5 Designer Fall Decorating Ideas for Less
Want to make your house look more expensive on a budget? If you love Pottery Barn and other pricey retailers but don’t love the price, wait until you see how to get their fall decorating ideas for significantly less.
In this post, we will explore ways to make your home look expensive on a budget as well as decorate a few different spaces for a song.
And the savings are unbelievable!
With autumn decorating on the horizon, I thought it would be fun to share how to shop designer looks for less.
And today, we are starting with one of my personal faves, Pottery Barn.
I love Pottery Barn, but it can get really pricey. And not by a little either, but a lot!
We shopped a cozy Pottery Barn Christmas look last year and learned it truly pays to look around.
If you want to make your home look expensive for a lot less, designer price tags won’t cut it.
With the click of a mouse, we can find the same designer looks for a fraction of the price.
Because the Pottery Barn designers did all the work for us!
They’ve got some gorgeous fall decorating ideas this year.
So let’s chat about ways to make your home look more expensive as we shop some Pottery Barn fall looks for substantially less!
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How Can I Decorate My House For Less?
There are lots of ways to save money and decorate your house for less.
Here are a few ways to decorate on a budget.
- Shop at the thrift store, flea market, garage sales, or Facebook Marketplace
- Comparison shop
- Accept hand me downs
- Upcycle, refinish, or repurpose things you already have
- Shop for versatility
How to Make Your Home Look Good on a Small Budget
With our bank accounts getting smaller and looking for ways to save money, our homes can still look amazing on a small budget with these simple tips.
- Decorate with neutrals
- Invest in timeless pieces that you can use over and over again
- Buy quality pieces
- Keep the decor simple – there is beauty in simplicity
- Rotate decor to keep things looking fresh
How Can I Decorate My Home for Fall on a Budget?
Fall is the BEST season to decorate on a budget because you can literally just walk outside, cut some branches, drop them in a thrift store find for $5 and call it a day.
As the branches dry, you may want to refresh them, but it can be as budget-friendly and easy as that.
But I bet you have things tucked away in storage that you inherited or found at a garage sale a long time ago that you are not using that can be repurposed for the season.
Like this vintage painting in a frame I found and upcycled.
Or maybe you have dark, dingy cabinets that make your kitchen feel outdated. You can easily paint the wood cabinets yourself for big-time savings.
Or maybe you have a piece of furniture that needs some love but don’t want to spend on re-upholstering.
Did you know you can paint upholstery fabric?
Yes!!!
And the result is amazing.
Here are a few more DIY ideas to make your home look better on a budget.
- Painting Upholstery Fabric Before and After
- How to Refinish Wood Cabinets with Gel Stain
- The Prettiest Thrift Flip Idea for the Front Porch
- How to Refinish Frames to Make a Gallery Wall
- Before and After Painted Piano
Fall Decorating Ideas for Less – Pottery Barn Edition
Now that we’ve talked about ways to make your home look more expensive on a budget, let’s do some comparison shopping at Pottery Barn for fall decor ideas to get a similar look for less.
In the examples below, I am rounding up to make the math easier.
And just to get you thinking about how to decorate on a budget for the seasons long-term, we’ll review how to decorate with neutrals together with some fall decorating ideas.
It’s important to note, that while these are looks for different spaces, you can mix and match some of the finds to come up with your own decorating style.
Pottery Barn Look #1 – Cozy Conversation Living Room
As we start decorating our new home, we’ve got a library that would make a great area for conversation.
I LOVE the look of this conversation Pottery Barn living room with four cozy chairs and simple decor.
By using neutral furniture, we can add cozy textures and a warm autumn color palette to decorate for fall.
Let’s see how I’d fare with the Pottery Barn look versus the dupe.
Pottery Barn Cozy Conversation Living Room
- Ayden Square Arm Slipcovered Swivel Glider – $1,149
- Dream Faux Fur Throw – $129
- Round Braided Jute Rug – $299
If I bought 4 chairs to design the library, the total cost would be a whopping $5,024.
Now let’s see how we’d do shopping for a similar look!
Pottery Barn Cozy Conversation Living Room Look for Less
- Bella 30” Wide Cotton Swivel Armchair – $503 (Wayfair)
- Tipped Long Faux Fur Throw Blanket Brown – $30 (Target)
- nuLOOM Alanis Handmade Farmhouse Jute Area Rug, 6′ Round, Natural – $101 (Walmart)
The total for this cozy conversation dupe is $2,142.76.
That’s a $2,881 savings!!!
So it pays to shop around.
While this look doesn’t scream fall, there’s a soothing autumm color palette in the basics. Dress those up with some faux plants and flowers with pumpkins, and you’ve got a look for fall.
But the best part?
When the holidays or spring roll around, swap out a few throw pillows, tuck in some more seasonal faux plants and bam, you’ve got a simple cozy designer look for less.
Pottery Barn Look #2 – Soothing Neutral Bedroom Decor
Although I’ve been shopping around, I haven’t settled on how we are renovating our bedroom yet.
There’s striped wallpaper with a vintage floral wall to wall carpet that I love and want to keep.
So I’ve been shopping around for some neutral bedroom ideas that can be played up or down with the seasons.
Here’s a cozy neutral fall bedroom look from Pottery Barn that is inspiring me.
From the light, casual wood tone to the clean lines of the furniture with soft neutral textiles, this bedroom is giving all the warm cozy fall feels!
Like I could just sink in and never leave!
Pottery Barn Cozy Neutral Fall Bedroom
- Ansel Glass Table Lamp – $199
- Oakleigh Bed – $1,799–$1,999
- Belgian Flax Linen Duvet Cover – $219 – $329
- Fairfax Terra Vases, Medium Jar – $89
Assuming we are shopping for king size, to get this look we’d spend a grand total of $2,616.
Now let’s shop for a similar look to see if we can do better.
Pottery Barn Cozy Neutral Bedroom Look for Less
- Glass Table Lamp with Fabric Shade Fresh White – $20 (Target)
- Aquilina Low Profile Platform Bed – $190 (Wayfair)
- Washed Linen Duvet Cover – Levtex Home – $139.99-179.99 (Target)
- Found Wood Rustic Milk Jug Vase – $59.00 (Antique Farmhouse)
Again, assuming we are purchasing king size, the total cost for this cozy neutral bedroom is $449!
That is a $2,167 savings!
That’s huge right?
With a neutral base, you can start adding fall decorating ideas using faux flowers with an autumn color palette.
But that terracotta adds a lot of organic texture for fall too, doesn’t it?.
You might find terracotta goodness tucked away in your home somewhere or the thrift store, so really look around at ways to get the same look by spending less.
Ok, let’s do another one!
Pottery Barn Look #3 – Cozy Outdoor Living Spaces for Fall
If you’ve been following me, you know how much I love a good outdoor living space. From cozy living rooms to fire pit areas, I enjoy bringing our home outdoors for the season.
Here are some separate outdoor living space ideas with fire pits that you can break down as one or make two different spaces.
I’ll break them out into spaces for comparison purposes, but the savings are unbelievable.
Pottery Barn Outdoor Living Looks for Fall
Here are the fall looks from Pottery Barn.
- Malibu Metal 36″ Square Fire Pit Table – $3,799
- Malibu 66″ Metal Platform Armless Loveseat – $1,039 – $1,499
- Edison Bulb Indoor/Outdoor String Lights 50ft – $99
- Cozy Pumpkin Pillow, 7.5 x 11″, Ivory – $35.50
- Malibu Metal Adirondack Lounge Chair Frame, White – $999
- Nerissa Concrete 42″ Round Propane Fire Pit Table, Fog – $4,999
- Modern Farmhouse Striped Indoor/Outdoor Pillow – $34.99
- Handwoven Rattan Pumpkins – $39.50–$79
- Torrey All-Weather Wicker Square Arm Lounge Chair – $978.99 – $1,399
- Dreamy Fringe Throw Blanket – $69
- Faux Pumpkins – $39-$99
Ok so let’s break this out into 3 separate spaces because most of us won’t be purchasing two separate fire pits.
The first three items, if you double the armless loveseat so you can fit your family around the fire would cost a whopping $6,896!
And if we wanted to create a conversation pit with adirondack chairs around a gas fire pit, that total would be $8,995 and I didn’t include the pumpkin pillow in either price!
If you’d rather design that conversation pit with cozy wicker arm chairs, that will cost you $5,596 just for the chairs!
But we can totally recreate this look for a fraction of the price. Let’s see the difference when we shop around.
Pottery Barn Cozy Outdoor Living Looks for Less
And here are similar looks for less:
- Buckhall 17” H x 32” W Steel Outdoor Fire Pit with Lid – $112 (Wayfair)
- 43” Wide Outdoor Loveseat with Cushions – $350 (Wayfair)
- Brightech Ambience Vintage Outdoor String Lights with 15 Hanging Sockets & Edison Bulbs for Outside, Backyard, Cafe, Patio, or Porch, 48 Foot, Black – $56 (Target)
- Ivory Boucle Pumpkin Decor – $13 (World Market)
- Flash Furniture Charlestown All-Weather Poly Resin Wood Adirondack Chair in White – $198 (Walmart)
- Aswaldi 14” H x 26” W Concrete Outdoor Fire Pit – $598 (Wayfair)
- Rizzy Home Ticking Stripe Cotton Decorative Throw Pillow, 20″ x 20″ – $17 (Walmart)
- Tall Woven Rattan Wicker Pumpkin Dark – $30 (Target)
- Tegan Swivel Patio Chair with Cushions – $699.9
9(Wayfair) - Faux Pumpkins – $9.99 (Michaels)
Creating 3 outdoor spaces as we did with the Pottery Barn look, let’s see how we do.
For the first cozy outdoor living space with two loveseats, a fire pit and string lights, the total would be $868. You could buy 5 of these sets and it would still be less than the designer look!
So let’s look at the four chair adirondack conversation area with fire pit. That grand total would equal $1,390 and I did not include the pillow.
And if we wanted to go with the wicker chair look instead of the adirondacks? The total would be $2,800.
Thus the savings for the first look is $6,028 and the savings for the second look is $7,608.
So what’s the disparity? Is it the same quality and size?
No.
So it’s equally important to read the reviews and check sizing. Because your outdoor living space may not accommodate the size of one over the other.
That happened to us at the old house when I was looking for an backyard living set for the lower deck.
I found a sofa on Walmart that I LOVED, but it was a smidge too big for the deck!
So always read the dimensions, check the dimensions of your own space, and read the reviews before purchasing.
Because those reviews are very telling with the quality of any product whether designer or not.
Thus, you still might splurge for the look if it’s better for you and your home.
That’s why it’s so important to measure your actual dimensions and research the products before buying.
Pro-Tip: You can get a better visual of how large a piece will be in a space by using painters tape on the floor of the product you want to buy.
Pottery Barn Look #4
Now that we’ve got the eye for savings, let’s look for fall decorating ideas for the dining room.
Because you know how much I love a pretty table set for the season.
I found a gorgeous look on Pottery Barn that I may need to replicate for one of my upcoming supper clubs.
Here’s the Pottery Barn Cozy Fall Dining Room look for fall.
The chairs add so much texture to the space don’t they?
This look is clean, it’s simple, and beautiful.
Pottery Barn Cozy Fall Dining Room
- Malibu Woven Dining Chair – $349
- Heritage Farmhouse Turned Leg Extending Dining Table – $2,399
- Dried Standing Wheat Bundle – $79
- Lonnie Striped Linen Napkins, Set of 4 – $48
- Larkin Reactive Glaze Stoneware 16-Piece Dinnerware Set – $200
- Handwoven Wicker Oval Charger Plate – $29.50
Assuming we are designing a dining room to accommodate 6 people, this room would cost $5,245.
Because most of these sets are in groups of 4, you’d need to purchase 2 to accommodate 6 people.
Now let’s see how we’d fare shopping the look for less.
Pottery Barn Cozy Fall Dining Room Look for Less
- Tormod Backed Cane Dining Chair – $110 (Target)
- Brighton Light Dining Table – $640 (Target)
- Uieke 17.7 Inches Dried Wheat Stalks – $15.99 (Amazon)
- Creative Co-Op Taupe, Black & Cream Striped Cotton Woven Napkins (Set of 4 Pieces) – $24.99 (Amazon)
- 16pc Stoneware Matisse Dinnerware Set Taupe – $99.99 (Target)
- Wicker Hand Woven Serving Tray with Handles Rattan Round Basket – $19.99 (Amazon)
Like above, we will assume we are designing a dining room for fall to accommodate 6 people.
The grand total for this Pottery Barn look for less is $1,686. That’s a price difference of $3,559!
While the sizing and looks may not be exact, it’s pretty close. And it’s incredible how much you can save by shopping around!
Splurge or Save?
While we still may or may not pay the designer prices, it clearly pays to shop around.
You might splurge on the bigger pieces, but shop the look for smaller decorative items.
While doing this research, I found that in some cases, Pottery Barn had the better product AND price!
So find your inspiration, measure your dimensions, shop around for the look, and make smart purchases.
More Budget-Friendly Decorating Ideas for Your Home
Want more decorating ideas that are easy on the wallet?
Wait until you see these posts for more inspiration!
- 9 Sustainable Fall DIY Decor Ideas
- How to Make a Simple Hydrangea Wreath for Free
- How to Dry Flowers
- Painting the Piano
- How to Paint Wood Cabinets with Chalk Paint
- Painting Upholstery Fabric Ideas
- Before and After Family Room Makeover Project
- Front Entry Hall Before and After
- Before and After Sunroom Renovation
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