13 Of The Best Throw Blankets To Cozy Up With This Fall

We understand it can be difficult to strike a balance with fall decor! Too many items and your space can look cluttered; too few and the decor can appear unintentional. With this in mind, we love leaning into the natural elements of autumn for styling elements that make a statement but don't overwhelm your home's existing aesthetic. In our table setting, we leaned heavily on raw textures when creating this tablescape. Introducing materials like linen and rough hewn wood make this table feel fall-ready and as well as truly timeless. We love a linen tablecloth because it adds a casual layer (a little bit of wrinkling adds to the charm) and makes for easy clean up.

We are believers that simple place settings can make a significant design impact. For our thanksgivingtablescape, we used everyday flatware and dinner plates for a non-fussy effect. While we kept it streamlined with only one fork and knife per person, we still laid out both water and wine glasses for dinner guests' diverse beverage preferences. We love using whiskey tumblers as water glasses for an elevated effect. The finishing touch? A knotted linen napkin and a white-coloured mini pumpkinfor a charming nod to fall.

Isn't this terracotta vase just darling?! For any type of tablescape, we always endorse incorporating items you already lying around your home. These vases look harmonious amongst our DIY table setup as their rust colour is appropriate for fall and their scale works well with the rest of the tablescape. With the addition of some pampas grass clipped during a fall stroll, these vases are the perfect additions to our fall table.

We like to style the table with a sculptural pitcher filled with cold water for guests. To create this look in your own space, shop our fall tablescape below:

Jaguar's Coupe

Though originally crafted for a May holiday (hola, Cinco de Mayo), this drink can be a total fall mocktail. It's zesty and sweet all at the same time, and brings some warmth via bell pepper juice. Give this one a try when you don't feel like sipping on some alc. (via Nikola Nikoletić, Head Bartender at Patent Pending for Brit + Co.)

Ginger, Orange, Cranberry, + Raspberry Spritz

For this sipper, you'll use a can of Cranberry Raspberry Spindrift alongside some fresh ginger and orange to craft a crisp glass that's sure to bring forth fall feels. (via Spindrift)

Espresso Martini Mocktail

The girlies love an espresso martini – so make sure you've got this virgin recipe in your arsenal for your besties who don't drink. (via Pink Owl Kitchen)

Honey Blackberry Mint Mocktails

Blackberry and mint is *the* combo of the season. (via Bowl of Delicious)

Apple Lemonade

Apple juice (or cider) gets a citrusy twist from lemon juice in this crisp, refreshing fall mocktail. (via The Endless Meal)

Sparkling Cranberry Kombucha Mocktail

All fall cocktails require for that extra oomph is a splash of kombucha – this holiday-forward one will provide a great flavor transition from Thanksgiving to Christmas, with the help of cranberry. (via The Real Food Dietitians)

Non-Alcoholic Juicy Julep

This sip is seemingly summery, but we urge you to make it work for fall. It's heavenly. (via Completely Delicious)

Apple Cider Bourbon Cocktail

Swap the bourbon for sparkling water (or apple cider!) to make this fall-spiced cocktail a true mocktail. (via Amanda Wilens)

The Hermoine Granger

To make this cute Harry Potter-inspired mocktail, substitute the vodka for lemon juice and apple cider vinegar. (via Half Baked Harvest)

Woodford Spire Cocktail

Trade bourbon for black tea to make this cranberry-lemonade cocktail a very delish mocktail. (via Barley & Sage)

Pomegranate Pomander Spritz Mocktail

Non-alc bitters and vanilla extract work together to really forge some unforgettable flavors in this fall mocktail. (via The First Mess)

Harry Potter Pumpkin Juice

Inspired by the pumpkin juice at Harry Potter World, this fall mocktail mixes apple cider, pumpkin puree, and apricot nectar with vanilla and pumpkin spice – yummm. (via A Spicy Perspective)

Cranberry Mocktail

The thyme garnish on this fall mocktail is a no-brainer for amping up the seasonal vibes! (via Crowded Kitchen)

As a Power of Women honoree, Mariska was recognized in regards to her work as an advocate for sexual assault survivors. She took the stage and used her platform to discuss rape and assault conviction reversals, shining a light on the recent overturned ruling in Harvey Weinstein's landmark NYC case. Here's what she said:

Today I want to talk about reversing convictions, and more specifically I want to talk to you about how impossible it is to reverse mine. It’s impossible to reverse my conviction that survivors matter. It is impossible to reverse my conviction that what happens to us matters, and that our society must respond to survivors with a more a compassionate, holistically, deeper, and more nuanced understanding of what healing means.

It is impossible to reverse my conviction that after a trauma, survivors can reclaim lives of hope, of possibility, of audacious risk, beautiful intimacy, and glorious, glorious abundant joy. And I stand before you as evidence of that statement.

It is impossible to reverse my conviction that we must listen to survivors as experts on what justice means. It is extraordinary how little their voices are consulted, let alone incorporated, in the process of deciding how to repair harm. Justice is not a one-size-fits-all journey.

It is impossible to reverse my conviction that patriarchal impunity has to end. Patriarchal impunity is when a male-dominated system exempts perpetrators from punishment. Studies show that only 20% of all rape cases in the U.S. are reported to the police, and that between 5 and 0% of all rapes result in a guilty plea or a conviction. So why do 80% of victims not report? Because they're met with a system that grants impunity to perpetrators; a system that blames victims; a system that accepts only those victims who are experienced as "real" rape; a system that completely misunderstands the neurobiology of trauma, which causes behavior in women that doesn't fit the picture of how a "real victim" would act.

Is that change needed that victims should just pull themselves together? Just buck up and report anyway? No. No, it's the system that receives them that needs to change

It is impossible to reverse my conviction — and the conviction of my extraordinary team, The Joyful Heart — that the backlog of untested rape kits can be brought to zero; that the testing of all new kits must be mandated; that we need a statewide kit tracking system; and that survivors have the right to access the status of their kits.

It is impossible to reverse my conviction that grammar — yes, grammar — that we use when we speak about rape must change. In the sentence, "A woman is raped," there's a crime and there's a victim, but there's no perpetrator. Where's the perpetrator? Where is he? Statistically, as we know, most likely he's walking free. He's so free that he doesn't even appear in the language about the crime that he committed. Is that not extraordinary? It's extraordinary that in the very grammar, the perpetrator goes free. Reintroducing perpetrators in the language of rape will make some very unwieldy grammar, but that's the nature of change. It's unwieldy, it's messy, it's uncomfortable, but it's necessary.

Hargitay continued on in her prolific speech to describe that rape shouldn't be considered a "crime of passion" because it's "not simply the next step in the trajectory of his passion" when a man takes a consensual hookup too far and assaults a woman against her will. She stated that it's "an exercise of power," doubling down that the language we use is important.

The speech went on to address that rape is both about power and control, as a "construct" that was "built, and assembled, and reinforced over time." She noted that there are people with these positions of power — and she specifically called out those in the entertainment industry — that could make a difference and aligned themselves to victims and survivors.

After this and some other remarks, Hargitay specifically called out the Weinstein conviction reversal. She said:

I do want to say something about the Harvey Weinstein conviction, specifically about the reason that it was overturned: too many women's voices. Too many women's voices were allowed to speak. Hallelujah! Amen! I can't imagine anything more beautiful than that. The Daily podcast episode talked about how it was so risky for the prosecution to have that many women testify. Risky to let women speak? You're damn right it is!

Too many women speaking brings change. Too many women speaking shakes the establishment. Too many women means we get listened to more, and people might actually hear what we have to say. Look what happened when women started saying just two words, right? Me too — just as an example — a tidal wave of change. Me too.

And then of course, there was the response: the Me Too Movement. The backlash. The examination of whether the changes that have come are lasting, or are even positive. Of course there's a backlash! What did they expect? For women to speak repeatedly, loudly, together, with a purpose — for there to be no backlash? The backlash is evidence of how powerful those voices were, how powerful those voices ARE.

Watch Mariska Hargitay's Full Speech Here

Turns out that your TV heroes really can be your IRL heroes after all. Long live Olivia Benson! Long live Mariska Hargitay!