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Simple Early Autumn Decorating Ideas to Make Your Porch Look Cheerful

When it still feels like summer, but you’re ready for fall, here are tons of early autumn decorating ideas that help you transition to cooler weather.

Summer is my favorite.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s something I love about every season.

But summer?

Give me those long days.

The relaxed pace.

Having my college kids back under my roof.

The cookouts and trips to the beach.

Days spent on the lake and evenings under the stars.

Summer just feels magical!

One of my favorite parts of living in North Carolina is that summer lasts so much longer.

Covered front entry porch decorated for fall with floral wreath and sunflowers.

So when it’s time to pack away the patriotic decor, I love to keep summer going with sunflowers.

The great thing about sunflowers is they’re the perfect solution to transition from summer decorating into early fall.

Because it’s a little too hot outside for mums and pumpkins just yet where we live.

Welcome to the Early Fall Decorating Tour!

We’re so excited to join 16 fabulous bloggers today thanks to our dear friend Pasha from Pasha is Home.

Pasha always does such a great job of organizing these home tours and there is so much talent in this group!

Here’s a peek at what’s being shared.

Did you see our friend Brendt’s ideas for decorating a console table for fall? She is an absolute sweetheart and has a gift for making her home look cozy.

If you’re new around here, we’re Anne and AnnMarie, two moms who are lucky enough to be besties and neighbors.

anne and annmarie standing by autumn harvest table

That’s me, Anne, the short one in the white, and AnnMarie’s the cutie in green.

We work together to share simple and budget-friendly ideas for decoratingrecipesDIY projects, and tips for life with older teens (and beyond!).

You can read more about us and our families over here.

And we would love to learn more about you! Be sure to say “hi” in the comments below and tell us where you’re visiting from.

But that’s enough about us!

Let’s take a look at how I decorated my front porch for late summer and early fall.

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How to Decorate a Front Entry for Late Summer and Early Fall

Covered front entry porch decorated for fall with floral wreath and sunflowers.

Sunflowers are my answer when it’s time to start thinking about the end of summer.

These cheerful yellow blooms are still a celebration of my favorite season!

But their warm gold tones work perfectly when it’s time to bring out the pumpkins and mums.

Large colorful fall floral wreath hanging on a door with a door knocker showing in the middle

I made this simple fall wreath featuring elements of both late summer and early fall.

The bright colors feel summery, but the greens have a different tone from the cool greens I use at the beginning of the season.

These greens have more yellow undertones.

Extra large twig bee skep on a porch decorated with wood beads and a sunflower.

I added a sunflower blossom on my extra large bee skep.

It helps bring your eye down from the wreath and is one of the points of a visual triangle.

I considered adding more sunflowers, but check out the other side of the entry.

Vintage wood firkin bucket filled with arrangement of faux sunflowers in front of a black planter with faux boxwood topiary.

A vintage wood bucket is a great container for a large sunflower arrangement.

I love using warm woods in my decorating during cooler months.

This is the third point of my visual triangle of sunflowers.

When I tried putting more sunflowers to the bee skep, it just looked like too much.

My mom always said when you get dressed and add jewelry, take a look in the mirror then take one piece away.

Which is exactly what I did with those extra sunflowers on the bee skep.

Don’t worry, though!

There are lots more sunflowers sprinkled around the front porch.

Ideas for Decorating a Rocking Chair Porch for Early Autumn

When we bought our house back in 2005, one of the things I wanted most was a big front porch.

This house definitely delivered!

Antique wicker table with a small basket of sunflowers between two black rockers on a front porch decorated for early fall.

The porch area to the left of the door is a little more narrow, so there’s just room for the rocking chairs and a little table.

Clearly, I forgot to wipe off the pollen on the rockers when I snapped this picture.

Oops.

We’re gonna call that a little dose of reality!

Instead, let’s focus on that cute little basket of sunflowers.

I just got that fun antique table and love the detailing so much!

It’s the perfect spot for a cup of tea, a mug of coffee, or a glass of wine.

Those gold throw pillows from Amazon make the rockers extra comfy.

Large round iron wall medallion on the side of a house with a sunflower wreath hung in the center under a covered porch.

The far side of this section of the porch is closed because that’s where the garage is.

A large iron medallion adds some architectural detail.

Which is also the perfect spot to hang a wreath!

I love how my Sun of a Flower wreath from RoundWreath looks here.

Rocking chair porch decorated for early fall with yellow throw pillows and throws, lanterns, and yellow flowers in a basket.

The other side of the porch is deeper and it’s open to the side yard.

So there’s a little more space to decorate.

I stuck with the same color scheme but used a different gold-colored flower in a big round basket.

Tall round basket with a faux flower arrangement of gold flowers on a porch decorated for fall.

This is the side of the porch where we sit most often.

After all, I have a great view with AnnMarie’s pretty house being right across the street!

And it’s a little roomier.

Close up of a plaid yellow throw blanket with fringe on the back of a rocking chair.

So I upped the cozy factor by adding some yellow plaid throws.

Sometimes the evenings dip down into the 60s and that feels pretty frigid to my southern bones!

You can see this side of the porch gets more use: no pollen on these rockers!

I also have my favorite tall three-tiered iron plant stand on this end of the porch.

Rocking chair porch decorated for fall with yellow throw pillows and blankets and tall iron plant stand.

It’s a spot that I change out every season.

Always with faux greenery and flowers.

Because have I mentioned it gets hot here in North Carolina?

And also I have a black thumb…

So.

Faux for the win!

Once the daytime temperature drops a bit in September, I’ll be adding white and green pumpkins and mums to my porch.

I tend to get more than I used to ever since AnnMarie and I stumbled across a really affordable place to buy them.

The best part?

These sunflowers from my early autumn decorating will still be keeping things cheery.

Next up on the early fall blog hop is our great friend Rachel from The Ponds Farmhouse. She’s sharing 15 fantastic ideas for decorating outside for fall. You don’t want to miss her gorgeous porch!!

Keep scrolling to get even more ideas for early fall decorating from the other 16 bloggers sharing their homes today.

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collage of products used to decorate a porch for late summer and early fall

Simply click on the links under the photos below to get all their inspiration.

If you have any questions or suggestions, contact me or leave a comment!

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