IT’S FALL!!!!!!!
If I had to choose a season, fall would be my favorite time of year. It’s a hard choice because there are things I love about all the seasons, but what pushes me over the edge for fall is the seasonal decorating… I love the bright-yet-rustic colors, the scents of fall candles and bricks for fragrance burners, and the fact that I can use pretty much anything harvested or gathered to decorate with. 
This is the first of a few posts I have planned for fall decorating using natural materials that are either grown from my garden, a part of the local farmer’s harvest, or found locally in the natural groves that grow along the waterways.
If you don’t live in or around a rural area, check out farmer’s markets, grocery and craft stores for natural seasonal materials to use.
This is for a very simple, yet gorgeous centerpiece. Everything here is natural and grown by either me or a local farmer except obviously the old canning jar and the twine. (Well, I did find the canning jar buried in the old barn… does that count?) 
What you will need:
1. Sunflowers, or any local flower(s)
2. Gourds
3. Decorative corn
4. Unshelled nuts (these are almonds and walnuts)
5. Leaves
6. Canning jar, vase or any kind of rustic container
7. Twine
Directions:
Trim off excess leaves from bottom of flower stems. Fill jar or vase with water. (Tip: put a penny or two and a heaping teaspoon of sugar in the water. The sugar feeds the flowers and the copper in the pennies keep the bacteria from growing, so your flowers last longer.)
Tie the twine around the neck of the jar and place in the center of the table. Arrange corn, gourds, and nuts around the jar. Sprinkle leaves around and on everything to really give it that fall look.
Viola! This centerpiece will look great and last through Thanksgiving- just change out the flowers as needed, or if the flowers go out of season in your area, simply replace the jar with a pumpkin. Feel free to add more natural materials as you find them… next time I’m out by the river, I plan on bringing home some oak leaves and acorns to add to the centerpiece.
Feel free to post questions and comments, and enjoy!
Michelle
I'd love to hear what you think!