Mantel of the Month: Summer Edition

I am super excited about this mantel get-up because: 1. It feels kind of beachy and 2. All it took was making a few tweaks from last month’s mantel to get the new look. Score a point for being lazy. Speaking of which, let’s take a stroll down memory lane to our spring mantel, so you can see what I mean.And here is our new and improved summer-scape:   I’ll let you play “spot the differences” on your own, but essentially, all I did was swap out the pink for woven and added a few hits of beachy blue and a few other beachy accents. Here’s a closer shot of the left side: The woven placemats ($3 at Ikea if you’re hunting) are such a simple addition (just throw ’em down!), but bring a lot of “summer” to the set up. The blue vase, dipped in differing blues and whites reminds me a lot of the ocean, so that made the cut too. These beachy touches are mirrored (but not exactly symmetrical) on the other side.   Same woven place mat. Same hint of blue, but in more of a glassy piece this time. At first the blue vase was empty, but I thought it needed something so I grabbed a pair of clippers and marched straight out the front door to snip a branch off of our leafy tree. Add some water to the vase to keep him fresh and you’ve got yourself some non-floral greenery! The woven pot (also from Ikea and you can find more info on it here) keeps with the natural vibe and of course, the seashell seals (say that three times fast!) the beachy theme for the entire mantel.    Ok, go with me on this: place mat and woven pot= sand, seashell= seashell, blue vases= water, plants= sea weed. In the spirit of going overboard, we’ll even say that metal pot= metal detector treasures. Bam, we’ve got a beach in our house. And the good news is, you can have one too! All it takes is going on a treasure hunt through your house and yard for some natural, beachy elements and figuring out a combination that works for you! Happy Summer, y’all!-Leslie