Mantel 1.0

I have never had a mantel to call my own until we bought our house. The tricky thing about them is that when accessorized well they look so good in a totally effortless way. Like you don’t even think much about how someone laid it out, because it’s “so obviously” simple and easy. I knew better, so I did nothing with ours for several months knowing full well I needed to do some serious research in order not to get ridiculously frustrated, wondering “why does my mantel suck?”

Not to mention the question of the home decor ages: How in the world does one balance clutter with personality? Ugh, a mantel is 100% decorative, 0% utility. Have I told you how much I hate clutter?

I looked for inspiration word-by-word directions (let’s be real) by my favorite bloggers. Layla from The Lettered Cottage has not only done a fabulous job creating an amazing mantel (literally, like a wood mantel “slipcover”), but also redecorates for the seasons. I took a lot of inspiration from her spring mantelscape :

I loved the crisp white with the greenery. I loved the pottery. I love the dark walnut stain. I wanted it.

This girl is amazing.

Here is her recent summer mantelscape:

Love the beachy-ness. Love the flag with starfish stars- wouldn’t something like that look awesome hanging on a front door (scaled down, of course)?

Slowly I developed a vague “mantel wish list”:

A pitcher or chunky, opaque vase
A chunky candle holder or two, maybe a small lantern
A giant starfish or two
Some sort of art that doesn’t break the bank

Pretty quickly I found these gems in a thrift store for maybe two bucks each:

I love thrift store finds the most when they have been ugly-fied by their previous owners and therefore no one else can see their potential. Both the pitcher and the lantern were dusty and dollied up with ugly ribbon things.

A wedge of green floral foam, a few stems of grasses, white orchards, and pussy willows and my pitcher was complete. What’s funny is that after I brought it home, I revisited Layla’s spring mantel post and realized that it is in fact the exact same Martha Stewart white pitcher that she bought a a thrift store too. Why are people tossing such a pretty pitcher?

Another trip a day or two later yielded the antiqued turquoise Ball canning jar. It’s even a fancy Bicentennial jar from 1976. A total treasure for like a dollar.

Another thing I love about thrifting is that it seems so serendipitous all.the.time. I always seem to find exactly what I am looking for when I only have a vague idea of what I want and I always seem to find related things all in the same or trip or two.

As for the lantern, I snipped the ribbon, washed it, unscrewed the candlestick piece and stuck a pillar in it. Didn't even need to spraypaint this baby. I even left the rusty bits for authenticity. Done.

Some seashells and a decorative glass floater from the craft store and my mantel decorations were complete. I probably spent like maybe $25 total.

So here’s to you, Pottery Barn.

And your $40 pitcher.

With your $50 lantern:

I kept the artwork clean and simple. Two walnut-stained, white-matted frames from Target and two black and white 8x10s from our San Juan Islands getaway last month.

Here’s the full-frontal shot with our fifth-time’s-a-charm wall paint color:

I know, I know. More chunky white candles of varying heights and a scattering of seashells could totally be added, but I am going to keep it simple for now.

We love how the paint choice came out. It comes off as a little more grey-blue than grey or grey-green-blue as the paint chip seemed. But I can’t get enough of it. I heart it.

Future projects (besides new flooring :-) include painting out the brass “accent” with high-temp black, an idea picked up from many bloggers also in possession of mid 1990s subdivision homes.

Not sure if I will attempt a fall mantelscape- this one was enough for me for a while. Hopefully, though I can pull something together for the winter season.