68 Subtly Seasonal Fall Table Decor Ideas You'll Love
Gourds and gingham always work.
Fall table decor is such a nice way to usher in the change of weather and upcoming holidays. Whether you host frequently or just want to switch things up for the season, we have tons of ideas to inspire your fall table—including Thanksgiving table decor and Halloween decorations).
If you choose to fully lean into fall holidays, rely on simple accents for the rest of the table so as not to detract from your Halloween or Thanksgiving decor. A few white mini pumpkins, black taper candles, and serveware with gothic motifs bring just the right amount of spooky holiday flair to a Halloween table. Clusters of gourds mixed with votive candles make the perfect Thanksgiving meal backdrop.
Because the blooming season is over for most flowering plants, we suggest sticking to gourds, squash, grasses, branches, and berries when putting together fall tabletop arrangements. A few beautiful maple branches in blazing fall colors can make a full-on fall statement. Classic white taper candlesticks in brass or black candleholders always add cozy charm. A textured or patterned tablecloth or runner in earthy hues brings depth and warmth to a table set for the fall season. Go minimal with rustic wood bowls filled with ripe apples, pumpkins, or gourds and a scattering of foliage, or take the autumnal atmosphere to the max with gilded flatware and colorful vases bursting with yellow yarrow.
Below, we rounded up 70 stunning and creative fall table decor ideas to inspire your next festive tablescape.
Forego Traditional Placecards
If your Thanksgiving table welcomes the same group year after year, make the seating arrangement feel more intentional with a set of monogramed napkins instead of throwaway place cards. Every family member will feel like they belong, and you can reuse the napkins year after year.
Buy Now Linen Napkins
Pay Tribute to Favorite Dishes
Thanksgiving may be all about gratitude and family, but it's also about the delicious food. As an ode to your favorite dessert (or fall latte flavor), pay tribute to fall harvests with your plates and decor.
Buy Now Pumpkin Cloche
Try Rustic Simplicity
Fall is the perfect time to play with texture in your decor. Here, stunning ruby-colored flowers make a lively addition to this cozy breakfast nook. Accompanying the jewel-toned floral display is a cute trio of mismatched bowls filled with seasonally appropriate whole nuts.
Buy Now Portobello Scalloped Bowl, $42
Showcase Fruits of the Season
This minimalistic table arrangement is endlessly adaptable for any fall gathering or family meal you have planned. The beautiful simplicity of clay-colored candlestick holders and a wooden bowl of apples allows the focus of dinner to stay on the food and conversation, not the centerpiece.
Buy Now Ceramic Taper Holder, $12–$14
Take a Clean, Modern Approach
Crisp white vases can be instantly transformed into a modern fall tablescape with the addition of a wispy tree branch showcasing lovely red-orange leaves.
Buy Now Warrick White Vase, $50–$100
Play Up Fall's Earthy Hues
Take a tonal approach by outfitting your table with amber, orange, and brown decor. Rose gold flatware and fairy light cloches add shimmer while the lush, faux-berry garland adds movement and texture.
Buy Now Amber Highball Glasses (Set of 4), $75
Let Apples Be the Star
Apples take center stage on this fall table in the company of sunny yellow flowers and a plaid fringe blanket. Seasonal produce really is the best way to add fall flair to your dining table.
Buy Now Washable Wool Throw, $129
Add Cozy Textures
Set for a night in with friends, this transitional dining room features cozy bench seating, a fresh loaf of bread, crisp apples, and a nubby neutral rug—all essential elements for a fall-ready table.
Buy Now Bennett Bench, $975
Try a Pared-Back Color Scheme...
Simple and elegant, a black, white, and amber color story elevates this rustic dining room. Lit-from-within pumpkins and a scattering of magnolia leaves add dimension and a warm seasonal element to this entertaining-ready farmhouse table.
Buy Now Textured Glass Amber Pumpkin Cloche, $20–$40
...Or Go Full-On Color
Take a completely new approach when decorating your fall table by incorporating nontraditional colors. Bright pink works so well with warm oranges, yellows, and browns. We love how the handmade maple leaves and acorns give this bare tree branch new life.
Buy Now Pink Cotton Chambray Tablecloth, $16
Make Neutral Pumpkins the Main Event
It wouldn't be a fall table without pumpkins. Try using medium-sized pumpkins instead of minis for a more substantial display. Fresh eucalyptus plays off the muted tones of these faux fall gourds while copper votives and chargers bring in a touch of shine for formal dinner.
Buy Now Faux Pumpkins and Gourds, $40 each
Bundle Wheat Straw
Think beyond vases and garlands. Dried wheat stalks compose a more interesting arrangement than flowers and are more seasonally apropos too. We love how they add height and texture to this simply set table, perfectly complementing the classic tapered candles and blue check tablecloth.
Buy Now Dried Wheat Stalks, $12
Carry Summery Check Into Fall
Blue check strikes again, serving as a preppy, colorful base for this effortless fall table. Use real or faux white pumpkins as place settings so as not to compete with the color scheme. Elegant votives scattered amongst a faux boxwood garland make the whole arrangement feel homey and cozy.
Buy Now Buffalo Check Table Runner, $14
Level Up a Floral Arrangement with Pumpkins
Beyond the super cute bat-adorned doorway, a beautiful cluster of miniature pumpkins nestled beneath an abundant fall floral arrangement caught our eye. Take note of how the orange pumpkins play off of the peachy roses for a perfectly complementary centerpiece.
Buy Now Handcrafted Faux Mini Pumpkins, $5–$20 each
Make a Color Statement with Linens
This rustic fall table features tons of texture, but the most important element is the saturated purple and orange table linens. These rich colors play into the other table elements so well, from the aubergine figs and ruby red wine to the weathered terra cotta candle holders and wooden-handled flatware.
Buy Now Belissima Flax Linen Placemats (Set of 4), $41
Lean Into Spooky Season
If you're looking ahead to Halloween, swap out your table runner for a strip of gauze fabric. A few simple nods to the holiday, like a black crow, a skeletal hands bowl, and all-black candles, capture the spirit of the season without veering into the cheesy category.
Buy Now Skeleton Candy Bowl, $199
Like…Really Lean In
Or go full-on creepy with a fringed black tablecloth, apothecary jars, and mismatched black candlesticks. Vibrant pink and red flowers (and friendly felines) keep this arrangement from being too dark and eerie.
Buy Now Booker Taper Candleholders, $17–$78
Make Produce the Centerpiece
It's completely appropriate to go for a gourmand-inspired table in the fall since the biggest food holiday of the year is coming right up. Pomegranates, cranberries, and assorted squashes and herbs make for a colorful, simple arrangement that honors the season.
Bring in Gold Accents
Warm up your table with assorted gold accents—from a vase for seasonal blooms to taper candle holders. In Alison Victoria's Atlanta loft, the HGTV star also set out a copper-colored ice bucket for a casual setup that's ideal for drinks with friends.
BUY NOW Lumiere Taper Candlestick, $28
Make It Moody
Black tableware and decorative accents will keep your table looking chic and moody from fall to winter. Beyond that, the dinnerware will make any bright seasonal foods you place on them pop, as seen on this table in a breezeway designed by Jean Liu.
BUY NOW Matte Black Dinner Plates (set of four), $50
Hadley Mendelsohn is the co-host and executive producer of the podcast Dark House. When she's not busy writing about interiors, you can find her scouring vintage stores, reading, researching ghost stories, or stumbling about because she probably lost her glasses again. Along with interior design, she writes about everything from travel to entertainment, beauty, social issues, relationships, fashion, food, and on very special occasions, witches, ghosts, and other Halloween haunts. Her work has also been published in MyDomaine, Who What Wear, Man Repeller, Matches Fashion, Byrdie, and more.
Kate McGregor is House Beautiful's SEO Editor, writing in-depth home renovation cost guides, design inspiration stories while overseeing gardening content through routine plant care guides. With over five years in the shelter industry creating content for brands like Domino, Real Simple, and Architectural Digest’s Clever, Kate has developed a passion for uncovering the personal stories that often lie behind the inspiration for people’s spaces. She previously worked as the assistant market editor at ELLE Decor, where she identified top products and brands in the industry as well as interviewed emerging designers about their thoughts on the latest interior design trends. Kate holds a bachelor’s degree from Belmont University. When not researching the specificities of begonia plant care, you can find Kate scouring vintage markets for the ideal wrought-iron chair, knitting yet another cardigan, or reading historical nonfiction.
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