The Cozy Old "Farmhouse": Farmhouse Winter Mantel

Thursday, January 10, 2013

Farmhouse Winter Mantel

I've been having so much fun shopping my house and coming up with some new arrangements for a January "winter" theme.

The shelf (or "mantel") in the above picture is how I had it last year. It was cute and very "wintery," but this year I wanted something a bit more "junk-i-fied."

Here's this year's winter "mantel." Only 2 things (besides the greenery) are not 2nd hand treasures. The rest has been either thrifted or a yard sale find.

I decided to keep this snowman picture. Partly for it's height and size, it's a good space filler, and partly because even though it was bought new a few years ago, it's sort of a repurposed item in that the scene is painted on corrugated metal.

My 2 year old spilled a whole box of flash cards and as I was cleaning them up I came across this one and knew I had to use it somewhere.

I moved this little evergreen bush from it's wire, apple-filled basket (I shared that picture on Facebook) to this metal bucket. I think maybe it's supposed to be a champagne bucket because it has a removable plastic bucket that fits inside, but of course I've used it for everything but it's intended purpose. : )

I love the little hook on the outside of it. This snowflake is the 2nd item that was bought new instead of 2nd hand, though I've had it for years.

I even threw this vintage electric insulator into the mix.

I love that the variety of items keeps your interest, but the repetitive color palette keeps it unified and doesn't overwhelm you with a cluttered look.

Up next will be the vignette I came up with for the coffee table. It's another combination of found items and "new" items, as well as a DIY project. I must say, I'm in love with it and can't wait to show you!

(Update - the winter coffee table vignette can be seen here)