Based on my Instagram feed, I’m a bit late to posting on fall decor. I’m still working on getting all of the fall line up in the shop {here’s what’s available so far} and prepping for The Amsden’s grand opening, and I just finished adding pumpkins to our front porch a few weeks ago. Even though our porch is really basic while we wait to install railing and columns, I’m happy with the pretty turn its taken.
On my pumpkin hunt, I came across a bundle of white pie pumpkins and these giant bunches of eucalyptus and decided the mantle needed some decorating. So naturally I bought a ton of these cute little pumpkins, three batches of eucalyptus and brought it all home to see what I could do with it. I also had a couple of gourds and acorn squash from the store that I decided to use, ended up not having enough room for and decided to put in a wire basket to use on the kitchen table.
Before I jump into the incredibly simple three-step process to recreate this mantle, let me start with a couple of things that I’ve learned about decorating mantles any time of year.
Get some things in varying weights. By weight, I don’t mean actual poundage, but thickness, aesthetic heaviness and a mixture of small and large pieces. The goal is symmetry, even if both sides aren’t exactly the same {I actually discourage this. It looks too perfect.} I love mixing candlesticks, artwork, books, plants and some wood pieces together, but you can also use baskets, glass jars, antiques, a clock… you name it!
Start with the large pieces. I did a tutorial on decorating shelves earlier this year, and a lot of the concepts are the same. {You can check that out here.} Start with your big pieces. These will be your anchors that everything else is placed around. In the case of this mantle, mine are the framed canvas {tutorial here}, the lantern and wood letter. Decide where you want these to go. You can always adjust, but this will help you balance both sides out.
Add in tiers and layers. I love using books as layers, and since I had this candlestick I wanted to use, I needed some way to even out the height on both sides. Books are the perfect accessory. If you don’t have books of the same color, just turn them around so the pages face outward! They don’t have to just lay flat either. Stack them, put one at an angle, set them up vertically — there are tons of possibilities to add some depth to your mantle. In this case, my layers are the candlestick and books. I ended up raising the wood letter and the lantern on books to add some height, which just goes to show that you can easily adjust your large pieces.
Finish with details. Greens are a pretty standard go-to for me, but there are all kinds of options. These are usually smaller items that can fit in the spaces left by your anchor pieces and layers. Here’s where my fall idea came in.
The pumpkins were really pretty, but by themselves, they looked really open and spacious. So I removed everything except the side decor from my mantle.
Then I took the eucalyptus branches and laid them out flat with the stems always pointing to the center. Then I made sure some of the leaves draped over the mantle front. I have two fake pumpkins and the rest were real, so I placed the two fake pumpkins first for symmetry then used the pie pumpkins around those, laying some on their sides and some upright. Finally, I cut some smaller eucalyptus branches and filled those in around the tops of the pumpkins and on the ends of the mantle.
As a finishing touch, I lit the pumpkin bread scented candle I found at HomeGoods and just sat back to enjoy the cozy fall touches. As an added bonus, the eucalyptus smells incredibly fresh. Eventually it will dry, but still look just as beautiful.
For a cost breakdown, this mantle cost around $15. Trader Joe’s easily has the best selection of inexpensive eucalyptus I’ve ever seen. $2.99 for a large bunch! I used two to create this mantle, plus the pumpkins which I found at a local grow shop. For those of you allergic to eucalyptus, any green sprigs will look just as beautiful. Pine, cedar… you name it! Cedar is one of my favorite greens to decorate with at Christmastime, so why not get a head start, right?
I hope you all have an awesome weekend!!!
xoxo
