Our summertime redo of the den post is long overdue. I must have switched things up months ago and then almost forgot to share them. And now school is going back in session…WHEN IN THE WORLD DID SCHOOL START SO EARLY!??! If I was still in school, I would have vetoed and stayed home. Which would have been ineffective…seeing as I was homeschooled. But I would have definitely NOT put on a bra. And I would have told my mother “I hate school and you can suck my big fat toe.” And when I say “I hate school and you can suck my big fat toe” I mean “Yes ma’am, I am getting my books right now.” Dude. She could ground us and give extra homework and take away cars, television, and interaction with humans. You don’t cross that much power.
Anyhoo. Back to the den. Here was our post-christmas den:
It was filled with a monochromatic elements like this large flat basket (which now I see in the Pottery Barn catalog so I feel relieved that I ain’t so crazy for being crazy about this basket) and some candlesticks and a little stack of twined up books and a little birdhouse. Very cozy and warm.
But then spring sprung. And our hydrangeas came out to play.
And that is when I was inspired to make this placemat pillow. But it didn’t exactly match the other all-brown items in the room.
So I decided to spruce things up a bit. First thing I did was choose my color palette – which came directly from the pillow. I wanted everything to have fresh blues, pinks and greens. Then I pulled off everything from the mantle and the coffee table to start with a blank slate.
On the mantle, I placed the round mirror in the middle to start things off. I especially like it on the coffee table but in this case, I wanted a large white element in the center and this was the only large white element that I had on hand. Then I gathered up some pink and blue books. I decided to top that with a small potted plant for a pop of green. Then I realized that I would need to balance that color on the other side. So I ran outside and clipped a few roses from our front yard. I love how their saturated color gives a little pop to the other side of the mantel. Then to keep things light and airy while still adding height, I snagged some blue glass bottles to place behind the vase of roses. Balancing out those bottles was easy with the help of a blue glass bud vase on the other side. After that, the mantel just needed two little white elements – a favorite white ceramic bird and a little milk glass hobnail lidded vase.
It’s like my mantel met Jenny Craig. Totally lighter, right? And you may have already noticed that I added a couple colorful blankets to the mix. I threw in the pink one on the tan chair and the teal one on the leather chair. I love how just a throw can add a splash of color and really add some fun to a serious space.
And speaking of pops of color, check out our new coffee table arrangement:
I was so inspired by the colors outside that I decided we needed a little coffee table garden. First, I laid down a large green serving plate from West Elm on the glass top. The limelight hydrangeas are the largest element and placed in the blue bubble glass hurricane that I scored at Goodwill. For our second cluster item, a cheap Ikea planter has a indoor plant (that amazingly I kept alive). Lastly is a little Pier 1 turquoise vase with a sprig of crepe myrtle. My favorite part is the fact that the little lines on the Ikea vase are just like the little lines on the Pier 1 vase. I don’t know why. It’s weird details like that that make me smile.
On the other side of the arrangement I stuck the little white cross that I had in my drawer-o-decor.
As I am writing this post, I think to myself…well Katie, it sure would be nice to see a bunch of mantelscapes all in one place. And you know what? I am right. Here are some of my favorites from the last year:
So have you tackled your mantle lately? Maybe included some more seasonal decor? Do you update yours with the changing weather or are you more of a tried-and-true type that sticks to one arrangement? Perhaps you just use pillows and throws to spruce up your spaces? Whatever your style, I’d love to hear what your mantle is currently sportin’.
Love the way you just changed a few elements and created a completely different look. I really enjoy your blog especially your design ideas. Looking at pictures of Will doesn’t hurt either. He is such a cutie!
Love all of your ideas Katie!
I love seeing all the different mantle-scapes!
I don’t do a good job changing things out in our home for the seasons — but we also live in Southern California, so it’s not like the seasons change all that much. 🙂
What is the name of that paint color??? I love it!
This is the best thing about having neutrals, you can totally change the look easy peasy, love it!!
My mantel is currently having an identity crisis, I just can’t find the perfect focal piece. Your mantels are lovely, thanks for the inspiration!
Can you do a post on mantel decoration guidelines? Much like the one you did a while back on side tables. I loved that one and am currently trying to figure out what I want to do with my bare mantel. Don’t want to just copy but rather would love to learn the guiding techniques on how to put it together. Thanks!
Love the transformation…
and I am a bit late – but congrats on being chosen for True Value Blog Squad again! 😀
Love it!! Wanna hear something annoying, though? My Mantel has a TV ON IT!!! Garrrr….makes it so hard to decorate – i.e. can’t really put stuff on the mantel because it blocks the view. Thoughts? Suggestions?? Evil homebuilders trying to be functional….
Hi Megan,
The den is painted with Dusty Trail by Olympic 🙂
XO – kbow
Hi Lindsay,
Grrr….maybe you could try flanking the tv with a pair of pretty candlesticks and pop a little vase on one side to add a splash of flowery color? Anyone else wanna suggest a solution for Linds?
xo-k
Yes…my fellow blogger has a TV on her mantel and it looks great. She has pretty white coral, White vases, and those cool closed boxes that hold magazines in a pretty brown and white pattern. She also pops in bits of gold, and a monogram too. All in all, she keeps the color scheme minimal which helps. Brown, white, gold. 🙂
BTW Katie, I am very impressed by your mantel switch-outs. Mine is boring and the same year round, except for Christmas. You are inspiring me to change it…
I love the round mirror. I’ve been looking for one for our bedroom for a while and when I saw one on ikea.com I immediately hopped in the car with then intention of buying it…. The store was sold out. Where did you buy yours?
Very pretty! I wish I had a mantel to decorate!!!
Actually Felicity our mirror is from TJMaxx. I stalked that thing till it went on sale and then snatched it up in a hurry!
XO – Katie
Katie, was your fireplace mantel white (with slate) when you purchased the home, or did you DIY?
We have a fireplace in our basement that has a wood mantel, green marble, and gold accents (very ’90s). I love your mantel ideas and I’d like to paint ours.
I completely agree with Susan! I would love to see some guidelines on how to decorate the mantel. Maybe some seasonal suggestions too! I struggle with keeping mine bright and fresh because there is brown brick all around. Any suggestions on low cost changes would be helpful!
Thanks!
Katie,
I think these might go over better than the bacon earings.
http://www.ourbestbites.com/2009/12/bacon-wrapped-cocktail-sausages.html
oh my goodness… just tackled my HUGE mantel. huge as in deep and long and alot of space between the mantel and ceiling. i cut off the deepness with shutters that i painted white. in front of the shutters i turned two chair legs into candlesticks with a white hurricane vase on one side, a set of three empty different shades of gold frames, in different sizes, and then on the far side a gold lamp with a piece of my mother in law’s china that is white and gold. its homey and warm..we like it. 🙂
Hi Keeley,
We actually did our fireplace ourselves. You can see the post on how we did it here. I feel your pain. Our fireplace was crumbling to a dusty mess…and now it is definitely one our favorite makeovers 🙂
XO – k-dogg
I love how a few changes can make such a difference. We’re going to change out some things in the library soon to make it a little more fit for fall/winter, and I’m excited for that.
I love all of the subtle pops of color and your placemat pillow is adorable. The new room looks so fresh but I do have a thing for that crazy big flat basket… so unique!
Katie,
I love all your mantle decor. I especially love the basket mostly because of the texture it adds to the arrangement. I have the big hole above the fireplace with a tv inside and no mantle one of the many things on my list to tackle.
Katie! I have spent the better part of my day searching through all your old posts and I have to say that I am in love! Your house is beautiful and has definitely inspired me! Can’t wait to read more!
Looks great Katie! I especially love the pillow you made.
Ok, so I’m another Lindsey with a big TV in the middle of my mantle thanks to the hubs. It is a source of home decor stress for me. Currently I have a white frame with an etching from a local artist of Eve picking an apple with a snake in the tree which I love and on the other side I have a barnacle vase. I try to add flowers to the vase fromn the yard. I’ve also thinking about hanging things on the wall on each side of the TV, but not sure I want something that perminant. I am clueless as to what to do. I do add pillows to my chairs and sofa to add color, but oh the mantle!!!!
Ok, so this is not really related to the mantle, but I have a question. Where did you get the photo albums in the bookcase? They are lovely and I need ideas. We are drowning in photos. Most albums don’t look really nice and “clean” like yours. By the way, love the mantle. Thanks!!
I love, love, love, the sheep skin rug idea. I’ll be keeping my eyes peeled for one. I have a little one with toys about.
Hi Cindy,
Our photo albums were from the Pottery Barn outlet about a year and a half ago. I bought a bunch when they went on clearance and we LOVE them. Maybe you could find some on ebay?
XO – Katie
You inspire me to get creative and switch up my decor for the seasons! I love the way you pull everything together – great job!
Love the pretty pops of color, Katie! I just finished updating our mantel recently (http://theboutons.blogspot.com/2010/08/living-room-update.html) but I don’t know how often it will get tweaked… it’s a lot of work! 🙂
Love the pops of color, Katie! I just updated our mantel recently (http://theboutons.blogspot.com/2010/08/living-room-update.html) but I don’t know how often I will change it… it’s a lot of work! 🙂
I am having a secret love affair with your coffee table – where did it come from?
Hi Meaghan,
It was a Craigslist find – and you can read all about it in this here post.
XO – katie
Hi! I stumbled upon your page while searching for a paint color. I’ve used Olympic Stony Creek a couple times and loved it. It’s one shade darker than Dusty Trail. Do you think Dusty Trail would be too dark of a color to use for entryway and hallways? Particularly concerned about the hallways. Paranoid I am going to go too dark, but also paranoid I am going to go too light, lol! Any thoughts? 🙂
It was definitely not too light. I would say that if you are paranoid…go get a sampler and test it out. It might not even look good in there…because lighting changes and all that…but it will be a three dollar insurance policy 🙂
xo – kb