Creating a Cozy Family Room for Fall

Hi Friends! I hope you are having a great week so far and getting into the spirit of fall! I simply LOVE this season. Leaves falling from the trees, hot apple cider and the cool, crisp autumn air make my heart go pitter patter. I try to soak it in for all it’s worth because before you know it, those first few snowflakes will be falling from the sky here in Wisconsin.

Anyone who visits my house this time of year knows it’s no mystery that I love fall. I really enjoy decorating for all seasons, but this is probably my favorite (sorry, Christmas!) So if you’re looking for some inspiration for your own home, then you’ve come to the right place.

My birthday was this week and one of my hubby’s presents to me was to finish up a project that we started way back in January…painting our shiplap wall in our family room. You can read all about how we DIY’d ourselves a budget-friendly shiplap wall out of flooring underlayment in a post I wrote here.

At first we weren’t really sure if we even wanted to paint it, because we really loved all that natural wood grain, but after about 6 months of contemplating, I finally decided I would like it better if it was traditional white shiplap.

We used a white wood stain and sealant product to paint the wooden shiplap. Although it needed several coats, it really gave the wood an “authentic” look, meaning I can still see some of the grain showing through. And I LOVE it! Best birthday present ever. 🙂

After finishing this wall, we decided to swap around our fireplace and TV unit to create a more cozy feel in the room. This faux fireplace is electric but everyone who visits our home is convinced it’s the real deal. We got it as a housewarming present from our parents when we bought our first home, right after we were newly married, 12 years ago. It’s one of my favorite pieces in our home and it’s really fun to decorate in a different way every season.

This fall I wanted to bring the outdoors in, so I tried to recreate that look here. This pair of vintage window shutters were a junking find, giving to me by a friend of mine who no longer wanted them.

And the faux fall foliage is just an assortment of ones I have collected from various craft stores over the years. The acorns, fake maple leaves and mini scented pumpkins are from the Dollar Store.

The framed “Hello Autumn” sign is a free printable from one of my favorite bloggers over at I Should Be Mopping the Floor.com. Kristi always comes out with these adorable free printable signs and I love popping them into different frames around my house from season to season. I have a few of them that I just love.

And of course, what family room would be cozy without a whole bunch of pillows & blankets to cuddle up on the couch with right? These white pillow covers are from H&M; the rust covered ones are from last year’s fall catalog. I think I’ve mentioned before how I like to change out my pillow covers seasonally, which is a very inexpensive way – at roughly $5 a cover – to create a new look simply by using your existing pillows as inserts.

Our DIY $10 wooden blanket ladder is still doing its job well holding lots of cozy knitted blankies for snuggling up with this fall and winter. You can read all about how we made it here. To date, it’s still my most popular post!

One of my favorite things to do while my son is napping in the afternoon is curl up with my bible, a favorite devotional and a cup of hot chai tea. This time is so important for me to reconnect with God, spend some time in quiet prayer and regroup before I go pick up my kids from school and the craziness of homework, dinner time and hustle and bustle of piano/soccer/ballet begins!

This room has lots of warm, cozy feeling fabrics all working together. I found these really unique fabric pumpkins at my local Joann Fabrics store and was able to use a 40% coupon towards their purchase. I love all the different textures they bring to our family room. Burlap, sweater and velvet all make these pumpkins soft to the touch and on the eyes.

One of my favorite pumpkins is this big cozy white sweater pumpkin that I made last year. I never got around to posting a tutorial for it on the blog last fall, so watch for it coming soon this season. These are easy peasy and there’s no sewing required!

Thanks so much for stopping by the blog today to check out these cozy family room ideas for fall. Next week I’ll be sharing how I decorated our front porch and entryway, so please come on back to visit again!