30 Minute Handmade Mantel Update

One of the main things I love about this house is our mantel. I love it because in our previous townhouse, we didn't have a mantel or a fireplace. And, while the fireplace in this house isn't in working order (we rent and it hasn't been inspected) it does its job for creating a unique focal point in our living room other than the TV.

I absolutely LOVE it at Christmas time and I was a bit down when it was time to take down my Christmas decorations, because I haven't been too happy with my previous efforts at accessorizing in the past.

 

So, this is what I came up with after the Christmas decorations came down. Not bad, right?  But, something was missing. I felt like all the items had an overall feeling of "too small" since the mantel is large, the mirror is large, and the fireplace is large. I know you can't tell from the image above, but the mantel is approximately 5 and a half feet from the floor. 

I was just going to leave it as is, but then I got an idea. I'd seen a few fabric banners on Pinterest (I pinned inspiration here). And, I quickly realized I had everything I needed to make my own fabric banner - LOTS of fabric in aqua, orange and white to match my decor in the living room, and jute twine! 

I raced off to my sewing room and quickly cut various 1.5-2" strips of 8 different fabrics - I think I gathered about 40 strips (FYI this could easily be done with a Jelly Roll if you don't have scrap fabric around). I sat down in front of the TV while the bf was watching football, and in 30 minutes, I had a banner that I thought was long enough to fit in the space below the mantel to fill-in the extra space. 

Fabric scrap banner by Love by Hand

Handmade Fabric Banner Mantel Update

Here's the full view that shows how high the mantel is from the floor. So, what do you think? I just LOVE how it turned out. I LOVE that it used scraps from material I had on hand and that it went together so quickly.

Here's a quick run-down of all the items on the mantel just in case you like something you see. I just used what I had on hand with the addition of the white feather tree and the banner.

Small White Feather Tree - Target, on clearance the week after Christmas

White Lantern - Pier 1, gift from my Mom for Christmas

Orange, Aqua Fabric Wreath - Handmade by me

Frame - Hobby Lobby, already owned

Mercury Candle Holders - Target

White Tea Light Globe - Gift from Nathan's Mom last year for Christmas

Silver Candle Holders - Ikea

Orange Candles - Pier 1

Have you done any mantel updates for winter? How about you, do you update your mantel for each season? Any thoughts on how to update my mantel to keep the colors the same while inserting seasonal items as well? 

I'm thinking that I'll keep my mantel this way for a while - as I just decorated in this color scheme a couple of months before Christmas, so it still seems new to me. But, I'll be sure to share any updates as the months go on - as I do like to change things up often!