The $3 Fall Decor You Should Buy at Trader Joe’s This Month

I’m a lazy holiday decorator. I’m completely fine with throwing a pumpkin or gourd on the table, and calling it a day. If said decorations work for multiple holidays, all the better. Which is why I love walking into Trader Joe’s. Groceries aside, there’s always some new, seasonal item found right inside their front door—pumpkins, eucalyptus, and alstroemerias to name a few— that I can buy and keep around for months. I was there this past weekend and spotted these natural wheat stalks, and I flipped out a little bit.

I’m hear to tell you that, as fall decor goes, natural dried wheat is one of my very favorite things. It lasts forever, it’s classic, and it’s so very versatile. If you’ve never used it before, and need some ideas, look no further:

Let’s start with one super basic concept. Take a couple of empty glass vases and place a stalk or two in each one. There, you’re done.

Or, cluster a group of stalks together, tie with some string or twine, lay down on your plates, and your Thanksgiving table decorating is complete.

But look at the drama a large bundle brings! Use a series of wheat sheaves as a simple, stunning centerpiece that’s a nice alternative to traditional cut flowers.

I love the simplicity of this horseshoe wreath hung in the kitchen. Amanda shares a tutorial on how to make one yourself over on her blog, Sincerely Marie Designs.

I’m sharing this one to show that wheat stalks aren’t just for rustic or country decor. Like pampas grass, it’s organic and neutral, so it works particularly well in all the stripped back minimalist settings we’re seeing these days.

This is more of an advanced move, but it’s also one of the very best things around: wheat weaving. This folk art involves braiding and folding the stalks in multiple designs, each of which has their own meaning and use. There are wheat weaving books out there if you want to learn the craft.

Also amazing: full wheat wreaths. Here’s a good how to from Blooming Homestead. Of course, if you don’t feel like making one, Target has your back with this one from Smith & Hawken for $45.

Have you decorated with wheat before?