large fields are close to my town, so after a short walk or car ride, you can stroll in nature.
Nature is so rich and full of small treasure you can collect and add to your home decor. Let,s see what can you collect for your DIY fall decor:
– BRANCHES: collect all shapes and sizes.
Display the thinner branches in vases – add other colorful decorations, plants, or flowers, you can also glue on the branches fun stuff like pom-poms in fall color shades to create a stunning table centerpiece.
The thicker ones are perfect candleholders – cut them horizontally and add multiple holes for tealight candles or chop them into small logs for several one-piece pillar candle holders.
– FLOWERS: you can collect wildflowers from the fields and woods, buy orange, red, pink, yellow flowers from stores (roses, lilies, dahlias, gerberas, etc.) or plant some beautiful flowers in your garden. Planting flowers will beautify your yard and dress it up in fall colors, and you can also bring them indoors to add a touch of autumn.
Best flowers to plant for fall:
- Helenium (they have a beautiful deep orange color and attract butterflies to your garden),
- Sumac (this shrub produces stunning red flowers, and the leaves turn bright red and orange in the fall – like it is on fire),
- Zinnia (they come in multiple stunning bright colors),
- Celosia (they have an exotic look in stunning fall colors, perfect for beginner gardeners).
For more fall flower ideas, check this post by Gilmour.
– LEAVES: Look out for colorful leaves in all shapes and sizes. You can use them in your fall decoration in multiple ways. Displaying them in vases, bowls, or making fun crafts with them like fall wreaths, votives, etc. Learn how to preserve leaves in this post by Red Ted Art.
– FRUITS AND VEGGIES: Yes, I am talking about real fruits and vegetables. Red apples or small squashes, pumpkins in baskets, would look stunning on your dining table.
– SEEDS AND BERRIES: the best and my favorite supplies for fall decoration are seeds and berries. Display them in your fall arrangement or create fall crafts with them. But let’s see what to collect:
Seeds, crops, and nuts: acorns, wheat, pine cones, chestnuts, walnuts, corn, dried velvetleafs, bottle tree seeds, maple seeds, pumpkin seeds, etc.
Berries: hip, winterberry, sea buckthorn (they are also very healthy), physalis, crabapples, viburnum species.
– INDOOR PLANTS: Choose indoor plants that bloom in the fall. The best plants that will brighten up your home for fall are Crotons, Christmas Cactus, Amaryllis, Goldfish Plant, Oxalis Triangularis.
NOTE! Do not collect anything from nature that has bugs on them. Clean and sanitize what you can (for example, small bugs may hide in pine cones that you don’t want to bring into your home. Learn how to clean pine cones by Sustain My Craft Habit).
How to use these gems in home decor?
The decorating possibilities are endless! For inspiration, you can also search on the internet, look up the fall decor trends in home magazines and websites, browse in actual stores how they decorate for fall, or use plastic leaves and other nature-inspired decorations.
But, here are my favorite fall decorating ideas with natural elements:
- Add seeds, berries, fall leaves to baskets, or glass jars. You can also add a few drops of essential oils to the mix to make your home smell even better.
- Create a gorgeous fall centerpiece by adding flowers, leaves, branches to vases, mason jars, or even to a carved out pumpkin.
- Decorate your door with a DIY fall wreath. For inspiration, check out this list of 50+ DIY wreaths for fall by The Prudent Penny Pincher.
- Fill a glass candleholder with your colorful findings and add a white pillar candle for instant fall vibes.
- Tie leaves on pillar candles with a thin jute rope. You can also decorate them with berries and seeds. Display them in your favorite tray or candle holder.
NOTE! Be extra careful what you add and how you decorate your home for fall if you have small children or pets around your house. Some seeds, plants, and berries can be toxic.
#2. Re-purpose and recycle
For an inexpensive DIY fall decor, look around your home and wardrobe. What can you re-purpose or recycle? This way, you can create home decoration without spending money and also get rid of the clutter and get your home more organized.
What to look for and how to use them?
- Worn-out sweaters, T-shirts, or flannel shirts – turn them into fluffy pumpkins (tutorial by Jennifer Maker). You can also make beautiful fabric wreaths or pillow covers.
- Mason jar lids – paint them and thread them up to create DIY pumpkins.
- Mason jars or bottles – they are very versatile, paint them or leave them like it and use it as vases, votives, candle holder,
- Cutting boards or wooden trays – turn them into wood sings by painting them like pumpkins and apples (inspiration from Sadie Seasongoods).
- Tin cans – they can easily be turned into lanterns, vases, and pots. Decorate them with paint, fabric, leaves, seeds, branches, etc.
- Kitchen linens or burlap sacks – you can create pumpkins, banners, bottle or vase covers.
If you have a garden, you can also use larger objects for recycling purposes (wood, bicycle, wheelbarrow, watering can, barrel, rake, etc.) and add them as fall decorations for outdoors or to your porch.
#3. Get creative with the stuff you already have
Take out your throw blankets! They add coziness to any home.
Dress up your tiered tray with fall decoration, pumpkins, acorns, pumpkins and a touch of greenery.
Baskets, pitchers, wooden boxes and buckets can be easily customized with fall accents.
#4. Spend wisely
When you have a small budget for fall decoration, head over to thrift stores, flea markets, dollar tree, or garage sales, if you have the patience, you can find treasures for a couple of cents or dollars.
Don’t forget to have an open mind and creativity, look for potential and not just stuff that you can add to your home decor right away (after cleaning and sanitizing of course, but you get what I mean). A new coat of paint, glue, fabric, or other embellishments can turn trash to treasure.
You should also look out for items on sale in home decor stores, Target, Walmart, Amazon, or other online shops (websites with cheap home decor by House Beautiful). If you’re looking for something handmade or unique, definitely check out Etsy. A lot of sellers offer stunning crafts (often underpriced).
#5. Look out for free stuff
Who doesn’t love free stuff? Especially if you are on a strict budget, or don’t want to spend money on new home decor. So let’s see a couple of tips on how to get free fall decorations:
- Borrow or exchange stuff from friends and family,
- Printable art – you can find tons of free fall printables online. You just need a printer, take the files to your local print shop, or ask someone to print them out for you. Put them in a frame and voila instant fall decor! Check out my favorite free printables for fall:
- Fall printable wall art made by us,
- Watercolor fall printables by The Organized Dreams,
- Fall art prints by Chicfetti,
- Farmhouse fall printables by On Sutton Place,
- Another watercolor fall printable wall art by Decor Hint.
#6. Think out of the box
When we were broke as a child, we had to be creative and ‘think out of the box’ to get by and achieve what we want. With some creativity, you can transform, reuse, add a twist to stuff that others wouldn’t think.
Here are a couple of tips or examples:
- Use one of your cozy fall scarves as a table runner. Add a fall centerpiece or pumpkins.
- Create fall signs by transferring printables or other images to wood slices, trays, cutting boards, crates.
- Use a wood frame as a wreath base and decorate it with leaves, seeds, berries, burlap, or other fabric pieces.
- If you have concrete at home, use it! Create small concrete leaves, a letter, or other fall-themed silicone molds to create little embellishments for your table, wreath, etc.
- Pour melted crayons in silicone molds for colorful leaves, pumpkins, or acorns.
- Use a colorful rainboot as a vase for your fall flowers, leaves, and branches. You can use them both indoors and outdoors.
#7. Plan ahead (plant pumpkins and other fall flowers, collect “trash” craft supplies)
It is the best and most cost-effective is to plan on time. You can prepare for fall by planting pumpkin and other flower or plant seeds that you can use in your DIY fall decoration.
Another easy way to spare money on seasonal home decor is by collecting stuff that you can turn into art or DIY fall crafts. You should never throw out: tin cans, mason jars, wine corks, flannel shirts, wood cutting boards, old books, crates, baskets, etc. All of these objects are very versatile, you can turn them into tons of cheap, fun, and easy DIY home decor.
BONUS: How do you make a cheap pumpkin?
One of the central elements in DIY fall home decor ideas is pumpkins. So, I’ve wanted to include a list of cheap pumpkin crafts. The best thing about these fall crafts is that you can put them away in a box and use them year after year in your autumn decoration.
Check out these awesome DIY pumpkin ideas:
- Make stunning concrete pumpkins with stockings by Lily Ardor,
- Easy fabric pumpkins by Made to Sew,
- Simple book pumpkin by H2O Bungalow,
- Dryer vent pumpkins by A Diamond in the Stuff,
- Mason jar pumpkins by The 36th Avenue,
- Canning jar lids pumpkin by Yellow Bliss Road,
- Rustic wood slice pumpkins and stand by Thistlewood Farms,
- Easy wine cork pumpkin by My Gourmet Connection,
- Cheap felt pumpkins by My Husband Has Too Many Hobbies,
- Simple yarn pumpkins by One Little Project.
These are just a few ideas, you can also make pumpkins with old sweaters, woodblocks, paper lanterns, pom-poms, string art, or even out of trash. Check out this video.
Conclusion on DIY Fall Decor Ideas
As you could see, adding decoration to your home doesn’t have to be expensive. You can do it without spending any money or if you want to, only a couple of dollars. You also don’t have to be skillful or crafty, and most of these ideas don’t require a lot of your time.
Although, it is best to plan ahead and maybe a little mindset shift (don’t throw out objects that can be recycled, repurposed, or transformed into fabulous home decor).
Don’t get discouraged if your fall crafts don’t turn out perfect with the first try. Practice makes perfect!
I hope you could find useful tips and hacks for your DIY fall decor. How do you decorate for fall this year? Leave a comment!
