Summer Mantel Ideas
Summer mantel ideas and inspiration were on our minds as Sophia and I went to our local Homegoods store. I asked her to help me find some new items to add to the mantel. These two large shiny gold pineapples caught her eye. Yes, I had noticed and admired them but this nine-year-old was adamant that they were the very pieces needed to brighten the mantel.
You might have realized that my style is a little more subdued, as a sweet young woman once described it, ‘quietly elegant‘. Whether that is true or not, I like the description! Thinking that the rather large shiny gold pieces might be a little bit of a challenge to incorporate into our muted decor but what the heck! They were purchased along with a pair of blue glass candle holders. The blue and gold look nice together and they repeat the colors of a few of the throw pillows we already have.
Before we left on this little shopping expedition, I had been toying with the idea of using a couple of white lanterns that we have had for a few years. In my mind, they were larger than they actually are and weren’t quite as tall as I remembered either. Blue, white, and the shiny gold make a nice color combination though.
The round black clock was the only item which remained for this makeover. The gold Roman numerals on the clock was another gold element. Everything else was removed. The shiny gold pineapples were placed on the fireplace and yes, they were pretty much of an attention getter! As I looked at the subdued colors of the room, the realization that more shiny gold was going to be needed.
The lanterns were retrieved from the basement, cleaned up a little, and placed on the mantel along with the pineapples.
If you introduce a new color to a room, it looks more intentional and at home, if there are little pockets of that color placed all around the room. Your eye follows color and you can use that to your advantage. There is gold in this room but not the bright shiny gold in these pineapples. The blue glass candle holders were placed on the mantel, too. No problem there, blue is also on the throw pillows and the blue and white Chinese vases, bowls, and knick knacks.
At this point, there was a debate in my mind about whether the lantern should be between the pineapple and the blue candleholder or if the candle holder should be in between the lantern and the pineapple. The easiest way to decide is to do both and take a look. The straight lines of the lantern between the rounded shapes of the candle holders and the pineapple won out in the end.
Another gold item needed to be placed in the center of the arrangement. Looking around, the brass pedestal bowl was spotted. It seemed a perfect centerpiece.
Although I had white candles which were a little taller, these candles wrapped in gold wire carried on the golden theme and seemed perfect.
Yes, but the brass pedestal bowl seemed to need a little more height. So, a blue book was placed under it.
The blue book adds more of that color to the mantel but it seemed to need more weight, too. A black book was placed underneath the blue book. Yes, it needed that. Then, it seemed something was missing from the ends. Right? Something blue to carry the color throughout the whole arrangement was needed.
I recalled seeing two little ceramic blue birds at the local craft store. That was my plan. Well, circumstances kept me from getting to that store but I did make it to another and these little birds caught my eye. At the time, I thought they would have to make do for now.
Well, don’t you know they were perfect? The little birds not only pulled the blue together but also carried the white throughout the arrangement. In fact, they seemed to bring it all together and completed the triangular composition. The little birds also repeat the blue and white patterns of the Chinese vases and bowls placed throughout the room.
Using shapes to create a triangle is one of my favorite compositions. The simplest of all polygons, the triangle base down, gives a visual impression of stability.
Decorating your mantel can be an adventure. With me, at least, you can see it is trial and error. A bold triangular composition was in my mind from the beginning and this time it was also the end product. Fear is a road block to creativity. Fearlessly plunge into it and see what is pleasing to your eye. You might be surprised at what you come up with in the end.
Maybe these ‘Summer Mantel Ideas and Inspiration’ will help you create a beautiful mantel arrangement, too.
