A DIY Winter White Mantle

You know what I love about winter?  Here, let me make a handy list for you:

1.

Yea, Old Man Winter and I are not buddies.  I’m a summer girl – that’s why I love living in the South!  Thankfully, here in Georgia, our winters are fairly mild in comparison to a lot of other places.  I guess I do love one thing about winter…the winter whites that pop up in home decor!  I put my own spin on the winter white trend and created a very DIY Winter White Mantle, as part of the Celebration of Winter Blog Tour!

Why is this a DIY Winter White Mantle, you might ask?  Because I DIY-ed a lot of the pieces myself, silly!  🙂

My living room is a soft beige on three walls, but that pop of rich navy around the fireplace just makes me swoon. The Winter White Mantle decor really stands out against the navy blue, doesn’t it?

We’ve lived in our home for a little more than two years, and would you believe this is the first time I’ve ever decorated my mantle for the season?  I mean, sure, I decorate for Christmas, but after those decorations came down each year, I’d just slap the usual stuff back up there and call it done!

This year, I guess a decorating bug bit me in the butt because I just couldn’t do it again.  I wanted it be beautiful and white, so here’s what I did:

First, I dug through my Christmas decorations before putting them all away and kept out a few things that would go with my Winter White decor idea.  This silver spun tree was a Target find a couple years ago and works perfectly to add height to one side of the mantle.

I also decided to keep my DIY Salt Crystal Candle Holders, and simply arranged them in a nice grouping of varying heights.  (I originally shared the tutorial for these beauties on Real Housemoms a couple months ago.)

After the Christmas decorations had been run through, I shopped my home.  This white pitcher was a store-bought find and has been living in my dining room.  A few branches from the trees in the yard painted with glitter Mod Podge, and I had some wintery decor!

I bought the large white basin at a local antique store, and have been hanging onto it until I could score a few more and hang them on the wall in my kitchen.  It looks perfect as the centerpiece to my Winter White mantle, don’t you think?

I also decided to add the “Love you more” wooden board that is a staple on my mantle year-round.  We say this to one another multiple times a day in our home, and with Valentine’s Day right around the corner, it’s also a nice touch to the winter decor.

Now it was time to get my DIY on!

That silver star in the center of the white basin?  Yea, it’s 5 paint stirs from Home Depot, painted first with a dark brown, then with a pearly white acrylic paint, and then hot glued together.  Easy peasy!

Let’s move to the other side of mantle, shall we?

This is probably my most favorite part of the whole mantle!

Ok, one quick DIY – I snatched up those pinecones and spray painted them silver, then dropped them in that big vase back there.  Simple!

But the best project is that candle holder!  I had an old sweater that had seen better days.  It was pretty, but wearing out.  I cut a piece off the bottom of the sweater and hot glued it around a glass vase, keeping the ruffle on the bottom for some flair.  🙂  I carefully cut the rosette from the front of the sweater and glued that onto the vase as well.

Insert battery-operated candle, and voila!  A shabby chic sweater candle holder!  WIN!

I am so happy with the end result of my little Winter White Mantle project!  A few things from around the home combined with a few quick & easy DIY projects create a beautiful mantle that we can enjoy into the early spring!

I have a feeling I’ve started something – I’ll be changing my mantle decor seasonally from here on out!