Fall Front Porch Approaches to Welcome in the Season

Treat this as a field note from one working house, not a showroom checklist. Bring on the pumpkins and mums because it's time to start decorating our front porches for fall! With a few simple touches like adding color with mums, giving it a moody glow with lanterns, and tying it all together with a wreath, you can transform your front porch so that it feels both welcoming and fall-ready. Let's get to it… (post includes commissionable links; for more information, see my full disclosure statement {here}).

One. Add Color With Mums

One of the easiest (and prettiest!) ways to bring color to your front porch in the fall is with mums. A strong choice is mixing shades of deep burgundy, sunny yellow, and crisp white for all the fall feels! The great thing about mums is that don't just come in a variety of colors, but tons of sizes too. To frame the front door, I like to go big with a matching pair of oversized mums, like these beauties,

The perfect gray urn planters for your front porch at a GREAT price!!

and layer in smaller mums cascading down the steps.

Mums are fairly low maintenance, but if you don't have the best track record with keeping plants alive or just want to go totally maintenance-free, faux mums like {these colorful outdoor-safe mums} are a great option. They look incredibly realistic and give you that same burst of fall color without any of the upkeep:

Super realistic faux plants can definitely be a bit of a splurge, but if you're looking for something more budget-friendly, these {faux outdoor flowers} are a well-priced option with great reviews!

Two. Use Planters of Varying Heights

Varying the heights of your planters is a simple way to make your fall front porch more interesting. I put the large mums by our front door in {these large urn planters} (mine are the cement color, but they also come in taupe and black). They're lightweight, which makes them straightforward to move and store, but once you fill them with soil and plants, they're heavy enough to stay put, even on windy days.

My other tried-and-true planters are {these stone urn planters}. They're extremely well made and very heavy (which is why they're so pricey – I'm sure a good chunk of their cost is to cover shipping!). If you've ever had issues with the wind knocking your planters over, you definitely wouldn't experience that with these – they are rock solid:

I often leave some of the smaller mums in the original planters I bought them in or use {these small planters} for a few:

Small gray planters for mums on our fall front porch

These are some of my other kept planters that would be well suited to pulling your fall front porch look together:

Three. Pile On the Pumpkins

No fall porch is complete without pumpkins, and A strong choice is using them in all shapes and sizes to create a layered look:

White pumpkins mixed with mums and crotons on our fall front porch

You can keep things simple with classic orange or crisp white pumpkins, or mix in heirloom varieties in shades of sage green, creamy white, and dusty blue to add extra depth and character to your fall porch display.

If you live in the south where the warmer temps cause real pumpkins to not last as long, there's no shame in going faux! {These pumpkins} are a realistic option that will last all season long (and for many falls to come):

Faux pumpkins cascading down the steps of a fall front porch

You can also mix real and faux pumpkins for the best of both worlds! Use a few fauxs that will stay looking perfect all season long, and layer in some real pumpkins that you can carve up when Halloween rolls around.

Four. Go Beyond the Basics With Your Plants

Adding a little dose of unexpected in with the traditional pumpkins and mums is a great way to give your fall front porch a little “wow” factor. Think ornamental kale with its ruffled purple leaves,

Love using cabbages for fall decorating! So pretty mixed in with mums!

trailing ivy spilling from a planter, or even grasses with feathery plumes.

Crotons are another kept plant to add to your fall mix. You can find them for very reasonable prices at Home Depot in the fall:

Crotons in urn planters on our fall front porch

Ornamental peppers are another fun and unexpected addition to fall porch decor. Their vibrant pops of red, orange, and yellow add a burst of color that pairs beautifully with pumpkins and mums:

Fall window boxes with mums, peppers, pumpkins, kale, and cabbage

Five. Light It Up With Lanterns

Using lanterns in your fall front porch decor is the perfect way to add a settled glow that makes a home feel inviting before you even walk in the door. Consider mixing different shapes and sizes of lanterns, grouping two or three together to create height and interest, or placing them in pairs to frame the front door.

The household has used two sets of {these lanterns trios} for years, grouping two or three of them together on both sides of our porch:

Pumpkins, mums, and lanterns on our fall front porch steps

Instead of using real candles that can melt in the sun or pose a fire risk, pop {these flameless indoor/outdoor candles} inside. Each candle has a built-in timer, so they go on automatically at the same time each night and then turn off either four or eight hours later.

You could also fill your lanterns with outdoor-friendly battery-operated fairy lights such as {these} to get the look of {these fairy light lanterns}:

Front porch decorated for the holidays with fairy light filled lanterns

Or tuck some mini pumpkins inside like these little white baby boos:

A trio of lanterns filled with pumpkins for fall decor on our front steps

My little pumpkins are real but you could also try artificial ones like {these} to reuse year after year.

Six. Dress It Up With a New Doormat

It's always fun to switch up your doormat for fall! One of my all-time favorites is {this “Hey There Pumpkin” doormat}(Do any of you remember Cricket's predecessor, “Hope”? I miss that sweet face!):

These are a few more of my seasonal favorites:

One of the preferred decorating tricks for a more designer look is to layer your doormat over a patterned outdoor rug. A strong choice is when a buffalo check or plaid rug peeks out just enough to frame the doormat and give it that extra punch of pattern and texture. These are a few winning doormat + patterned rug combos:

Fall doormats layered over patterned rugs for fall porch decor

Sources:Fall welcome doormat + Black & white buffalo check rug | Owl doormat + brown checkered rug | Fox doormat + Green plaid rug

For the layered doormat + rug look, sizing is key to making it feel polished. For a standard 18″ x 30″ doormat, a 2′ x 3′ rug underneath is just the right size, leaving a nice little border peeking out without overwhelming the space. If you're working with a larger 2′ x 3′ doormat, bump your rug size up to a 2'4″ x 3'8″ or 2'6″ x 3'10” rug so the proportions stay balanced.

Seven. Pull It All Together With a Wreath

Tie all of the colors in your porch together with a polished wreath on your front door! If you're decorating with a mix of red, orange, and white mums, {this finished 24″ fall wreath} is well suited to pulling your look together: