I created a budget-friendly rustic fall tablescape using thrift store finds and making my own neutral painted pumpkins. This tablescape is perfect for everyday use throughout the autumn season.

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Last week was the first official day of Fall….so if you’ve been starting to decorate your home for a Fall a bit here and there, you don’t have to feel absolutely crazy anymore! I was looking for a simple way to make our home feel a little bit more like Fall and the dining room table was the perfect place to start.

Sometimes when I create tablescapes to share with you on the blog, I go ALL OUT…. place settings, name cards, etc. etc. but today’s rustic fall tablescape is REALLY simple. In fact, it was put together with painted pumpkins from the Dollar Tree and (almost) everything else was from a thrift store!

For your convenience, at the bottom of this post there is a full source list of all of the materials and things I used to put this rustic fall tablescape together. There’s also a video showing you how you can recreate this tablescape at home! 

 

First, let’s talk more about these painted pumpkins from the Dollar Tree that I mentioned. I had seen others paint pumpkins and I wanted to give it a try. Guys…it was SO EASY.

How to paint pumpkins from Dollar Tree:

1. Grab a bunch of pumpkins from Dollar Tree.
2. Give them a quick spray with white spray paint. You do this so the orange color doesn’t bleed through the craft paint. I tried it with this step and it wasn’t pretty. Trust me.
3. Brush on a couple coats of pastel colored acrylic craft paint with a foam brush.
4. Finish by dry brushing some white acrylic craft paint on with an old paint brush. This gives the pumpkins a softer and more rustic look.
5. Seriously…..that’s it. If you were worried about the paint chipping, you could seal them with this spray sealer…but honestly, they are just sitting there looking pretty. I don’t think the paint will chip at all.
6. P.S. I also grabbed some burlap pumpkins from Dollar Tree and dry brushed them with a little white acrylic paint.

Now that you’ve got your pretty painted pumpkins, here’s the fun part! Use them to create a rustic fall tablescape.

Here’s how my simple rustic fall tablescape came together:

1. Base layer…table runner. Shhhh…. don’t tell anyone, ok? This ISN’T an actual table runner, it’s a scarf from my closet. You may be remember it from my farmhouse winter tablescape. Scarves are such a great table running replacement so you don’t have to go out and buy something else…just go shopping in your closet.
2. Wooden dough bowl. I got my hand carved wooden dough bowl at an estate sale and I love it. I put this smack dab in the middle of the table on top of my scarf table runner.
3. Add pumpkins to dough bowl. Once your painted pumpkins have dried, add those to your wooden bowl. If your bowl is large like mine, you can add something to the bottom as a filler so you don’t have to make as many pumpkins to fill it up. I added a couple books to mine underneath the pumpkins.
4. Add vintage bottles to each end of the bowl. I added a group of 3 vintage bottles to each end of the bowl. I mixed in clear glass and amber glass and added in dried wheat, DIY cotton stems (click here for full tutorial), and some faux fall florals. Lastly, I added in a couple of wooden spools of twine from my craft supplies…because why not? They were the perfect color and they fit right in with the rustic fall vibes.

I told you it was simple and thrifty!!

Looking for a wooden dough bowl of your own? Here’s some great options!

 

I love the neutral look and the touch of soft pastel colors that the painted pumpkins add.

I love that I was able to incorporate a bit of leather from my OOOOOODLES of free leather I got by doing this simple trick.

Vintage bottles are one of my favorite ways to decorate! I typically get mine at thrift stores or yard sales, but here are some great options online for vintage bottles:

I made some quick tassels and tied them on to some of the larger vintage bottles. Don’t you just love the texture that it added?

 

Source List for Rustic Fall Tablescape:

• “Table Runner” – it’s actually a scarf – Restoration Hardware
• Wooden Dough Bowl – I got this an estate sale, here’s some similar ones – Bowl 1 from Etsy – Bowl 2 from Wayfair – Bowl 3 from Amazon – Bowl 4 from Etsy
• Painted Pumpkins – Dollar Tree
  • White spray paint
  • 4 pastel colors of acrylic craft paint – I used Lite Mocha, Pale Daffodil, Cameo Pink and China Blue by Apple Barrel, which are just 50 cents each at Walmart
• Vintage Bottles – I got mine at thrift stores, but here are some awesome budget-friendly bottles on Etsy – Bottles 1 – Bottles 2 – Bottles 3 – Bottles 4
  • Dried wheat
  • Cottons stems – DIY for less than $2
  • Fall florals
• Wooden spools of twine
• Pinecone picks
• Leather Ties – Read how to get FREE leather of your own

Wanna see a video of how this tablescape comes together?