Polka Dot Pumpkins and Getting Thrifty

Do you want to sell your home? 

Is it staged to tell home buyers that you care about your home?

It doesn’t take much to put out a happy, positive message to buyers, starting with the outside entry.  

Sweep the area near the door. 

Knock down the cobwebs. 

Put out a new welcome mat. 

Maybe paint the front door.

Now’s the time to add some seasonal décor, too. You have most of October and November to show your colors – the colors of autumn.

Keep It Simple

I concentrated on green this fall. And it worked fine indoors. But green just doesn’t have the punch for a festive front entry.

So, I chose black, white and orange as a theme. I recycled a grapevine wreath I made a couple years ago by striping it, spraying it white, and gluing on some bows and balls. I made three fabric pumpkins. And I bought some mums. Done.  

With those elements, I was able to dress up this home’s front step. 

I hung the wreath on the storm door so it could be seen from the road.
I prefer a grapevine wreath to one of foam or straw because it's
lightweight and stands up to all kinds of weather.   

Polka dots are one of my favorite patterns, and I think most people are charmed by
them, so I made three polka dot bows. I like to use odd numbers  when constructing
a wreath. A 40% off coupon saved me when I bought these plastic (unbreakable!)
bulbs that came as a package from Michaels. 

 

A strip of ribbon glued to a plain plastic flower pot dresses it up.
It was the scrap I had left from a roll of ribbon.  The mums tie the colors
of the front door to the colors in the wreath.

Fabric pumpkins are surprisingly easy to make. These three took me about an hour,
from ironing the fabric to gluing on the driftwood stems. Start with a long rectangle,
stitch or glue the short ends together, then gather the long ends and stuff.

Drapery weight fabric works best for pumpkins. These sit under a porch roof, so
they are protected from wet weather. I stuffed them with filling from an old pillow.  

Don't ask me why I had bright orange polka dot fabric in the back of
my fabric closet, but it came in handy to repeat the wreath's polka dot motif. 

The fabric for this pumpkin is a old linen tablecloth. The silk 
leaves and embroidery thread wrap-arounds are optional. 

Whether your home is for sale, or you just want a welcoming entryway, now’s the time of year to celebrate fall and boost your curb appeal at the same time. It's easy and economical if you do it yourself, keep it simple, and recycle. 

If you are selling your home and you want encouragement and a whole host of tips for staging it yourself, download my popular $5 eBook, DIY Home Staging Tips to Sell Your Home Fast and for Top Dollar.