As days and nights grow chilly, it’s time to give the house that warm and inviting holiday feeling. These great decorating ideas will lend an elegant touch of seasonal charm.

The front porch is a fun place to start celebrating the harvest season. Lean old garden tools against bunches of dried corn stalks and place sheaves of wheat in a metal bucket tied with a ribbon in front of them. If you have the space, a bale of hay is a great place to display pots of autumn blooming flowers like mums. Add a pumpkin or two and sprinkle liberally with fallen red and orange leaves to complete the autumn feeling.

Candles on the mantle also add a warm glow. Wicker baskets filled with colorful squash, pumpkins, Indian corn, and dried flowers will complement these areas as well.

Once Thanksgiving has passed, garlands of evergreens can dress up railings, mantels and doorways. They’re easy to make, too.

• Gather a wheelbarrow full of evergreen trimmings—the smaller the branches, the better.
  
  
• Cut the trimmings into six-inch lengths.
  
  
• Lay a ten-foot piece of twine on a large, flat surface. Tie a loop at one end. Attach the end of a spool of light florist’s wire to the loop.
  
  
• Gather a small bunch of trimmings and arrange with all the stems pointing the same direction. Place them at the loop end of the string with the stems pointing toward the long part of the string.
  
  
• Wrap the stems and string with the florist’s wire to secure them. Double wrap and pull tight. Leave the wire uncut.
  
  

• Overlap another bunch of trimmings, covering the stems of the first bunch, and again secure with wire.
  
  
• Repeat these steps until you reach the end of the twine.
  
  
• Knot the wire and string together. Cut the wire with about ten inches extending past the twine. The loose wire can be used to hang the garland or to chain multiple garlands together.

Making elegant and fragrant evergreen swags to hang on doors and walls is simple, too. Just use floral wire to fasten two-foot pieces of evergreen cuttings into a graceful fan shape, leaving a bit of wire to make a loop for hanging. Tie a bow around the ends of the branches with ribbon, and let the ends trail elegantly.

A grapevine wreath is an excellent base for your creativity to flourish. Weave in twigs of birch, evergreens, dried flowers, or lavender – your imagination is the limit. To give a Thanksgiving accent, use florist’s wire to attach a small piece of Indian corn. For Christmas, add a festive red bow or holly berries. Hang them on doorways, or use as a centerpiece.

Vibrant poinsettias liven up the entryway and mantle, but be careful to keep them away from cold, they’re really tropical plants. Stop by the floral department or order Fresh Flowers, direct to your door!