A Rich Inviting Fall Fireplace Mantel with Colorful Velvet Pumpkins

My OBSESSION with Velvet Pumpkins

Happy October! There’s just a few weeks until Halloween and if you’re coming over to get spooked by ghosts, skeletons and cobwebs, so sorry, you won’t find any here.  BUT, what you will find is my ever growing colorful collection of velvet pumpkins.

Before I get started, I want to welcome to the readers over from Inspired By Charm! I am so happy to be participating in this mini October blog tour with Michael and our blogger friends. Michael is the King of all things decor, design, DIY, drinks, and more.  Don’t you love his new Pittsburg loft apartment? I’m in love.

Now let’s get some color in for Fall…..

Decorating for Fall with velvet Pumpkins

When I was a kid my parents always threw elaborate Halloween parties that took us weeks to prepare for. My sister and I would be digging up the front yard, creating catchy tombstones and hanging bats, ghosts and headless mummies for days. I guess you can say that I’ve officially had my fill of spooky decor. I now decorate for Fall into November with anything pumpkin.  A few years ago while attending the Country Living Fair in Rhinebeck, New York I purchased one-of-a-kind handmade pumpkins made from vintage fabrics. It was LOVE at first sight! Since then pumpkins have become my favorite Fall accessory and I’ve never looked back.

Last month when all the harvest decor filled the store shelves I began adding to my collection. There were the usual green and orange ones and a few pinks/mauves but it wasn’t until it visited Etsy that the obsession escalated. The colors were endless.

I skipped over the pastels and went right for the jewel tones. Taking center stage on the coffee table is a deep orange pumpkin from HomeGoods. It sits on top moss and organic natural floral filler in a large glass and Carrera marble candle votive. Nothing fancy just a pop of orange paying homage to one of Halloween’s favorite colors.

Look Into My Crystal Ball

Maybe I really never got rid of the skeletons in my closet. I found four amazing down filled white and black velvet graphic trellis accent pillows at HomeGoods. They add just the right amount of subliminal skeletal decor. Cozy fringed wool blankets and a crystal ball made their way into the cart too.

Light My Fire

I often get asked about our fireplace and why don’t we use it? We actually have three in our home. The second fireplace is just on the other side in our gathering room and the third in our bedroom.  So when I purchased this marquee light up initial B it fit perfectly inside i gladly gave this one up. I turn it on at night and it serves as the coolest night light ever! I stacked birch logs in various sizes filling up the negative space like a puzzle.

Mantel Mayhem

There really wasn’t an elaborate method to the mantelscape. As the pumpkins came rolling in I would stack each one on the mantle. I brought out my collection of white ceramic owls and began to group them and balancing out the colors.

A Rainbow of Colors

As I mentioned earlier I stayed away from the pastels and went with the rich jewel tones so that they would pop agains the white pottery and mantel. Mixed in with my store bought pumpkins I found hand made one-of-a-kind velvet pumpkins in all sizes for Lizz and Pipp. Lizz assembles each one of these by hand and uses REAL pumpkin and gourd stems, luxurious quality velvets and even adorns some with real feathers.

Velvet is all sizes 

I ordered a variety of colors and sizes and asked Lizz to surprise me.  I love the speckled feathers that read polka dots and velvet pumpkin with long skinny striped feathers. It adds just the right amount of whimsey and uniqueness. Aren’t they gorgeous?

Pumpkin Patch

I’m sure there will be more velvet pumpkins to add to my collection. As I come across colors and sizes I don’t have I will gobble them up. My colorful pumpkin patch will stay up on the mantel until mid November and then possibly make a move to the dining table for a Thanksgiving dinner tablescape.

Bo knows “No”

On a non decor related note we have a new member in the Freling-Brown Family. I’d like to introduce you all to Bo Brown. If you follow along on my Instagram story page then you’ve seen snippets of our sweet lab mix rescue. He loves to chew and the slipcover on the left chair is chewed but hidden by the table!  He’s adopted the nickname Busy Bo because he never sits still. We’re not sure if Bo has ever seen a camera so when the shutter clicks started he froze.  You can just imagine how much Bo would love these velvet pumpkins to play with but THEY ARE OFF LIMITS!

Support Handmade

Before interior design took over my life, hand painting furniture and home accessories was my main source of income. All year round I would spend hours upon hours in my studio painting and assembling my hand made creations and then packing them all up for the art and craft show circuit. It was grueling and an outdoor festival’s success was determined by Mother Nature. Since then, I have been an activist for handmade- especially Made in the USA. That’s one reason why I fell in love with Lizz and Pip. If you like her velvet pumpkins, please go show her some LOVE.

More October Inspiration

I want to thank you all for coming along into my living room for some colorful Fall inspiration. This week I will be making some changes to the room with furniture. I look forward to some new sofas, coffee tables, and other pieces for Bo to discover. Stay tuned.

If your looking for a fabulous mother/daughter duo with unlimited style and energy head on over to my friends Kim and Lacy at Styled With Lace. When these two get together they come up with the best designs. Have a wonderful day and don’t forget to stop by the other bloggers. Our styles all vary and the ideas for your Fall and Halloween decorating is limitless.

Until next week! 

Amie

Michael Inspired By Charm | Amie Meme Hill | Kim and Lacey Styled With Lace | Gloribell I Don’t Know How She Does It |

Mysha – Remington Avenue |Sheila – Maison de Cinq | Ashley – Curls and Cashmere | Janine – Happy Happy Nester | Judy – Life is Better at Home | Martha – Simple Cozy Charm | Olivia – Reinvented Collection | Jodie and Julie – The Design Twins | Jackie – Finding Lovely | Joan – 2 Ladies and a Chair | Ashley – Modern Glam | Kim and Lacey – Styled with Lace

Missed last year? See how I turned an antique bird feeder into an Outdoor Harvest Bar Cart.