The Day-After-Halloween Decor Swap: From Spooky to Thanksgiving

The candy is counted, the costumes are in the hamper, and the skeletons are starting to look a little out of place. Welcome to November 1, the unofficial start of harvest season. The good news: you don't need to start from scratch. With a smart swap, much of your fall foundation can stay right where it is. You simply trade the spooky for the cozy. Here's how to turn your Halloween house into a warm, welcoming Thanksgiving home in one afternoon.

Step 1: Sort Into Three Piles

Before you start pulling things down, walk through the house and yard and sort everything into three groups.

• Pack away: Anything clearly Halloween. Skeletons, ghosts, bats, witches, spiders, tombstones and creepy cloth.
• Keep out: Anything that simply says autumn. Plain pumpkins, maple leaf garlands, warm white or orange lights, lanterns, hay bales, mums and plaid throws.
• Maybe: Pieces that could go either way with a little styling. Black accents, orange candles and carved-looking pumpkins fall here.

For the maybe pile, ask one question: does it look spooky or cozy on its own? A plain black lantern with a warm candle reads as cozy. A black lantern with a skull next to it reads as Halloween.

Step 2: Pack Halloween Away the Right Way

A little care now saves you frustration next October.

1. Dry everything first. Inflatables, fabric figures and anything that sat outside should be completely dry before storage.
2. Remove batteries from animated props, candles and lights so they don't corrode over the winter.
3. Coil lights loosely around a piece of cardboard to prevent tangles.
4. Keep small parts together. Bag the stakes, ropes and remotes with the item they belong to.
5. Label your bins by area, like "porch," "yard" or "mantel," so next year's setup is fast.
6. Take photos of your favorite setups before you take them down.

Step 3: Refresh the Front Door

The front door is the easiest place to make the swap feel complete.

Replace any Halloween wreath with a harvest one. The 17.7 in Autumn Wreath with Pumpkin, Leaves, Berries and Flowers mixes autumn leaves, a little pumpkin, red berries and flowers. It's made of durable PE for indoor and outdoor use, and you can fluff the leaves for the look you like.

Next, add some glow. The 4 x 12 in Orange Flameless LED Pillar Candles are waterproof and weather resistant, with a remote and timer, and they're made to glow from Halloween through Thanksgiving. If they were part of your spooky porch, they can simply stay put.

Then frame the door with garland. The 3-Pack 30 ft Lighted Fall Maple Leaf Garland with Timer twines realistic maple leaves with 60 warm LEDs. It's battery operated and waterproof, and the built-in timer turns the lights on automatically.

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Pumpkins and Berries Waiting at Your Front Door

17.7 in Autumn Wreath with Pumpkin, Leaves, Berries and Flowers

$43.99MSRP $66.30

Tall Orange Candles That Laugh at the Rain

4 x 12 in Orange Flameless LED Pillar Candles with Remote, Set of 2

$72.99MSRP $85.00

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Autumn Leaves That Glow Right On Schedule

3-Pack 30 ft Lighted Fall Maple Leaf Garland with 60 LEDs and Timer

$56.99MSRP $80.00

Porch tip: Your pumpkins may still be fine. Uncarved pumpkins often last for weeks in cool weather. Toss any carved ones, then regroup the rest with mums, a plaid blanket and your pillar candles.

Step 4: Transform the Mantel and Shelves

Mantels usually hold the most Halloween decor, so this is where the swap shows the most.

• Change the garland. Swap spider webs and bats for leaves. The 2-Pack 5.9 ft Fall Maple Leaf Garland with 40-LED String Lights includes two colorful garlands and a 16.4 ft string light to weave through them.
• Add warm light. The 2-Pack 24 in Lighted Autumn Maple Tree Lamps have orange and red maple leaves with 24 LEDs per tree and bendable branches. Set one at each end of the mantel. They run on batteries or USB.
• Hang a few harvest accents. The 6-Piece Plush Fall Thanksgiving Hanging Ornaments include pumpkin, maple leaf, turkey and nut designs, each about 6 inches tall with a 3.5 in loop. Hang them from the garland or from a small tabletop tree that held Halloween ornaments last week.

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Fall Foliage That Glows Right on Your Table

2-Pack 24 in Lighted Autumn Maple Tree Lamps with 24 LEDs

$55.99MSRP $90.00

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Soft Little Turkeys and Pumpkins to Hang Anywhere

6-Piece 6 in Plush Fall Thanksgiving Hanging Ornaments

$34.99MSRP $107.00

Styling tip: Keep the same basic shape as your Halloween mantel, with tall pieces at the ends and lower pieces in the middle. Swapping items one for one is faster than redesigning from scratch.

Step 5: Cozy Up the Living Room and Bedroom

Soft goods do a lot of the work in a seasonal swap, and they take minutes.

• Pillows. The 18 x 18 in Watercolor Pumpkin Thanksgiving Pillow Covers, Set of 4 bring watercolor pumpkins and maple leaves to the sofa. For texture, add the Set of 2 Pumpkin Caramel Faux Fur Jacquard Pillow Covers.
• Throws. The 50 x 60 in Yellow Fall Throw Blanket is lightweight and cheerful for movie nights.
• Bedding. If your bedroom went full Halloween, the 3-Piece Pumpkin and Autumn Leaves Quilt Set includes a quilt and two pillow shams, is machine washable in cold water and comes in Queen or King.

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Give the Sofa a Cozy Harvest Makeover

18 x 18 in Watercolor Pumpkin Thanksgiving Pillow Covers, Set of 4

$50.99MSRP $60.00

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Fall Asleep in a Pile of Autumn Leaves

3-Piece Pumpkin and Autumn Leaves Quilt Set

From $46.99MSRP $54.99

Step 6: Reset the Table

Your Halloween table can become a harvest table with a few changes.

1. Swap the runner. Trade black gauze for the 10 ft Orange Cheesecloth Table Runner, which layers beautifully with candles, pumpkins and leaves. For an everyday look, the Boho Macrame Table Runner with Tassels is 12 x 72 in in beige cotton.
2. Keep the pumpkins, lose the faces. Small plain pumpkins and gourds make an easy centerpiece.
3. Move the maple. A lighted maple tree or leftover garland works just as well down the center of the table as on the mantel.

You don't need to set the full Thanksgiving table yet. For that, our Thanksgiving table decor ideas have you covered.

Step 7: Swap the Yard

If a big Halloween inflatable just came down, fill the space with a harvest one. The 4.9 ft Inflatable Thanksgiving Turkey has built-in white LEDs and includes 4 stakes, 2 drawstrings, a sandbag and a storage bag. Put it where your Halloween inflatable stood and you can often reuse the same outlet and cord route, which makes setup quick. Use every stake and follow the manufacturer's instructions.

Want a softer touch? String the 32 ft Orange Floral Fabric Bunting Banner along a porch rail or fence. It's rated for indoor or outdoor use.

Enjoy the Harvest Season

The swap is done, the house feels warm, and you still have a few weeks before the Christmas boxes come out. Browse our full Thanksgiving collection, find more Thanksgiving wreaths and garlands, or look back at our fall front door decor ideas for more porch inspiration.

Orders ship from US warehouses and usually arrive in 5-10 business days, with free shipping on orders over $99 in the lower 48 and 30-day returns. Order this week and your harvest pieces will be ready well before Thanksgiving.