Simple Fall Mantel

It's starting to feel like Fall in our area!  Temps have dropped a little in the evenings and mornings, and we're hopeful we'll have a few cool days soon as well.  To get into the spirit of things, I added simple Fall decor to our mantel.  


With the burlap wreath, metal frame and shutters already in place, I added a few other items found in my stash.

I have a tendency to arrange things balanced and symmetrically and really do try to step out and do things a little more free form.  But, balanced won out again this time.  

The method to my madness is to take out anything Fall-like that I have on hand and place it all around me, trying each item and combinations of items on the mantel until I find an arrangement that "feels" right to me.  Our living room becomes an unfortunate casualty during the process! 

By mixing color, textures and different heights, arrangements provide much more visual interest.

Sometimes an item may be just the right height, but is the wrong color or texture, so I weigh options for changing it to make it work.  A couple of those options are to paint the item (my #1 favorite option!), or to temporarily cover or wrap the item in fabric, design paper, etc.  


As mentioned above, the mantel was bare except for:

  • Burlap wreath - so easy to make and I will post a DIY soon
  • Wood shutters - find my DIY post HERE 
  • Framed Metal Art found at Hobby Lobby



As I went thru my stash of decor, the following made the cut and were included in the mantel arrangement:

2 Flameless candles (6" tall x 4-1/2" wide)
2 Candlesticks (9" tall)
2 Flameless candles (5" tall x 3" wide)
2 giant pinecones
2 plate chargers 
2 faux burlap pumpkins
Black striped upholstery webbing
Thick jute twine




I started by placing the two plate chargers in front of each wood shutter, on either side of the metal frame.  The chargers were once bright gold - check out my post HERE to find out how I converted them to the gorgeous Fall-ready oil rubbed bronze color. 

Next I placed the taller candles (wrapped in upholstery webbing) on the candlesticks and placed them on the outer edge of each shutter.  Then, filled in the space by adding the pumpkins, smaller candles, and giant pinecones. 



Finished off with the upholstery webbing banner made by cutting seven 7" strips for pennants.  Cut a triangle from the bottom of each pennant.  On the other end, fold the top of each pennant down 1" to slip over the jute twine.  Secured the folded end with hidden straight pins (or you can use hot glue).  The pennants slide easily along the jute twine. 


The jute twine is tied on either side of the top of the mantel to small tack nails that are concealed by the knotted twine. 



    

Regarding the framed metal art, have you noticed in any of my photos that you're actually seeing the back side of the frame? The back side is the dark metal finish, and the front of the frame is a lighter colored distressed finish that I'm not that fond of.  I've not yet decided which color to paint it, so have been displaying the darker back side for now.  Sneaky, huh?  In this pic you can see the exposed built-in hangers on the lower corners of the frame ...




A few additional details:


The cute faux burlap pumpkins were Dollar Tree finds and I love the way they're lightly glittered and sparkle in the candlelight.




 The upholstery webbing wrapped candles were secured on the back side of the webbing with a small piece of clear packing tape - can be easily removed and webbing reused.




 The lantern sitting on the floor to the left of the mantel is from Home Depot and is filled with a flameless candle surrounded by natural leaves.




The tall metal candleholder is one of my favorites!  Found at a wonderful local plant nursery, it holds 3 flameless candles and the center section lifts out for easy removal of the candles.




The tall single candleholder next to the lantern is one that I've had for years that I believe was purchased at At Home (formerly Garden Ridge Pottery).

One last note - the three hand painted birch bark candles in the fireplace are from Pottery Barn and are no longer available.  But, they currently offer them in flameless and you can find them HERE.  I love them so much I've never lit them.  





Do you find Fall decor and colors to be as appealing as I do?  The warmth of neutrals and natural elements create such a calm and cozy atmosphere. I hope you've enjoyed my Fall mantel and fireplace decor!  It's been such fun sharing it with you!



Thank you to Gluesticks, Pieced Pastimes, Christman's Creations and Must Love Home for graciously featuring this post!
 



22 comments:

  1. These are simple yet pretty projects to do for the fall.. Nothing like a beautiful mantel for the fall.
    Maria

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    1. Thank you, Maria! They really are so easy to do - and, I was happy to use items I had on hand. I'm all about frugal! Have a great week!

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  2. Carolyn, I love your lovely Fall Mantle. I hope you don't mind if I steal your idea of wrapping upholstery webbing around candles - so clever. Love how you created a banner with it too! I also want to steal your idea of adding leaves inside the lantern - so simple and such a great idea. Thanks for all the inspiration!

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    1. You made my day, Marie! I'm so glad you can use my simple ideas! I've had the webbing for a couple of years and was determined to use it this Fall. And, after making the cone tree with the leaves, I used the rest to fill the bottom of the lantern. Love free filler! :) I so appreciate you stopping by and visiting!!!

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  3. I have those same Dollar Tree pumpkins and love them! Your mantle looks great! The last time we were in Cali, I was tempted to pick up a few jumbo pine cones and bring them back with me, but I decided not to chance it. :) Yours look great!

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    1. I'm still loving those pumpkins each time I look at the mantel - hard to believe they were only a dollar - there's so much texture and detail to them. I think you can bake pinecones in the oven to rid them of any bugs that may be living in them, but I bought mine at Hobby Lobby - hope store bought ones are already debugged, but now you have me wondering! :)

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  4. Carolyn, your mantel is pretty and so in with all the texture. I admit that texture is something that I probably do not pay enough attention to. When I do, I realize that it feels really good to incorporate differences. thanks for the reminder. :)

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  5. Love the way this mantel looks, like something straight out of a magazine! I love the small banner the most, I tend to be more on the simplistic/minimalist end of the decorating spectrum so that part really speaks to me. I also love the standing lighting. I completely cracked up when you mentioned that your living room became a casualty...it seems as though that always happens to me when I'm getting out craft/décor supplies. Thanks so much for coming back to Welcome Home Wednesday...we absolutely love having you each week!

    Sam // www.diyjustcuz.com

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    1. Your comments mean so much to me, Sam! Like you, I really do enjoy a more simplistic/minimalist look, and sometimes I have to reign myself in - I almost added lettering to the banner, and Fall stencils to the chargers, but forced myself to just...walk...away from the mantel! LOL!

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  6. What an absolutely beautiful mantle, it's so warm and welcoming. The three tier candle holder has to be my favorite! Hope you have a beautiful day.

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  7. You did a beautiful job with decorating your mantel. I love the 3 tier candle holder, it gives the perfect balance. Thank you for sharing on Friday Favorite this past week!
    Have a great week, Karren

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  8. What lovely fall touches. Thanks for sharing at My Flagstaff Home!

    Jennifer

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  9. Great job Carolyn! Love the webb banner! Thanks for sharing with SYC.
    hugs,
    Jann

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    1. Glad you like the banner, Jann! It was reallty easy to make and almost stenciled "FALL" on the pennants, but wanted to keep it super simple. Thanks so much for stopping by!

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  10. I love your simple mantle and all the neutral decorations. Very pretty. I will be featuring you on my blog at Idea Box tomorrow morning!

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    1. Hi, Cyndee! Thanks so much for featuring my mantel on your wonderful blog! You host a great party!!! Appreciate it!

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  11. Hello cute Friend! What a wonderful project. You have been Pinned, Tweeted and Posted to Facebook! Your post will be featured this week at the Friday Favorites Link Party. Here is the link to this weeks party...http://www.mustlovehome.com/friday-favorites-week-287/ The party goes live Thursday at 7PM. I hope to see your there...Hugs - Christine at Must Love Home

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    1. You're too kind, Christine! I really do look so forward to your parties each week ... always something fun happening there. Thanks again and have an awesome week!

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  12. Love your fall mantel, Carolyn. It looks so elegant!

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  13. Beautiful! Looks so good! Pinned and tweeted. We truly appreciate you taking the time to be a part of our party. Please stop by and party with us again. The party starts Monday at 7 pm and ends on Friday at 7 pm. Happy Sunday! Lou Lou Girls

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  14. Absolutely beautiful! I love all of the fun decor elements you used. My mantel arranging method is very similar to yours, group all my things together, then try them in different arrangements until I find one I like!

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  15. This looks very pretty! Thank you for joining Home Sweet Home!

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