Autumn leaves on a tray blog tour

I am so glad you are here since I am sharing the next installment of “on a tray” blog tours. These tours are always so much fun and full of inspiration! Today is an Autumn Leaves themed tray styling. Come on in and be inspired for the season with a variety of Autumn leaves tray designs.

Thank you to Katherine from Katherine’s Corner blog for organizing this amazing blog tour, which provides so much seasonal inspiration. It’s so much fun to look at and learn from everyone’s different point of views. All the participating blogs are listed at the end of the post for you to enjoy at your leisure.

If you’re coming over from Thrifting Wonderland, welcome. I am sure you enjoyed Lynne’s Autumn leaves tray masterpiece.

In case you missed it, the last tray tour was the {summer on a tray blog tour} and last year’s autumn tray is here {autumn on a tray blog tour}. I also list all the other tray tours at the end of the post.

*Affiliate links included for your convenience.

are you team faux or team natural for organic decor?

I love organic decor and when possible I prefer to use natural items like flowers, plants, pine cones, etc. I understand real might not work for everyone. There are allergies and availability and many other variables to contend with. So whether you use real or faux there are so many great looks to achieve.

Although I prefer real and natural, I do straddle the fence and use some faux elements too. Let me share all the Autumn Leaves feels on this tray styling, using a variety of leaf styles.

For this styling I used an oval silver tray on the bombe chest in the foyer, morphing from this earlier fall styling {simple early fall decor styling using pine cones and vintage milk glass}.

This tray was a fabulous thrift find, and I use it all the time. I love the black handles, and tiny round feet and the delicate, intricate detail on the edge. So many great details on this tray! Thrift store shopping is a fantastic way to find unique and inexpensive decor pieces. Make sure to drop by next week for the next installment of “thrifted goodies” with a fun Thanksgiving project.

Now, come on in and jump into my pile of autumn leaves!

tray styling with organic Autumn Leaves

I used a variety of real leaves in this styling. Some are fresh plucked right from the ground, while others have dried over time.

forage from nature

I love using nature in my decor and everywhere I go, I forage right from Mother Nature’s pocket. Whether it’s leaves as in this instance or pine cones or mossy branches etc. The most important aspect of this is to always respect where you are foraging from. A rule of thumb for me is to only pick up things from the ground that have already dropped. I never pluck or cut from a plant or a tree etc., unless it’s my own yard and then it’s fair game. 🙂

I filled the thrifted silver urn I shared here {thrifted goodies – vintage trophies & awards}, with a variety of foraged leaves. There are large oak leaves, which I found in the yard of my son’s new house in Eugene, Oregon, when we dropped him off for his senior year. Some are crumpled and cracked since the boys did not understand the importance of my leaves and threw items on top of them in the bag. 😆

The smaller oak leaves I found with my daughter downtown when we were running errands this past weekend. She came home to visit and see Misty, our new pup, instead of us going to visit her for parent’s weekend in Boulder, Colorado. She found some really pretty ones and we were cracking up because we kept finding more and more as we kept looking.

There are also some magnolia leaves from our neighbors tree, which fall on our driveway.all.the.time. This was one of the few times I was happy I had leaves to pick up.

buy fresh stems

Obviously, you can buy fresh stems with leaves but this can get expensive. I like to naturally dry some items to use year after year, like this eucalyptus branches my friends gifted me a few years back. The dried stems are overflowing from an oversized farmhouse pitcher.

I absolutely love the pods and save them when they fall off. I have them spilling over onto the tray since I love the organic feels they give off.

dried & preserved leaves

My friends got these at Terrain, which begs me to believe they were on the expensive side so I will continue to use them as long as I can. I also have these eucalyptus branches from this project {a pink floral table scape with DIY oilcloth chargers}, which dried naturally. As the leaves turn they have become these beautiful soft hues.

The colors of the dried leaves lend themselves to a Fall color palette. Even if you do not dry your own leaves there are plenty of resources to buy preserved leaves.

using faux stems for a Autumn Leaves styling

buy decorator stems

Buying faux stems is a great way to get longevity out of your pieces since they should last for many years. Faux florals have come a long way and you can find some really nice, pretty pieces. I used an oak leaf branch with velvet acorns, laying on the front of the tray.

The super yummy candle is from my talented bloggy friend, Rachel @ the Antique Journey. I always like to have a scented candle in the front hall to welcome friends with seasonal aromas. Give Rachel a visit and check out her shoppe.

craft your own autumn leaves

You can also create your own faux leaves and crafts. This {DIY metallic leaf wreath} was a fun project last year. And it now creates a great back drop for this Autumn tray vignette.

The tutorial with all the instructions is in the original post, which you can follow in the link above. Here are a couple of paper leaf projects for additional ideas here {bookprint leaf garland DIY} and here {woodland autumn mantel}.

final thoughts on the Autumn Leaves tray styling

I would not normally decorate with all the leaves together, but I just wanted to have the different effects to show the different looks you can create with different leaf types.

I hope something speaks to you and inspires you to decorate with Autumn leaves this season. I will be sharing some outdoor seasonal decor next week so please make sure to come back

more autumn leaves tray inspiration

Now make sure to follow the blog tour to the next stop and visit Rachelle @ my Hubbard Home. Remember there are 12 other creative bloggers, which you can visit to be inspired by their autumn leaves tray masterpieces.

previous tray blog tours

Listed below are all the other tray blog tours I have had the pleasure to participate in.

get the Autumn leaves tray look

“Every leaf speaks bliss to me | Fluttering from the Autumn tree.”

Emiily Bronte

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sharing @ between naps on the porch