Seasonal window dressings - Autumn

Inspiration

BY Abi Clewley

Published: 20 October 2021 Updated: 12 September 2024

Inspiration
Tags: Blinds, Shutters, Trends

Living room with olive green walls, beige sofa and two large windows dressed in white shutters, louvres open.

When autumn curls its darker nights around your home, there’s little better than closing your shutters or lowering your blinds and settling down with a good book or some television and blocking out the world, not to mention the wild and windy weather outside. So what are the best solutions for creating a snug and relaxing setting as the nights start to draw in? Consider colour, texture and ease of use and you’ll be off to a good start.

Moodboard of autumnal colours with fabric samples, a postcard reading "Hello Autumn", tawny feathers and copper leaves.

Autumn brings some of the most beautiful colours into nature’s palette - gold, russet, amber, olive green, rich plum, smoky charcoal - and incorporating these colours into your space can make a fundamental difference. If you prefer a more neutral look overall, you can add touches of autumnal colour with throws, cushions and other accessories, including plants and flowers and increase the different textures.

Close up of window with Roman blind in deep grey with dense pattern, dark and pale grey accessories on window sill.

Autumn works really well in texture; it's the perfect mid-way stop between the breezy flowing fabrics of summer and the plush velvet of winter so you're quite spoiled for choice. With Roman blinds you can enjoy a range of textures, from jacquard, embroidery, linens and silks, Roller blinds bring colour and pattern, while Duette® blinds can have silken or linen-effect, and patterns that appear as a texture. Anything that ruffles the smooth flatness without being overly plush will work well and if you can combine it with bold autumnal colours then the impact will be doubled. Of course that can include cushions, throws and even furniture.

Close up from above of wooden dining chair with wicker seat pulled out from under a pale wood table, on a pale marble tiled floor with rays of light on the chair and floor, casting shadows.

Natural light is probably one of the biggest challenges you need to consider when it comes to autumn styling. This is because it really fluctuates during autumn and it's one of the most notable signs that the seasons are changing, as the mornings begin to stay dark for longer and the daylight begins to wane earlier with every passing day. This reduction in daylight hours means you're using your window dressing for a greater period of time so they become even more of a feature in your room than before.

Living room in pale corn yellow with tall window dressed in full height shutters in salmon with sofa in pale peach with contrasting peach and salmon cushions.

Shutters have the benefit of working well in every season and autumn is no exception. Depending on the style of shutters you have, there are a variety of different options you can choose to get the autumnal feeling. Styles such as Full Height, Tier on Tier and Solid shutters all create that snug feeling when they’re closed and often that can be enough. For Café style shutters, where only a portion of the window is covered, you’re likely to want additional solutions. You can opt for a range of blind styles and fabrics and choose to lower them fully behind your shutters or simply to meet the top. And don’t forget that shutters come in more than just white; our hardwood shutters feature a range of wood stains that are perfect for autumnal looks, such as Ginger Snap, Floral Cherry and the aptly named Autumn’s Eve, while our colour shutter collection includes green, ochre and grey in warm shades for a more modern look.

Burnt ochre living room with corner brown velvet sofa, modern copper-based table in centre and two large windows dressed in deep blue duette blinds three-quarters lowered.

The enormous range of blinds available can be overwhelming when it comes to choosing the best one, but again, if you focus on what matters most to you, it can help narrow the field. If you want a traditional look, with a wide choice of colour, texture and pattern then Roman blinds are the most obvious choice. If ease of use is at the top of your list, then take a look at blinds that can be powered by remote, such as our specialist Duette® blinds which also have individual properties, including thermal benefits, colours and textures.

Living area with grey sofa and low table on a rug over a wooden floor with gable end dressed in pale caramel duette blinds at varying levels.

With their honeycomb structure that helps stop heat escaping from windows and doors, Duette® blinds are a good choice for the cooler days (and nights) of autumn. They may just be enough to stop you turning the central heating on or lighting the fire for a few weeks more. Dependant on the way you choose to have them fitted, you can also benefit from different styles, such as floating, where they can be operated from both top and bottom for precise placement in your window. This is ideal as the sun is much lower in the sky and it changes the angle the light comes in at. You can also choose a twin shade blind, which gives you the option of two different fabrics working together to provide an optimum blind. Pair a sheer with a dim out and you have a blind that can deal with a sunny day equally well as a rainy day, plus the range of colours offers a number of autumnal shades.

Pale grey lounge with pale wood floor and large faded geometric patterned forest green rug with table and green accessores, green sofa with cushions in dark green and cream in front of bay window dressed in two narrow and one wide Roman blinds in deep green with feint jacquard weave

Roman blinds are a perennial favourite and they're a blind that can work for every season. One of the reasons they're popular as an autumn window dressing is the sheer choice of colour - whichever of the season's hues appeal to you, you're bound to be able to find a Roman blind in it. If you don't want to be so bold with colour but prefer a more subtle nod to the season, choose a blind with embroidered detailing - it's a luxurious touch that adds a little warmth, and if the styling involves leaves or flowers so much the better.

Bathroom with flagstone tile floor, pale green walls and ceiling white bath in front of picture windows dressed in roller blind with fern pattern.

Roller blinds are often overlooked as a viable option for autumn window dressing and it's a shame, as they actually offer many benefits for this time of year. From a colour perspective you're almost as spoiled for choice as with Roman blinds, with a veritable rainbow of colours available. And that versatility doesn't stop with just colours. While Roller blinds do tend to be predominantly made from polyester, that doesn't mean they only come in one fabric look, far from it. At one end of the scale you have sheer options, more suitable for warmer times, right the way through to blackout fabrics, ideal for freezing winter nights. Choose a fitting style that sits outside of the window frame and you can layer two Roller blinds over one another for a warmer look and feel too. They're also a good option for patio doors, as they can roll up into a cassette out of the way of the door, leaving you total access to go in and out, ideal for a spot of fall season gardening, in between the rain showers.

Living room in neutral tones with two adjacent windows dressed in pale yellow-gold pleated blinds lowered midway, pale grey couch with green cushions in front of window, low round table with yellow teapot and cups, yellow gorse in corner under woman's portrait.

Pleated blinds can bring you heat benefits, colour, texture and flexibility of fitting all wrapped up in one underestimated blind. With a variety of opacities you can choose what works best for your individual rooms, and also enjoy the fitting options that Duette blinds offer too. Colours tend to be more subtle on the whole, but there's still depth and rustic looks to be found. Specialist coatings can provide thermal benefits and there's even textures and patterns to help develop that snug autumnal feel.

Room with dark sage green walls, small soft white drawer unit, grey table lamp, small white radiator in window recess which is tall and narrow, dressed in a mid-brown wood venetian blind, fully lowered, louvres tilted.

Balancing the fluctuating light levels of one autumn day to another is one of the innate peculiarities of autumn, with its eternally shifting light levels and angles and here's where the slatted vanes of Wooden blinds come to the fore, allowing you precision placement for optimum benefit. While there may be a more limited colour palette than with other blinds in some ways the stained colours of natural wood are more intrinsically autumn. You can really draw on that fact for further inspiration in your autumn decorations and incorporate natural fabrics and accessories with the same tones - switch flowery potpourri for glossy conkers, summer pastel throws for forest green and really bring the season to life inside.