The Lettered Cottage

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Fall Mantel

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Remember that fireplace makeover we worked on at Kevin’s brother’s house a few weeks back? Well, we decided to surprise them with some fast and fun Fall mantel decor last week, too!

The cardboard letters came from Hobby Lobby. We just hot glued them together and hung them on the wall with masking tape.

(We couldn’t bring ourselves to pound nails into their pretty new planks just yet- ha!)

We wanted the mantel decor to coordinate with the look and feel in the rest of the room…

…so we gathered up a collection of green & gold faux pumpkins (gourds?) and a strand of faux leaf garland (Hobby Lobby), along with some old books, and dishes, and candleholders we already had on hand. We also used a couple of small grapevine wreaths to act as a pedestal for the small pumpkin on the right…

It was a super simple snazz-up, and we sure had fun creating it for them!

Can’t wait to see lots more fall mantel pics over at Centsational Girl today!

PS- Looking forward to Thrifty Decor Chick‘s “Easy Fall Decor” link party on Thursday, too!

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Comments

  1. Keeping it Cozy

    It looks beautiful! I missed seeing your mantel decorated this year so I’m glad you shared this. I love the sweet simplicity… and the hints of blue are so pretty.

  2. Jennifer

    I love how fresh it looks even with fall decor. It still knocks my socks off when I see that new mantel. Off to go plank something…

  4. Ter'e Crow Lindsay

    You know my favorite part????? The COLORS! The colors seem “slightly off”……..not exactly what you would expect……….
    Just perfect. So unique! They just reek “H O M E”. I positively love them. I even love those silly green pumpkins….or are they gourds? Whatever, I love them. LUV!!!!!!!!!!!
    Can I come and have a cup of hot cider and enjoy your decorating?
    🙂

  5. Lynn in AZ

    I love the hot glued letters! What a fabulous idea. I am so glad there are creative people like you out in cyberworld who are willing to share ideas. Thank you so much for sharing.

  6. tenn hens

    Oh my gosh, I adore the letters. I’ve walked past those before in craft bins and never paid much attention, but I’m totally copying your idea now 🙂 Love it!

  12. Debbie

    Love it, will you surprise me with a little makeover at my lake Martin condo?? Now I have to go to Hobby Lobby 🙂
    Debbie

  13. Laure Gill

    I love this idea! One of my favorite parts of your blog is that its done on a budget, yet absolutely beautifully stylish! I’m praying for you guys during this house transition…enjoy the ride.

  17. Lucy

    You all have done it yet again!! The letters are fabulous!! The whole look is very comfortable and classy! I’m not a fond lover of orange, so I really appreciate the neutral colors you all chose for this “pleasing to the eye” display. Great job! And, such a dear family you all have! I love how you decorate for them!

  23. Lauren Regan

    You have the most clever ideas ! You know the meaning of less is more, so simple and elegant.

  26. Ter'e Crow Lindsay

    Layla:
    What are the letters called? I do not have a nearby HL so will have to do my ordering online. I’d like to do a “GRADITUDE” wall………..these are just co kewl.
    Thanks so much! Let’s see how I can modify this idea to fit into my FL home. I have no mantle! I do have an armoire top I can use, however.
    I’m gonna tape those suckers to it!

  29. Kelly

    L love how you say “surprise them”! Do you have your own key and sneak in? That would be so fun to come home to! Love it!
    Kelly

  30. Jenny B.

    I LOVE IT! And, no offense, but when I clicked on the post link, I was fully prepared to be all, “ho-hum, another fall foliage mantel, blah, blah…” What was I thinking?! The Awesome Layla & Kev would never do that to me! 🙂 I absolutely love the pops of blue, and I think the planks behind the letters give a subtle nod to handwriting lines, which is just completely cool!

  33. pickmepam

    good thing you didn’t hot glue them to the wall! (my first thought when i read “hot glued”… (i know you’re smarter than that!) what a dork i am.

  34. Mary F

    It may have been simple to put together, but it’s definitely my favorite out of the ones I’ve seen in blogland so far this year!

  35. Rachel

    I love this idea! The whole room turned out wonderful… but I adore that hug-you-when-you-walk-into-the-room reminder to Give Thanks!

  38. Laura Whitaker

    Hi there! Love the fireplace make over and the ‘give thanks’ above it is so pretty. Instead of masking tape – why don’t you try the 3M removable hangers. The have some that are ‘velcro’, you stick one side to your art and the removable side to your wall. I just used some in my family room – they hold great and are easy to use!

    • Layla

      Thanks, Laura! We actually just used what we had on hand, but thanks for the heads up about the 3M products!

  39. tara Lowry

    it is beautiful!
    I am truly digging the planks that you guys added.
    We have a HUGE massive space above our fireplace, and I think doing something similar to this just might be the trick.

  40. Jana

    Looks great. I hadn’t seen the fireplace redo yet. I love the horizontal boards above the mantel. Gorgeous as always!

  43. Shirley

    I love this. It turned out so well. It’s very different from the traditional fall wreath. (Although I do loooove wreaths.) The letters look great. I think they would be even neater sand blasted or aged somehow.

    Also, the idea of the grapevine wreaths as pedastools is really neat. Turned out beautiful! (And I still love seeing the pictures of your in laws rooms.)

    Shirley
    http://www.etsy.com/shop/ABowForMama

  44. Kelly

    Love that you just left the letters natural cardboard, I never would have thought of it, but it looks just right!

  45. Naomi W.

    If you need to hang something, use the 3M Command Removable wall hooks. They are great!

  46. Amanda

    I love the light color of the room and the navy and leather together. Hoping to use this for inspiration on my new house! I have been searching for a jute/natural looking rug for our living room and would love to know where the one in this room came from. Thank you!

  47. Shannon

    Ok, seriously. How many times have I looked at those letters at Hob Lob and not known what to do with them? That’s my Doh! moment of the day. Love, love the simplicity of it all. Thanks for the inspiration!