4 Ultimate Ways to Enjoy Your Outdoor Living Space this Fall

4 Ultimate Ways to Enjoy Your Outdoor Living Space This Fall

A nice outdoor living space at home is something everyone can come to enjoy. Autumn is nature’s big show. With the air turning crisp and the foliage changing colors, there is no better way to enjoy the transition to fall weather than to spend it outdoors around a nice fire, surrounded by colorful blooms, or dining under twinkling lights.

1. Sit Around a Fire

Outdoor Living Room

An outdoor fireplace is a nice way to enjoy the transition from summer to fall and give your outdoor space a new look for the season. Chilly weather and fires are the perfect pair. Living in the South, we are lucky enough to be able to enjoy our outdoor living spaces a little bit longer than just a few short months out of the year. If you aren’t lucky enough to be able to have a fireplace, don’t worry! Outdoor fire pits are a nice alternative, plus they can be moved around or out of the way if needed. Adding a fire pit is also a good excuse to rearrange your outdoor furniture. Make sure your outdoor cushions are still comfy after summer’s wear and are ready to enjoy the warmth around the fire.

2. Add Pops of Color to Your Outdoor Space

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Autumn décor is one of the most fun and easiest ways to decorate your home seasonally. Use bold pops of color with mums and pumpkins to create a charming and lively space to enjoy. You can also use decorative pillows to change out a seasonal look and keep your seating comfortable.

Decorating your outdoor living space for fall doesn’t always mean decorating for Halloween. Use decorations that can be enjoyed for a longer period of time. Try using mason jars and pine cones, which are  a simple (and cheap) way to decorate. As always, pumpkins are a great idea that can give a fall or Halloween feel to your outdoor living space. Don’t feel that you have to use the traditional pumpkin orange as an accent color. Change it up by painting pumpkins to help pull out fun accent colors.

Did you know? The key to making the most of your mums is to pinch them! As soon as you see the buds start to show, begin pinching them to create a fuller bloom. And what to do with those gorgeous blooms when the weather starts to turn bitter cold? Plant them! Because mums grow their roots in the spring, you’ll need to plant them in four inches of mulch before the first hard frost with straw surrounding the entire plant. Before planting, be sure to pinch off any dead blooms, leaving the hard branches. Once spring comes around, prune the branches back and push back the mulch for the blooms to sprout back up.  

3. Create an Outdoor Living Atmosphere

Create an Outdoor Living Atmosphere

Since cooler weather means shorter and darker days, liven up your porch with some decorative lighting. Outdoor lighting is an easy way to improve your outdoor living space. Subtle lighting creates a more relaxing atmosphere instead of harsh outdoor spot lights that are typically seen in backyards. Candles and lanterns create a beautiful glow of light and that can be easily moved around. Take advantage of your outdoor space. Hang your lights around the inside of your pergola or your deck railing. You want your lights to be positioned where you can still see with them, but not be overwhelmed by them.

4. Dine Under the Autumn Trees

Dine Under the Autumn Trees

The cravings of cold-weather, comfort food have arrived, and since fall tends to revolve around football season, grilling always seems to go hand-in-hand with a game and these cravings. Embrace the game and the fall weather by cooking outdoors. Use your outdoor kitchen as the focal entertaining space for the afternoon. Make your table an inviting place to sit around by bringing nature in with a fall color palette. Custom placemats and napkins are an easy way to complete the look of your table.

What comfort foods are better for chilly weather than grilled cheese sandwiches with tomato soup? For even more flavor, try taking your grilled cheese to the next level by adding a few new ingredients. Here is one of my favorite ways to liven up a grilled cheese sandwich.

Grilled cheese sandwich- one of the best fall comfort foods

What you’ll need:
Your favorite bread (I typically go with French bread for this)
Butter
Sharp cheddar cheese slices
Sliced tomato
Sliced avocado
Bacon

What you’ll do:
Go ahead and cook your bacon first, that way it’s ready to go. Butter one side of each slice of bread, lay butter side down on grill to toast. Add cheese slices to get that gooey, melted cheese. Once the cheese is melted, take the slices off the grill and add the rest of the ingredients to your sandwich and enjoy!

I think Nathaniel Hawthorne says it best about enjoying the fall weather in The American Notebooks, “I cannot endure to waste anything so precious as autumnal sunshine by staying in the house.” So grab a couple blankets and some s’mores and enjoy these precious fall days.