Inside a Quaint Connecticut Cottage That’s Decorated for Fall All Year Long

At home, Deborah loves decorating her cottage for the different seasons, but she especially enjoys celebrating the arrival of autumn. “Fall for me is a gigantic fantasy because it’s all about abundance,” she says. The more-is-more spirit starts on her porch, where she turns piles of flat “Cinderella” pumpkins into topiaries and ordinary grapevine into a show-stopping 6-foot wreath.

The entry space is the style equivalent of a cheerily brisk fall beach day. And that’s no accident: Deborah’s hometown of Westport is a coastal community on Long Island Sound. The barely blue paint color provides a breezy backdrop for a little sweep of something from the garden—like this oakleaf hydrangea—and understated white “Baby Boo” pumpkins. The sage bamboo chairs, turquoise bottles, and chippy green console table, all from Terrain, reinforce the organic palette.

Get the Look:
Wall Paint: Patriotic White by Benjamin Moore

After undoing a previous owner‘s remodel, Deborah wanted to keep things simple. The kitchen’s tongue-and-groove ceiling, white marble backsplash, and black granite countertops allow various seasonal creations to take center stage on a stainless steel island, which she commissioned from a local restaurant supply company.

Deborah’s love of autumn color is evident in the living room's orange velvet sofas that date back to 1962, when her parents splurged on the mod pair. The rustic buffet, with pegs in place of nails, was lovingly crafted by her grandfather. “Putting mod little sofas next to a Shaker-like sideboard is, for me, what’s fun about decorating,” Deborah says. Made from an iron gate, the coffee table adds an outdoorsy touch to the gathering space.

“Sometimes we forget the beauty of simple things,” says Deborah, a lifelong devotee of the popular McCoy pottery that began production in 1848 and continued until the 1990s. Stashed in hanging rack above a bright blue cabinet, the pottery’s vibrant greens really pop in the company of ironstone serving pieces.

Here's how to make Deborah’s easy DIY terrariums:
Place 2 to 3 inches of small gravel (for drainage) in a jar followed by a couple inches of soil. Nestle in hardy plants—Deborah loves mini ferns and succulents—and personalize with trinkets (toy deer, tiny houses) to add whimsy. Water as needed.

Deborah repurposed the top of an antique silverware box to create this home bar set against the stone chimney. The chrome base is from West Elm.

Like the garden clippings that fill the house, the bedroom’s iron bed was plucked from nature. Sort of. It was a lucky roadside find near Acadia National Park. The bed, along with the white walls and neutral sisal carpet, allows collectibles and antiques—old books, flea market finds, and an antique glass cabinet from a dentist’s office—to coexist. And to add a few more pops of nature in the bedrooms, Deborah displays dried thistles in old apothecary bottles and a long row of succulents in a vintage gutter.

Opposite the bed, a wall of built-ins creates a cozy home office. Deborah found the vintage “Floral Way” sign that hangs on the window at a London flea market.

Here's how to make Deborah's easy DIY hanging arrangements:
Deborah lines round zinc baskets with sheet moss, then fills them with soil and dried angel vine (it looks like “a big tumbleweed,” she says), which, like a flower frog, helps hold things in place. From there, anything goes. Add annuals, pumpkins, succulents, or cut branches for a boost of color.

Searching for sculptural seed pods and scooping up acorns while walking her dog, Nell, also forces Deborah to slow down and get inspired by the beauty in her own neighborhood. “There's something spiritual about feeling connected to the earth and living with plants,” she says. “It's wonderful to have that layer, and it works whether you live in a modern glass house or a traditional space.”