Thanksgiving is the culmination of harvest time. Fresh fruits, vegetables, pumpkins, nuts, Indian corn, varieties of gourds, squashes and fall flowers are available to use when decorating your home for a warm, festive touch.

Decorating your home with a harvest theme for Thanksgiving is a creative way to bring a touch of Autumn indoors. There are so many techniques for taking advantage of the natural bounty of the season in your decorating scheme.

A mantel is the ideal focal point for your decorating endeavor.

* Fall bounty

Whether located in the living room, den or dining room, a mantel banked with fall leaves, small pumpkins, colorful gourds and Indian corn with husks will exude the ambiance you are hoping to achieve. Add a couple of cinnamon or pumpkin scented pillar candles in brown or orange tones, a ceramic turkey or a slightly larger pumpkin in the center, and your mantel will be all dressed up in Fall finery and ready for your Thanksgiving day celebration.

If you have a mirror over the mantel, that is a perfect backdrop for your rustic theme. Otherwise, you can replace whatever ordinarily graces the wall with a grapevine wreath adorned with leaves, pinecones and berries.

* Fresh fruits and nuts

Another option for your harvest-themed Thanksgiving mantel is to use fresh fruits and nuts. Apples, in particular, lend themselves to decorating uses. A basket filled with varieties of crisp apples placed on the hearth will complement the display on the mantel above.

Line the mantel surface with fall leaves and top with a row of crisp apples, about six inches apart. Insert small white candles into the stem top of each apple and scatter pine cones and nuts between the apple candle holders. You can attach coordinating smaller apples and nuts to the grapevine wreath on the wall above.

This idea also works well using tiny pumpkin gourds in lieu of apples.

* Formal

If you want a more formal look, use a large glass bowl or a huge glass candle globe in the center of the mantel. Fill with oranges, limes, lemons and nuts. Put groups of white pillar candles of different heights on both sides. Scatter a few nuts across the surface. This works especially well with a mirror backdrop. When the candles are lit in the evening, your room will have a cozy, romantic glow.

* Casual

For a casual, country look, fill a rustic watering can, or pail, with chrysanthemums for the center of the mantel. Scatter apples, pears, and oranges across the surface on both sides with fall leaves and berries mingled about.

On the wall above have a grapevine wreath covered with berries, with or without a plaid ribbon in fall colors. A small ceramic duck tucked beside the container of mums will be an added spark of rustic interest.

These are different methods I have used over the years to change the look of my mantel for Thanksgiving. Hopefully, they will give you some ideas for creating your own unique decorating scheme.

Decorating a mantel for Thanksgiving does not take any special artistic talent. With all the natural materials that abound to be used for decorating, you are only limited by your imagination.

Dressing up your mantel for the holiday is a good way to convey the message, Welcome to my home, to all your guests on Thanksgiving.

Learn more about this author, Carol Gioia.
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