Fun fact: Each holiday I get out our decoration boxes from the garage, and I go through them, pulling out what I want to use and what I don’t. Half of the stuff I find, I didn’t even know I had, because honestly, MOST of my decorations were passed down to me from my mom (who was the holiday decor QUEEN), and I don’t even remember saying “yea, sure, I’ll take that!”
To be frank, a lot of the stuff I have I have out of guilt (sorry, mom!). I say this because there are so many decorations I remember from my childhood that just like my mom, I can’t bear to throw away. Or, even if I could, I feel bad for doing so. So I will pull things out and because I have a fond memory of them, I will try my darndest to incorporate them into my home.
Spoiler alert: Most of the time it doesn’t work!
Lesson to be learned: Get rid of decor that doesn’t bring you joy NOW – sure I save a few things I think will be cute for future kiddos, but honestly, so much of this stuff I just need to purge! (Dear Ana, REMEMBER THIS IN THE FUTURE)!
Still with me?!
So this is precisely what happened with my Spring mantel this year. I pulled out all the cutesy whimsical items from my Easter box (i.e. cutesy felt rabbit) and attempted to make them work with my current style – well, they didn’t. Now, that’s not to say that I didn’t like my first go at my mantel decor, because I did – and honestly for a house full of kids, I think it would be just perfect! BUT, this year all my whimsy got used up on my Easter tablescape (read: Easter eggs hanging from out chandelier), and I really was searching for something a bit more understated. The whimsical version was good for about a week, and then I was overwhelmed by it.
I mean, how much would a few cute kiddos just love this?! I know I would have as a kid!
While the whimsical look is very cute, I was really missing my staple “gather” sign on my tobacco basket, and I had also recently received some vintage brass candlesticks in the mail from a dear IG friend, and I knew I wanted to use them on my mantel. So, down everything came!
I also wanted to find a way to keep my Eucalyptus going, and after reading in several other blogs about how well it dries, I decided to put it on my tobacco basket along with my gather sign.
Adding the Eucalyptus was easy peasy, I just wove the stems through the top middle portion of the basket until I liked the look, and then used twine to secure it (I used 4 separate ties in places I thought needed a little more security). I then tied my gather basket back on (also with twine), and up it went!
Ahh, I feel so much better already!
And then it was time for the fun part! I added a few vintage books back, my new brass candlesticks, and of course, because I can’t rid of all the whimsy, 3 moss bunnies I got from Michaels at 40% off! Score!
The after – understated with a little SIDE of whimsy, just how I like it! 🙂
Long story short, I learned 2 things:
- Don’t hold on to decor out of guilt – if it doesn’t bring you joy, just donate it! I guarantee it WILL bring joy to someone else, and what’s the use of keeping it if it just ends up sitting in the box year after year anyway?
- Don’t be afraid to change things up until you get them just how you like them! I am SO much happier with my mantel now, especially since I know I have many years of whimsy decor ahead of me when we decide to add a baby, or two!, to the family!
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And here’s one more before and afters, just for funsies:
And of course, the final product in all it’s glory:
You can even still see the whimsical carrots making an appearance in the bucket on the ladder – I promise I do like a little whimsy!
So there you have it, folks, my Spring mantel decor and a couple decor lessons I learned along the way!
Enjoy!
XO,
Ana
(P.S. Curious how I got my fireplace to look this way? You can check out my DIY Faux Brick Tutorial HERE, and my How to Wax a Reclaimed Wood Mantel tutorial HERE)!
Oh this is a great. I totally agree on everything you said🙋🏼
Thanks, Ann! Sometimes getting rid of decor is hard right? I need to be better about it, but I am trying!
It looks great! Yes I’m guilty too of keeping things out of sentiment or guilt… Some I’ve been able to let go of, but some I do intend to keep for a long time to come, even if I don’t use them. Love the results of both designs!
I love how you weaved in the greenery!
Thank you! I can’t believe I didn’t think of it before!
Great look! My favorite quote in your blog was “if it doesn’t bring you joy, donate it. It will give someone else joy!” I need to keep that in mind!
I need to as well! I thought that writing it down might help me apply it more in my life! Like in my closet 😛