The Ultimate Guide to Fall Mantel Decorations

The decorations you need

When it comes to fall we mainly think about the vibrant colors. Red, orange, yellow, brown and a little bit of willow green. So when you are choosing items that you want to put on your mantel keep in mind that this is the color palette that you may want to start with. We’ve also seen very colorful orange and fuchsia combinations that are simply lovely. Deciding on the colors takes the guesswork out of decorating, so that’s where we want to start.

If you want to keep your decoration unique and true to your own style, you can definitely go beyond decorating with leaves. You can really get creative here!

For example: pumpkins. The best part about them is that you can carve or paint them, and they will never truly lose their connection to fall. Plus, if you just get a fake one then it will last for years and the color of it will remain that perfect orange that everyone loves so much. But of course, you can always get a real one. If you want to add a little sparkle, you can also add a bit of glitter or gem stickers to your pumpkin - how cute would that look just sitting above your fireplace!

But if you want to use some kind of fruit then grapes also work really well. You can easily get fake ones which look amazing and can be reused on special occasions when you have guests over. Not to mention the fact that if you have grapes on your mantel you can use grape vines or garlands as decoration.

 We also love decorating with pictures and quotes. If you have a sarcastic type of humor then this will be your favorite part of your mantel. You can also put up some family pictures that were taken during fall. These have the same color palette as the rest of the decoration should, but the people will very likely stand out from the photograph.

You can also put candles on your mantel. Either individually or on candle holders. This provides an elegant look along with a pop of color. One of our favorite candles is a cinnamon scented one, it easily makes the entire house smell like heaven. If you have little ones, sub with LED candles - they look just as nice and provide a glowing ambiance that’s perfect this time of year.

How to decorate your mantel

So, now that you have got your items it’s time to put them in their respective places. This can get a little bit tricky if you don’t decorate your mantel very often. Not to worry, we have an easy to follow guide!

First of all, grab the one thing you want to highlight. This either needs to be something bright or something with characters or text on it (a candle, candle holder or a picture in most cases). If your centerpiece is going to be a candle holder then you need to put it right in the middle. This is the easiest way to go. But if you use simple candles then you need to have several, depending on the available space. The best would be if all of them were the same color or if there was an equal amount of red, orange and yellow. Don’t feel like you have to create a pattern, this is more for design harmony. The last centerpiece is a picture. One will work, as there’ll be plenty of other items around. This needs to be put on the ⅓ or the ⅔ of the mantel and should have two items around it as a “frame”.

Now that the hardest part is done you need some fillings. Things like leaves, berries, nuts and grapes work best. You simply need to fill up the rest of the space with them, only leaving small spots for one or two candles. This job is pretty easy and doesn’t require much work, so it’s best to do it as early as possible because it is the base of the whole decoration.

Once the mantel is done you need to deal with the sides of the fireplace. To ease that hard line between the decorations and the fireplace you need leaves, garlands or vases. Just watch out, and place flammable items far enough away and don’t let the flames catch onto them!