Inspirational Fall Decor Ideas for Your Kitchen Countertops

There is a chill in the air. Leaves are turning. Inside and outside, autumn is coming. In your home, root vegetable dishes are baking in the oven, scent of pumpkin wafts from the kitchen.

It is time to start decorating for fall. Your kitchen countertops are good surfaces for seasonal decorations. Here is what we suggest.

Wooden Tools

It is a rustic time of year. Thinking of harvest, many people look back to times when families harvested their own food by hand from the fields, then used wooden tools to make their meals. Wooden cooking tools in a glass jar or ceramic pitcher serve as a reminder of our heritage. Add a tin container labeled with its ingredients, like flour, salt, or sugar. Tie a ribbon or bow around the pitcher.

Seasonal Flowers

Place a pitcher of fresh seasonal flowers on your counters. Replace water regularly to keep the flowers fresh and to prevent the water from becoming stagnant. Mix the water in the pitcher with two tablespoons apple cider vinegar and two tablespoons water to help keep the flowers fresh and kill bacteria in the water. When blossoms start to dry up, clean up the fallen petals, but consider leaving dried flowers out longer than you normally would. This is a time of year when natural things die. Drying flowers have an artful quality and symbolic meaning.

Squash, Mini Pumpkins

Nothing is more decorative and reminiscent of autumn than squash and mini pumpkins. Buy fresh, live specimens. Mini pumpkins should last two to three months without rotting, but if you’re placing them directly on your countertops, consider placing a small layer of plastic wrap beneath to protect your counters. If your counters are made of natural stone, keep them sealed to ensure they’re protected.

Mason Jars with Harvest Wheat or Acorns

Fill a mason jar with a bouquet of harvest wheat or acorns. Tie a bow around the jar and place it somewhere prominent but out of the way on your countertops. This also makes an excellent centerpiece on your dining room table. Scatter your table or counter with a few dry but attractive oak leaves for something extra special.

Candles

Candles are rustic and old fashioned, a bit like wooden tools. They remind us of a time now gone, when autumn nights were a little spooky, and a little romantic. Place slender taper candles in a holder or place a pillar candle in a mason jar or on a small wooden plate scattered with acorns. If you plan to burn the candles, protect your countertops from dripping wax. Reseal the surface if needed, and place something protective between your counters and candles. Remember that melting wax dyed a dark color can stain surfaces like natural stone, so take care to avoid drips.