Hi friends!
So, first things first. This is a big project that takes a good amount of time, energy, focus and determination. But if you go into it knowing that and are prepared, then it will be so worth it!
I have done small scaled mantle displays and had kind of thought it was going to be a similar experience to that. Well, no, no it wasn’t. The working against gravity certainly made it hard as well as the narrow space on the mantle. Even with those shortcomings we made it through, and it looks amazing!
Now that I have scared everyone off from trying it, I will explain my tips. Hehe, I joke. After reading over the tips, you will have all the tools you need to create the most stunning statement mantlepiece.
Here we go!
- Gather a mix of Greenery
When you are out foraging make sure that the items you are gathering are different shades of green, various textures, and variation of scale. If you can get some items with whites or creams, then that will really pop against the greens. Just have fun looking around your garden, roads and friend’s homes – you never know what you will find!
- Build the framework first
Alright, so this is the part where the most patience comes in (you’ve got this!). A couple additional tools you will need are tacks, wire and twine to keep this all together. Also, I used a couple rocks to keep the sticks in the back portion of the mantle because ours is so narrow. You will use the tacks and wire to keep the upper portions up and the twine to keep everything together.
- Then add the major greenery
Now this is the most time-consuming part! It will also feel more of a mess in the beginning but keep going and it’ll all come together. I broke each kind of greenery down into manageable pieces and then would do one kind at a time. I also save a couple pieces of each at the end to add in case there is a gap found once you stand back.
- Add colorful touches
This is where you add the festive cheer! If you are lucky enough to live in an area where holly grows then definitely add that to your mantle. Sadly, holly doesn’t grow here but winter berries do so we used those! You could also add any other colored berries, baubles, tinsel, or ribbon. Anything that you can dream up you can use!
- Final step is put on lights
Last step — the lights! We found some copper lights that are powered with a battery pack. We love how dainty and delicate they are and how that compliments the mantlepiece all together. They are really easy to manipulate which makes installation a breeze. I would definitely recommend making sure it will fit the space first and then you can curve it around the piece once you know how much extra you have.
There you go! Are you going to try to make your own? We would love to know how it goes and what it ended up looking like.
If you have any questions, feel free to comment here as we would love to hear from you!
XX
2 comments
So lovely! We have a very naughty kitty that gets into EVERYTHING, but I still decorate my mantle – I must be a sucker for punishment because I put delicate stuff on there – but even though we have a massive holly bush on our property, because of the kitty I can’t decorate with a lot of things like that as they are poisonous. You are lucky to have well behaving animals!
By the way, I can’t get enough of your Charlie Brown tree! It is completely darling!
Thank you Mara! Hehe, I totally get still trying to put delicate things out where the little ones may get to it. Aw, thanks! I am so happy with it! 🙂