Autumn Lantern Decor: Step by Step in Under 30 Minutes

October 9, 2025 - By Kristina

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If you love modern farmhouse decor, you likely have many lanterns that can be used from season to season. Dress up your lanterns for autumn with this easy style in under 30 minutes.

Two fall decorated lanterns. One large on the left and a slightly smaller size on the right. Both insides are filled with Indian corn in the back, a pillar candle, and mini gourds. The lanterns are topped with a hand-tied bow. The ribbon of the bow is a dark burgundy and a light burlap with fall leaves.

Decorating lanterns for fall instantly adds a warm, cozy charm to any decor display. Their versatility makes them a perfect decor staple, allowing you to create countless variations of the same piece. They enable you to go from modern farmhouse to French country charm or even add a bit of glam with a glittered ribbon. Best of all, lanterns are the perfect way to light up your fall displays and add just the right touch of ambiance.

How To: Quick, Easy, Affordable Lantern Decor

Grab your choice of lantern, a light source, and your favorite fall fillers and let’s dress up your lanterns for fall in less than 30 minutes with these easy steps!

Choosing Your Lantern

For fall, choose a lantern that is big enough to place mini pumpkins or gourds inside. If your lanterns are on the small side, there are many other natural elements, such as acorns or pinecones, to bring in the seasonal charm. Choose one lantern or many lanterns, it all depends on your fall display vision.

Two farmhouse lanterns. One large on the left and a slightly smaller size on the right. The top of the lanterns is a black, matte metal and the main part of the lantern is made out of a light wood. Each pane has a cross pattern with glass windows.

Light your Lantern

Adding lighting to your lantern not only draws the eye to the piece within your display, but if you are using the lanterns by your entryway, it creates a warm, welcoming feel. If you have plenty of space in your lantern, choose a pillar candle with a timer. If your space is limited, you may opt for something like a battery-operated fairy light or tea light that takes up less space and is more easily incorporated with your fall items.

I chose large lanterns for this decor display, so I selected a pillar candle in two different sizes for each of my lanterns.

Fill the Inside

Gather all of your favorite fall fillers to add a cozy, seasonal charm to your lantern. If you have a small lantern, opt for petite items like pinecones, mini gourds or bundles of cinnamon sticks. For larger lanterns, consider incorporating some of the following items:

Mini pumpkins or gourds
Indian Corn
Birch logs or branches
Faux branches with a colorful leaf or fall floral
Small mums
Dried Florals

Fall Fillers on a brown table. Starting from the back the fillers include two bundles of three Indian corn in varying color, one large bundle and one small. In the middle there are 5 mini pumpkins and gourds ranging in color from white, to yellow to orange. In the foreground there are two ribbon bolts on the left and two white pillar candles on the right. The ribbons are a dark burgundy and a light burlap with fall leaves.

If you have multiple sizes of lanterns, keep in mind that the decor used in each of them should be similar and cohesive.

To tie my lanterns in with the rest of my fall decor, I tucked Indian corn in the back to add a natural, dried texture and rich autumn color, then layered in a mix of small pumpkins and gourds for added depth and seasonal charm.

A single farmhouse lantern with the door open. The inside has a large bundle of Indian corn in the back, a pillar candle, and mini pumpkins in the front.

Beautify the Outside

To elevate the look of your lantern, consider adding some dried florals tied to the top with raffia or a bow. I love to hand-tie my own bows – it’s a simple way to introduce unique colors and textures that go beyond the typical store-bought style, adding a personal, handcrafted touch to your fall display. Click here to hand-tie this bow with me.

Two bolts of ribbon with the ribbon wound around each other on a brown table. Fall farmhouse lantern in the background. The ribbon a dark burgundy and a light burlap with fall leaves.

A single Farmhouse lantern topped with a hand-tied bow. The ribbon of the bow is a dark burgundy and a light burlap with fall leaves.

Pull Everything Together: Create the Vignette

Now that you have created your beautiful fall lanterns, it’s time to complete your seasonal vignette by incorporating a few more autumnal touches. I created my lanterns for my front entryway, then brought the whole look together by layering fall rugs, placing additional pumpkins around the space, and adding a vibrant mum in my all-season planter. To top it all off, I added a whimsical fall wreath on the front door – the perfect finishing touch to welcome guests with warmth and charm.

A fall front door vignette. Two layered fall rugs are in the center. A white Wisconsin Home planter is on the right with a yellow mum and two stacked pumpkins - large orange on the bottom and small green on the top. To the left are the fall farmhouse decorated lanterns and on the door is an airy, fall-colored, dried wreath.

Decorative lanterns are not just for the outdoors! If you are modern farmhouse lover like me, you likely have many sets of lanterns! Give them each their own look and theme and place them throughout your home for a cohesive, cozy, and warm fall decor look this season!

Common Questions

Can I use these for Halloween Decor? Any easy suggestions on upgrading this look without creating a whole new look? Absolutely! The easiest way to upgrade this for Halloween is to add some fake spiderwebs and either a cute or spooky spider to the top of the lantern. Easy add, and easy removal so that you can enjoy your styled lantern all the way to Thanksgiving!

Are there alternatives to using wire to tie ribbon or bows to the top of the lantern? If you are worried about a metal wire scratching your lanterns, a great alternative is to use pipe cleaners! They are still able to hold your decor in place, but will be a softer material so they don’t wreck your decor pieces.

How can I keep the budget of this decor piece in check? This is a great question! Decor pieces can get pretty pricey and reusing pieces is always key in our home! As I said in the post, lanterns are versitle and can be reused in many different ways. I would also get candles that are battery operated and can be used multiple times and in different seasons. Indian corn and dried items hold up well year to year, so store them inside in a dry place for extended use. I have used my Indian corn for the last three years!