Winter Wonderland Christmas Mantel

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Welcome to my Winter Wonderland! I’m excited to welcome you back into my home for the 2021 Christmas Season. Let’s start in my living room with my Winter Wonderland Christmas Mantel.

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Winter Wonderland Christmas Mantel

Woot! Woot! I’m officially kicking off a new season of holiday decorating on the blog today. It’s been mostly Christmas recipes up until now, but today I’m bringing on the decor.

And, if you’re looking for more mantel decorating inspiration, I’m back with my Season of Home blogger friends who are all sharing mantel decor ideas. Be sure to check out the links below and click through to see all of their beautiful spaces.

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Christmas Mantel Decorating Ideas:

Truth be told, I LOVED how I decorated the mantel in my living room last year (I mean, LOVED!). In fact, HGTV loved it too and it ended up in their December issue! Say what!? I still can’t believe it! (I’ve shared a picture below.)

Winter Wonderland Christmas Mantel #christmas #mantel #decor #idea #holiday #winterwonderland #decorating #garland

Consequently, doing something different with it this year was really tough. Because I was so pleased with last year’s design, when I started to think about decorating my mantel for this year, I just wanted to put everything right back where it was to recreate last year’s look. However, I do like to keep pushing myself and trying new things, so I came up with a bit of a compromise: I would keep some things the same, and do some things differently.

Side Note: I should also mention, I have a post here on Inspired by Charm with many of my holiday mantels from Christmases past. You can find that post HERE for lots of ideas and inspiration.

Christmas Mantel: What’s the same and what’s different?

First, here’s how the mantel looks this year:

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Winter Wonderland Christmas Mantel #christmas #mantel #decor #idea #holiday #winterwonderland #decorating #garland

Winter Wonderland Christmas Mantel #christmas #mantel #decor #idea #holiday #winterwonderland #decorating #garland

While I kept the greens of the garland the same and in the same spot, this year I added in silver ball garland which is my favorite. (I used a similar ball garland, but in red, in my entryway last year. It’s such an easy way to get a big impact!)

I also tucked some small paper snowflakes and paper stars into the garland to really give it that winter wonderland look. I even found a large paper snowflake that I managed to squeeze into the design. (The large snowflake seems to be sold out, but you can find a similar one HERE.)

Side Note: I’ve also included a complete source list for many of the items I used at the end of the post.

Winter Wonderland Christmas Mantel #christmas #mantel #decor #idea #holiday #winterwonderland #decorating #garland

Winter Wonderland Christmas Mantel #christmas #mantel #decor #idea #holiday #winterwonderland #decorating #garland

Additionally, I tucked in a few small snowy pinecones. (Remember the HUGE pinecones I had on here last year? I LOVED them, so I plan on using them on my tree this year. You can find those HERE.)

My sweet vintage deer collection stayed, but it grew a little bigger. I thrifted some ceramic deer that caught my eye, so they were added to the herd. Most of my collection is plastic deer, but I couldn’t resist these new ones. I love adding antique touches to my holiday decorating. In fact, I just wrote an entire post all about my Vintage Christmas Decor including these sweet deer. You can read that HERE.

Winter Wonderland Christmas Mantel #christmas #mantel #decor #idea #holiday #winterwonderland #decorating #garland

Winter Wonderland Christmas Mantel #christmas #mantel #decor #idea #holiday #winterwonderland #decorating #garland

The wood trees stayed, but I added some tall green bottle brush trees.

I swapped out the fabulous artwork for this arched mirror and added a snowy pinecone wreath to it. As much as I miss the beautiful artwork, I love a mirror on a mantel, especially at Christmas. It reflects all of the twinkly lights and beautiful details in the room. To me, it adds to the magic.

Winter Wonderland Christmas Mantel #christmas #mantel #decor #idea #holiday #winterwonderland #decorating #garland

Winter Wonderland Christmas Mantel #christmas #mantel #decor #idea #holiday #winterwonderland #decorating #garland

Winter Wonderland Christmas Mantel #christmas #mantel #decor #idea #holiday #winterwonderland #decorating #garland

Finally, the stockings, my favorite gold Santa, and the vintage wood magazine rack with birch branches stayed the same.

And with that my mantel was complete!

Winter Wonderland Christmas Mantel #christmas #mantel #decor #idea #holiday #winterwonderland #decorating #garland

Winter Wonderland Christmas Mantel #christmas #mantel #decor #idea #holiday #winterwonderland #decorating #garland

I’m glad I followed this “some things the same, some things different” approach. I wanted to share with you that I’ve been having a hard time decorating this year. I think it’s a combination of a lot of things as the world is a bit topsy-turvy these days, and the pressure to up my game and have completely new decor every year is just hitting in all the wrong places.

It’s a major joy in my life to be able to share ideas and hopefully inspire you and all the readers of IBC so I need to revisit the way I do things and focus on finding the joy of it all again. I hope that makes sense.

Now there’s no complaining here; I think when thoughts and feelings like this come up, it’s important to pause, get curious, see what they mean, and figure out how to move forward in a new joy-filled way.

I always feel a bit weird getting too deep here, but I think some things are important to say and share as you might be feeling the same. It’s not always sunshine and roses … or in this case snowflakes and pinecones.

In the end, the best news is that I’m loving my Winter Wonderland Christmas Mantel with nods to Christmas past and Christmas present.

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And with that, I’m signing off so I can get back to decorating. You can find a full list of links/sources below.

Seasons of Home Christmas Mantels

Before you carry on with your day, please click through and give a little love to all of my Seasons of Homes blogger friends. What they created is stunning.

Christmas Mantel Decorating Ideas

Ella Claire &. Co. | Inspired by Charm | Handmade Farmhouse | French Country Cottage

Christmas Mantel Decorating Ideas

City Farmhouse | Azure Farm | Zevy Joy

As always, wishing you joy and peace this holiday season. Happy decorating, my friends!

Winter Wonderland Christmas Mantel #christmas #mantel #decor #idea #holiday #winterwonderland #decorating #garland

Christmas Mantel Decor Sources:

If you’re wondering about sources, I did link them above but thought I would do a full link list here. I don’t have many, but I do have some so I will link those below. If something is not linked it’s likely that it’s no longer sold or it is a vintage item.

Since there may be some general questions about this mantel / bookcase, I will link to some helpful posts here as well. I just had it installed last year.

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27 Comments

  1. I love that you kept some things and just added to it. I try to use things in different rooms or in different ways without having to buy a lot of new things every year. It all becomes inventory that must be managed and stored. It can become quite overwhelming.
    I love the mantle…this year and last.

  2. Hello. What a lovely scene. I would like to replicate on my mantle. but, you don’t describe how you attach anything… How do I attach the greens to the corner of the mantle? I usually lay my greens on the top surface, but really would like to try your vetsuon of it hanging. If you could advise that would be helpful. I loved all ypur ideas and enjoyed what your sharing. Blesses to you.

  3. Michael,
    I don’t think you realize the impact you have by being honest about your struggles. I quit following someone on Pinterest a few weeks ago because I felt she wasn’t being real. The fact that you used a lot of the same things, but in a different way, now that’s truly inspiring and makes you a realistic designer to follow! PLEASE know that we are so thankful for your talents and honesty…that’s what sets you apart. Happy Thanksgiving! 🤗