20 Gorgeous Christmas Mantel Decorating Ideas
November 19, 2024
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Twenty beautiful Christmas mantel decorating ideas.
I've gathered a bunch of absolutely gorgeous Christmas mantels to give you some inspiration this holiday season!
If you have a fireplace, you know it's a focal point all year, but even more so during the holidays. If you decorate just that one spot it will make the room feel so festive!
Even if you don't have a fireplace, a TV built in or console can be decorated similarly.
If holiday decor intimidates you but you want to add some festive touches, I would suggest tackling the tree and a mantel and/or TV stand.
My Christmas mantels have varied big time over the years -- from bright, traditional colors to more neutral moody vibes.
I'll share a few of my favorites first, and then I have more beautiful examples from talented DIY and decor bloggers.
At our last house, I finished up tiling our stacked stone basement fireplace right before the holidays. I loved how it looked with our flocked tree:
The stone and long wood beam stole the show, so I didn't need to do much otherwise. Just some simple greenery along the top was perfect.
The thorn in my side at that house was our corner fireplace in our family room. I thought it would be such a cool design feature, but I ended up hating it. 😂
At first I added some box molding to the walls above it and tried to take advantage of all of that mantel space for my Christmas decor:
We later built out that corner fireplace a bit and brought the wall forward. This changed the game!
It was so much easier to work with, and looked like it fit so much better in the room.
I was so excited to decorate the new fireplace for Christmas! The longer mantel was fun to decorate, and those hanging lanterns added some whimsy:
I loved the traditional pops of red, but the next year was one of my all time favorites.
I went super simple with inexpensive glass vessels wrapped with pretty scrapbook and wrapping paper:
The soft greenery and votives finished it off perfectly.
We later did a big renovation and knocked down a wall to make our family room much bigger. I used those same glass containers wrapped with sweaters to create a cozy winter mantel:
Later, I added a ton of greenery and had it spill over the sides with tons of Christmas bulbs strewn throughout:
At our current house, my Christmas mantels have gotten fluffier and fluffier. ;) I like to throw all types of greenery in -- one year I added eucalyptus to the garland:
That one was so pretty!
I later draped some ribbon and hung some baubles to add some pretty details to the mantel:
This year's mantel decor is the fullest yet! I shared how I create our fluffy Christmas mantels years ago, but I just take the greenery I've collected over the years and stack them on top of one another.
Makes sure to weave them together a bit to make it look more organic.
This year I used Command strips to create a swagged, asymmetrical look:
Remember that brass Merry Christmas garland I shared a couple weeks ago? This is what I had in mind when I bought it, and I love how it turned out!
I also added some dark burgundy berry stems, LED fairy lights with green wire (makes such a difference -- you don't see the wire at all!), and my vintage brass candlesticks with these faux burgundy taper candles.
Most of the year I like to simplify our decor, but the older I get, the more I want to go all out at Christmas. I love how full and textural this year's mantel is:
I absolutely adore how it all came together. I still need to hang our stockings!
Now let's take a look at some of the beautiful Christmas decor from all over the internet.
This natural mantel with brass accents looks simple, but when you really look you see all the details:
The magnolia leaves, ribbon and I think even baby's breath add so much texture and beauty. The baby's breath is such an unexpected addition, and I love it.
My friend Beth's mantel is stunning enough with the layers of greenery, but the snow capped Christmas village lined up takes it over the top:
I love that the houses make it feel whimsical and less formal. So beautiful!
I love the nutcracker trend that has exploded the past few years. You can find them so inexpensively at craft stores and then finish them any way you'd like.
This cute nutcracker mantel turned out so beautifully with them all lined up:
Oh how I love a traditional mantel too! This outdoor mantel with a vintage vibe makes me smile -- the Radio Flyer wagon is the perfect touch:
Plus the festive thermoses lined up -- so unique and fun!
Shannon's bottle brush tree Christmas mantel was pretty enough, but the adding the chalkboard behind gives it some great contrast:
It only takes a few minutes to make these chalk trees -- I do this on our mud room chalkboard every year as well.
Just break off a small piece of chalk and turn it on its side to draw the fluffy trees.
I've noticed over the past few years that the color red has started to disappear from Christmas decor. I love seeing a festive mantel with bright pops of red!:
I think candlelight is a must on a Christmas mantel! I always try to add some kind of candle glow -- either real or faux.
There are so many fun LED candle options available now, so you can add the look of candlelight without the worry.
Diane used fresh greenery and simple taper candles in varying heights along the length of the mantel:
If you like the asymmetrical look on a mantel like my design this year, Kelly shares a step-by-step guide on how she created a similar look:
I thought mine was full -- this is awesome! I really love the addition of the gold ornament garland.
If you love a more farmhouse look, this swagged garland looks great against a wood mantel and brick as well:
There is beauty in every design style, even more so at Christmas!
I adore Christy's eclectic but elegant holiday look. She drew color inspiration from the gorgeous oil painting to create her traditional mantel with green accents:
And this French-inspired mantel with the sugared fruits is just LOVELY!:
Instead of traditional greenery, she used eucalyptus and preserved boxwood -- how beautiful!
I say there are no rules when it comes to Christmas decor...the colors and decor don't have to be traditional. As I always say, it's your house, do what you want!
I hope these amazing Christmas mantels gave you some inspiration this holiday season.
You can pin these ideas for later using this image:
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Sarah, I love your posts and your eye for beauty. These mantels are great! I can't wait to decorate mine. But there are four photos I can't see because of the ads--any way to work around that?
ReplyDeleteCamille
P.S. Maybe those photos loaded after all...I'm checking.
ReplyDeleteHope it worked!
DeleteI NEED to recreate this exactly in my home! It is perfection! Can you please share exactly what and how many pieces of each item you used? Also would love to know specifically how you attached and where using what type of command hooks. I need alllll the deets! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteYour mantle looks SO GOOD
ReplyDeleteThank you! :)
DeleteSo pretty...but obviously no cats live in these home🤣
ReplyDelete