How To Decorate A Mantel

If you're lucky enough to have a fireplace or wood stove in your house, working or not, you have a unique opportunity to create a focal point with your mantel decoration. Often overlooked other than holiday seasons, the mantel naturally draws the eye, as it's a mix of masonry, wood, and sometimes fire. The fireplace area includes the mantel, hearth, and chimney, and this area is unlike any other. According to Mantels Direct, the mantel is the focal point because it dictates the fireplace's overall style. From modern floating wood and rustic stone mantles to ornately carved marble mantels, they all pretty much follow the same decorating rules. 

There are two primary decorating styles for your mantel, and these rules are basic to all design: symmetric and asymmetric. According to Homes & Gardens, symmetric design is balanced, where each side is matching or mirroring, creating a calm aesthetic. On the other hand, asymmetrical arrangements favor one side, don't mirror each other, and instead use related forms (via MyMove). No matter which style you choose, don't add clutter, and make sure your pieces on display have meaning, suggests The Spruce. You should also group pieces in eye-pleasing odd numbers for some visual harmony. Want to see this in practice? Here are some ideas to give your mantel — that prime decorating real estate — a little more curb appeal.

Often overlooked or dismissed as being too difficult to keep thriving, small trees on your fireplace mantel are like a breath of fresh air. Literally. According to Time, numerous studies have found that houseplants remove the carbon dioxide from the air. Country Living recommends palms as some of the best indoor trees, and majesty palms top its list. With regal arching fronds, these palms like light, and their soil always slightly moist, says Costa Farms. Other light lovers on its list include the windmill palm, Areca palm, ponytail palm, and Kentia palm. 

If your fireplace is positioned in a shady nook, the parlor palm can handle low light conditions (via Better Homes and Gardens). Impress your friends by growing your own citrus with a miniature Meyer lemon tree, which, according to Apartment Therapy, does well in well-lit locations and containers. Miniature, manicured Bonsai trees, including the Serissa japonica "Pink Mystic," fit most mantels. And evergreen trees, like holiday trees, aren't just for the winter holidays anymore. Garden Lovers Club says boxwood, pine, spruce, and even some cedar trees, are suitable for growing indoors as well. 

Displaying pottery on mantel fireplaces is what the aristocrats have been doing for centuries. It's an ideal area to display stoneware collections, grandma's vases, or even ceramic or terracotta pots with or without plants. But when styling the mantel, School of Decorating recommends grouping pieces in threes. The blog suggests combining a short round shape, a large statement piece, and a smaller, more delicate ceramic, china, or pottery piece when creating these clusters. This grouping works because these items combine different proportions and heights. Start with the largest piece and see what looks best on your mantle before adding the smaller ones. Mix old and new items together, or utilize new pieces that look like they could have been unearthed at an archeological dig, such as these vases from Ballard Designs.

For a formal or traditional look, decorate with symmetry. According to Hayneedle, pairing identical items like vases and candle holders on each side of the mantel gives a balanced feel. Repetition — using patterns and colors in sets of odd numbers — is restful and harmonious to the eyes. That's why we love this three-piece set of terracotta spheres from Perigord. While small pottery pieces can get lost on large mantles, smaller hearths can display pottery of petite proportions like mini-vases, figurines, demitasse teacups, or porcelain boxes. 

Timepieces add a touch of sophistication to your mantel. These pieces make a statement, from large wall-mounted clocks with bold Roman numerals to demure curved wooden clocks. According to Collectors Weekly, since the 18th and 19th centuries, timepieces combined form and decoration to create something eye-catching. A bold chronometer can be the starting point in your design, allowing you to build the rest of your decor from there. Oversized clocks balance nearby bare walls and play nicely with almost all interior decor styles. And as a base for your mantel, rustic or formal clocks make a complementary backdrop for framed art, potted plants, and sculpture.

Emulate the upper-crust by decorating your fireplace with an ornate French bronze clock, like these at Antique & Uncommon Treasure. Smaller shelf and mantel-styled pendulum clocks were among the first commercially available clocks that kept accurate time (via ThoughtCo). Still popular, these chiming, double-curved, tambour-style clocks are smaller and ideal for dens and rooms with smaller mantels. Get one like them from Simply Mantle Clocks. 

More often than not, mantel decorations are fairly formulaic and have a large item that centers and grounds the rest of the decorations. While clocks, art, and photographs are great choices, the mantle makes a fantastic stage for your collectibles too. When displaying your items horizontally, SFGate says to place them every four inches along the entirety of the mantel. This rule applies to salt and pepper shakers, vases, glass paperweights, and even vintage painted eggs. If your items aren't all the same size, colors, or textures, cluster them in groups with about the same number and characteristics (for example, one tall, one round, and one ornate). Then adorn your mantle with the groups, making it easy to coordinate and balance the displayed pieces. Veranda suggests showing only star items then moving them around until you're satisfied.

What if the collection is a little less formal? There are interesting and even elegant displays available for the most colloquial of collectibles. Perhaps your passion is cards. No problem, dress up your cards with displays like these at Displays2go and let them grace your mantel. From shelving units designed for small items like salt and pepper shakers at Fine Home Displays, to small awards displays like this one from Wayfair, there are plenty of options. 

The home's hearth, fireplace, and mantel combine masonry with wood and wall, and those interesting architectural features are often artistic enough that you don't need to add much to the mantel. Instead of decorating this area, we are going to allow it to speak for itself, with minimal ornamentation. By decorating with a few robust pieces and limiting small items and clutter, we create a simple feel. Maison de Pax says mirrors make a great focal point. Round and arching mirrors make a statement without speaking too loudly.

Grace in My Space says that adding a mirror or piece of simple art is an easy way to create impact. She suggests using one very large piece that draws the eye to the mantel. Potted plants, vases, and candles make great sleek accessories, especially in coordinating neutral-toned vases or pots. To get the look, Next Luxury advises using restraint to keep the lines clean. They suggest that even a bare mantel can work in some contemporary homes. Unhappy with your mantel? New and used mantels are widely available at home improvement, used furnishing, and resale stores.

Snuggling up and reading around the fire is a custom shared by families around the world. So, what could be more natural than using reading material as mantel decor? This is the time to pull out those hundred-year-old yearbooks, hardcover classics, and old bound magazines like St. Nicholas. When decorating with books, Up To Date Interiors suggests taking off the dust jackets and only using books in a few colors to keep the look cohesive. Then, stack them, lean them, or stand them up on your mantle. Go ahead and combine a few techniques depending on the size and scale of your mantel. 

Lay a few of the books in a small pile and leave them as is or use them as a base to give height to an objet d'art, a potted plant, or a bit of nature, says This Is Our Bliss. Stand a few books upright next to the books laying flat. When it comes to choosing books for decorating, pick titles or genres that reflect your interests and personalities. Thrift stores, library sales, and garage sales often have interesting books at budget-friendly prices. If you're not ready to curate a collection, check out the elegant and realistic decor books crafted just for decorating. Mantel-ready books grouped by color, size, and style are available at home furnishing and craft stores too.

Not just a spot to hang holiday stockings for Santa's visit, the mantel is a fantastic way to adorn your home for all seasons. One of the most festive ways to make the most of your mantel is with garlands. Instead of hammering small nails to hang a garland, Real Simple suggests using widely available Command Strips to keep your walls intact. Although party and craft stores offer large selections of garlands, making your own garland can let you create unique designs and sizes. From Easter eggs to summer florals, any event or celebration can provide garland inspiration. 

Brighten up a winterscape with a green garland. Eucalyptus, cedar, fir, and other evergreens offer natural texture and a forest-fresh aroma. According to Better Homes and Gardens, the first step to making a garland is to group small bundles of greenery and wrap them with wire. Once all the bundles are ready to go, overlap the bundles, attaching the second bundle about halfway up the first one with the florist wire. Continue this process until your garland is the desired length. It can either reach the floor or lay across the length of the mantel. Elle Decor even proposes using asymmetry with a garland hanging only on one side.