How to Brilliantly Decorate for Fall with Blue and White
Inside: Why orange is the perfect color to add a touch of autumn decor to your cool, classic blue and white rooms, even if you don’t really like orange. Plus a tour full of ideas on how to use it in the living room and dining room! ➡
Blue and white. So crisp, cool, and classic. But how do you decorate this clearly non-fall color combination for the season of yellow, brown, and orange?
You keep decorating with blue and white!
But the secret?
Inject the most in your face of the traditional fall colors. Orange.
Blue and white has been hugely popular in home decor for a few years now. It makes any room quiet, sophisticated, and timeless.
This time of year, the pa-pow of jack-o-lantern orange may not be your first fall decorating thought for those beautiful blue and white rooms.
But come into my living room and dining room and let me show you how orange adds the perfect touch of seasonal fall decor to blue and white!
I’m thrilled that this tour of my living and dining rooms is a stop on the “Blogger’s Best Fall Home Tours” hosted by Kelly at The Tattered Pew! She organizes this amazing tour of talented ladies from her beautiful home in Colorado and there’s something for everyone’s style. When you’re done here, make sure to visit all 30 homes for loads of fall ideas and inspiration (links at the bottom). If you’ve come over from Le Cultivateur, welcome!! Emily’s home is always so elegant—I can’t wait to tour it myself.
How to decorate with orange for fall.
Now hear me out, orange haters. I’m right there with you.
There is no ignoring the color orange. People have strong feelings about it. But love it or hate it, it is THE most associated color of fall.
I’ve never been a big fan of pure orange. I don’t even have a favorite color because I love so many, but if you asked me my very least favorite, orange would be in the top three (not to mention an orange shirt makes me look like I’ve had the flu for a week).
But I have two reasons you should consider orange:
- You won’t need to decorate as much to make a room read “fall”.
- Orange will warm up that cool blue and white and make it cozier.
The trick to decorating with orange for fall if you don’t actually like orange, is to use one of the many soft, toned down shades in the orange family!
Who doesn’t like at least one of these gorgeous shades?
- Rust
- Copper
- Terra cotta
- Clay
- Burnt orange
- Persimmon
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Blue and white fall decorations.
Before we talk about warming up our cool color palette with one of those pretty autumn oranges, let’s look at how we can decorate for fall with blue and white without orange.
With blue’s popularity, there’s no lack of blue fall decor. And you’ll easily be able to pick up some blue pumpkins in the stores. Even in the hottest patterns like buffalo check and chinoiserie.
These chinoiserie pumpkins are homemade and they’re the perfect friend to all of our blue and white ginger jars.
See this easy shortcut chinoiserie DIY using cheap pumpkins, napkins, and a couple craft supplies!
I’m a sucker for these blue velvet pumpkins for bringing the luxe elegance:
And speaking of blue and luxe, I changed the sofa pillows to these deeper, moodier midnight blue velvet covers for the colder months.
And I switched the other summer green and blue accent pillows with these graphic blue and white ones. Both covers were so reasonable on Amazon!
How to use shades of orange with blue and white decor for fall.
It only took a few touches of orange in the living room to instantly add that autumn glow to my existing blue and white.
My fall family room and kitchen stayed all neutral like its basic decor this season.
But in the living room, I use more color and change it to reflect the time of year. I’d collected a few trendy-yet-traditional blue and white ginger jars for my blue, white, and green color scheme this summer. I’m still loving them too much to pack away, so the blue was here to stay through fall!
I added a bit of burnt orange in the Bergere chair with this velvet lumbar pillow. (Does velvet make every color better?)
And I added orange fall foliage with these tall maroon and orange faux stems in the white ginger jar:
A copper tray for the coffee table adds a warm glow and holds another white ginger jar and a chinoiserie pumpkin.
I spread out a trio of glass pumpkins for a pop of copper around the living room. One on a stack of blue books on the side table:
One in the glass built in shelves for a hint of fall here.
And one on the mantel, nestled with two more ginger jars. Last year, the fall mantel was brimming with pumpkins and dried eucalyptus. This year it’s clean and simple.
In the dining room, I complemented blue with shades of rust and burnt orange. The tablescape really brings the navy and rust together:
With midnight blue velvet napkins. More napkins in rust, and some amber roses.
Blue and white chinoiserie pumpkins…
And few white pumpkins dot the centerpiece nestled in the magnolia leaves, eucalyptus garland, and pheasant feathers.
See how I put together this entire look inspired by a gorgeous fall wedding color palette here.
And this blue and orange table will last the entire fall season, September all the way through Thanksgiving dinner.
The white bowl on the sideboard is filled with faux pumpkins—blue velvet, a mini chinoiserie pumpkin, and a few creamy white. And I placed a tiny pop of orange by cutting some sprigs of bittersweet from a faux stem.
I added one more skosh of orange with these soft burnt orange pillows.
And to bring orange over to the entryway, I dropped faux bittersweet stems and white flowering branches into the foyer urn.
I changed very little in this large open area for the fall season, because orange really draws attention!
More burnt orange, copper, clay, terra cotta and rust fall decor ideas to add to blue and white.
There are so many easy ways to add orange with blue and white! Here are more quick ideas for orange fall touches:
- Place orange mums in a white vase
- Drop orange stems in your favorite ginger jar
- Fill a small bowl with orange mini pumpkins
- Add a couple of good ol’ traditional orange pumpkins to the room
Sources for this post or similar.
I said I would never decorate with orange. And the older I get the more life shows me to never say never.
So I may love orange. There I said it.🧡
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Now let’s visit my blogging friends for more ideas—next on the tour is DIY Beautify. I can’t wait to see what Cindy’s done this year to bring fall into her always welcoming dining room!
You are so right about orange looking fabulous with blue and white. And you made an excellent point about using toned down versions of the color instead of bright orange. Loved seeing your lovely home in its fall finery!
Your blues and whites are so pretty! The pops of orange are so beautiful!
Your fall home tour is so lovely Kate. I am always such a huge fan of blue and white so when you added shades of orange to the mix it took my breath away. The centerpiece you created is absolutely gorgeous. Well done. Happy Fall my friend!
Kate your home is so pretty! And you know I love blue and white. So thank you for all of your actionable tips for decorating with these lovely colors for Fall. Thanks for showing me that orange can work even if it’s not my normal go to color! Pinned and thanks for joining e this week!
Everything looks gorgeous Kate! I love the touches of orange. Happy Fall!
Absolutely beautiful. Happy to abe touring with you this week. Pinned!
The touches of orange throughout your home are lovely, Kate! I have to agree… velvet makes colors look so much ‘more’, for sure! Love your table centerpiece, too! Gorgeous! Pinned!
Happy Fall Kate! Your home is so beautiful and I love how you decorated it for fall. The pumpkin napkins are so cute! xo
Your home is just stunning, Kate. The rusty oranges you have added to the blue and white decor are perfect. Your dining room table is so inviting, and how did you fold those napkins? So clever.
Kate, as a long-time lover of blue and white, I completely agree with you that orange is the perfect pop of fall to pair with the cool tones. It adds an energy and vibrance! Is it because blue and orange are opposite on the color wheel? Whatever the reason, your home is stunning! So fun to tour with you today!
Such beautiful, elegant fall details. Adore those gold leaves and the Pheasant feathers are stunning in your centerpiece! Everything looks perfectly fall. Enjoyed touring with you this week. Happy Fall!
Kate you had me and blue and white and I love your ideas on how to incorporate orange too. Beautiful ideas!
Hi Kate, I live in Texas, too! I love your pretty blue and white accents and your home is lovely! Blessings, Cecilia @My Thrift Store Addiction
I love the cute pumpkins on your table! Your home is so welcoming and lovely, thanks for sharing this!
Kate, what a beautiful and elegant home you have decorated. I love the rust and copper worked in with the navy for the fall season. Just stunning!
What a beautiful home you have, and I love how you decorated with navy and orange for the fall season. Every space flows so effortlessly into the next. The urn arrangement in the foyer is stunning!
Kate,
Your home is stunning, and I loved the napkin pumpkins. Great Tour!