39 Outdoor Decoration Ideas to Welcome Fall

Add Pumpkin Votives

Take your carved pumpkins up a notch or two and make them into elegant patterned votives. Skip the scary face carvings, and instead go with a pattern like these polka dots added in various sizes with a cordless drill. Mix in a variety of Cinderella pumpkins for a truly charming stoop.

Design an Autumnal Entry

Create a fall scene on your front porch with an assortment of pumpkins and hay bales. Stack hay bales vertically on either side of your front door as a base for eye-catching towers of pumpkins. Then use metal baskets to display a cornucopia of gourds and squash.

Layer Greenery

Not satisfied with a pumpkin or two? Go big. Add leafy greenery like these ornamental cabbages to an assortment of pumpkins in varied hues, as well as a festive over-the-door green garland, to make a big front-door statement.

Hang a Garland

There's nothing like an autumnal garland to instantly update your entry for fall. The waxy green surface and rusty brown underside of magnolia leaves make a perfect combination for fall decor. Magnolia garlands stay fresh for about a month if kept out of direct sunlight, and can be kept dried for years if handled carefully.

Plant Fall Flowers

For no-fail outdoor fall decor, look no further than fall-blooming plants and autumnal flowers in fiery hues. The large blooms of these daisy mums add cheer to a planter. Keep them blooming by placing in a sunny spot, deadheading spent flowers, and watering when dry.

Embrace a Classic

Paper bag luminaries are a longtime favorite for the season. Line a stairway or a stone path leading to your home for a subtle, glowing effect. (And cut leaf shapes in the paper bags for an autumnal touch!) Use sand to weight the bags and LED candles for long-lasting, non-flammable light.

Create Pumpkin Candleholders

An outdoor fall decoration wouldn't be complete without pumpkins. Choose multicolored gourds and carve spaces in the top. Fit in a glass candleholder and a pillar candle for a glimmering pathway border.

Arrange an Eclectic Collection

We all have tabletops outdoors that are just calling out for an autumnal arrangement. Use what you have. Collect art, potted plants, and assorted pumpkins to create an organic and eclectic autumnal tabletop decoration.

Hang a Leafy Wreath

Everyone loves lush green wreaths, but this is the season for red, gold, and orange hues. Create a fiery wreath with the autumn leaves that have fallen in your yard. (Or pick up preserved leaves at a crafts store—they'll last longer.)

How To Make It: Colorful Foliage Fall Wreath

Create a "Mumkin"

What is a mumkin, you ask? Add a blooming mum to a pumpkin, and you have a mumkin. A carved pumpkin is the perfect vessel for mums in autumnal hues.

Assemble a Personal Pumpkin Patch

Pumpkins are everywhere at this time of year. Take advantage of the bounty and create a simple display with major impact. By keeping your decoration to one concept—the pumpkin—and creating scale by stacking and clustering them, it makes for stunning (and fun!) outdoor decor.

Plant Gourds in the Garden

Who needs orange pumpkins? They're a classic, sure, but this tabletop display uses mahogany-colored gourds to add autumnal whimsy to a miniature succulent garden. Try the same approach in a planter or garden bed, contrasting a green and purple palette for personality.

Celebrate Harvest with a Window Box

Fill a rustic window box with a bounty of pumpkins, ivy, artichokes, and ornamental cabbage for an infusion of eye-catching outdoor decor. It's beautiful and seasonal, but utterly unexpected. Choose plants that will withstand the autumn temps in your area.

Incorporate Scarlet Hues

Orange is a go-to in autumn, but don't forget about scarlet. Deep red mums and other scarlet-toned blooms in planters add warmth to an entry. They also complement the orangey palette of a pumpkin display.

Put Together Easy Party Decor

For an effortless outdoor party, add fun and restive decor, like this floating candle display. Carve the tops of mini pumpkins, add tea lights, and float the votives alongside a scattering of autumn leaves in a dish filled with water. Repeat the theme with more pumpkins and leaves on the table.

Display a White Pumpkin Wreath

Add white pumpkins to your deep green seasonal wreath for a striking display that can't be missed. Orange and red berries and flowers provide further contrast. In the evenings, white adds an eery, moonlike glow.

Design a Pumpkin Planter

Much like the mumkin, this pumpkin serves as the vessel, or base, of a blooming autumnal display. Add fall-blooming flowers and assorted greenery (bonus points for incorporating lettuce and herbs!) into a pot, then "plant" it inside for a pretty floral pumpkin display.

Stack a Pumpkin Topiary

Pumpkins look great in clusters, but have you ever thought of going vertical? If you're looking to make a statement, use height for a dramatic effect. Stack pumpkins from largest to smallest, sandwiching greenery between each layer. Pumpkin topiaries atop a stone vessel make for eye-catching outdoor fall decor.

Craft a Wreath of Dried Flowers

The sweetly fading flowers in your garden are a true harbinger of fall. Make use of blooms and herbs from the garden in a dried flower wreath. Or, purchase dried flowers from a craft store, along with a straw wreath form, florist pins, and ribbon to create this autumn wreate.

How to Make It: Fall Wreath With Dried Flowers and Herbs

Fashion Tiny Candleholders

For an outdoor party, no table would be complete without a cluster of these mini pumpkin candleholders. It's a simple way to add instant ambience. Cut a hole in each pumpkin to hold the candle, light, and glow your way through the evening.

String Glowing Lights

If you have an outdoor space that could use some ambience, string a strand of flickering lights overhead. Use warm-hued bulbs to complement the golden light of fall and, in this case, the roaring fire you'll gather around on autumn evenings.

Add an Autumnal Accent

No time for extensive outdoor decor? Try adding a seasonal touch to your doorknocker. A small spray of leaves, greenery, and gourds tied with ribon will embellish your entry for the season.

Arrange White Pumpkins

Add a scattering of white pumpkins to your stairs. They'll glow slightly in the dusk, assisting guests as they find their way to an evening meal under this charming pergola. Or, use white pumpkins to guide your guests down pathways and to entries.

Plant an Autumnal Container

Choose your favorite fall planter and create a container garden. Plant your favorite fall-blooming plants, such as these grasses and lantana, for an instant refresh and a dash of seasonal greenery. The rust-colored planter adds autumnal flair.

Build an Easy Centerpiece

This centerpiece couldn't be easier to put together, has major visual impact, and only takes a few minutes to create. Use your favorite glass vessel and fill it with branches from trees in your yard that are changing colors. Pick long branches filled with red, yellow, and gold leaves, and arrange them naturally. Simple, sweet, and seasonal.

Create a DIY Gourd Wreath

Pumpkins and gourds take center stage in this front door wreath, celebrating the abundance of fall. You'll need a wreath form, sheet moss, florist picks and your pumpkins and gourds to put this design together.

Throw Together a Tabletop Display

Having an outdoor party, but there's no time to craft a centerpiece? Never fear. Just cluster an assortment of orange pumpkins and multi-colored gourds in the middle of each table for a no-fail design that is so seasonally appropriate. Then offer them as party favors to your guests when they leave.

Incorporate Acorns

Everyone loves pumpkins in autumn decor, but nothing says fall like squirelling away some acorns. They're too cute in this wreath design, tucked away with pumpkin-on-a-stick eggplant (aka scarlet Chinese eggplant). They're a perfect pair and an ideal alternative to classic pumpkins.

Carve Fall-Foliage-Inspired Pumpkins

These pumpkins carved with foliage designs instead of jack-o-lantern faces are appropriate for the entire season. Use a variety of leaf types and shapes to add interest. An arrangement of candles set on the steps adds to the glow.

Stack a Pumpkin Trio Centerpiece

If you have a vessel that is just crying out for a fall accent, stack pumpkins of descending circumferences, largest on the bottom, smallest on the top. Add moss or greenery in between each pumpkin to give the layers a cohesive look. This small urn is the perfect size for a centerpiece.

Go All Out

Not sure where to begin? Go for it and add assorted pumpkins, pumpkin topiaries, potted fall-blooming flowers or foliage, and a cascading autumnal garland (this one is made of bittersweet). The rusty red wreath puts a bow on this arrangement.

Create a Lighted Topiary

Add more pizzazz to your pumpkin topiary with twinkling lights. Carve shapes or geometric designs in each pumpkin and string lights through the stack, winding any excess around the base for a radiant display. Then nestle your topiary on top of fall foliage and berries.

How to Make It: Pumpkins With Pizazz

Dress Up an Outdoor Mantel

After all, you're likely to spend more time around the fire once the weather turns crisp. Make your outdoor room festive by dressing it with fall leaves, foliage, and pumpkins. A fall garland spills over one side of this fireplace, while an arrangment of assorted cabbages and pumpkins adds charm to the other.

Carve Long-Lasting Gourds

Pumpkins may be traditional for jack-o-lanterns, but dried gourds are much longer-lasting whether displayed indoors or out. Choose a selection of different sizes and shapes, drill through the bottom of each gourd, carve your design, and insert lights. This project requires tools and special care, but you'll enjoy these funny faces for years to come.

Add Fall Flavor With Corn

Bundle dried corn with fall flowers and tie with burlap for a rustic-feeling fall arrangement. The dark, speckled colors of calico corn are brightened with yellow sprays of flowers that can be displayed until Thanksgiving. Use a long strip of burlap to hang multiple bouquets.

Make a Minimalist Wreath

Use corn husks arranged in a starburst pattern to create a wreath reminiscent of a fading sunflower. This minimalist approach uses one simple material for maximal effect. A neutral wreath like this looks striking on a brightly painted door.

Get Crafty With Candle Holders

Mod Podge colorful maple leaves (or others of your choosing) inside a set of mason jars to add lustre and preserve their fall color. LED candles will make the leaves translucent and look like they are glowing from within. Raffia, burlap, or twine ribbons can add a decorative but rustic touch.

Make it Modern With Metallics

Nature can be made even more glorious with metallic paint. Use assorted colors of spray paint, allowing one side to dry before painting the next. Then scatter the leaves over your tabletop for an al fresco dinner. Candlelight will help them gleam even more.

Forage For Foliage

"Use natural materials to beautify your table by gathering leaves, berries, hydrangeas, and more from your backyard," Mary Hollis Huddleston of Mrs. Southern Social and Please Be Seated, the elevated event-rental company, said. "In the South, we're lucky that we still have plants blooming in the fall. I love combining these things with more seasonal items, like colorful autumn leaves."