Anyone else feeling the urge to decorate for spring? Winter here in Alberta can sure drag on and on—hence my urge to freshen up my decor. While it may be too early to enjoy our deck, I can definitely add some spring touches inside the house. Today I’m tackling a spring mantel. I hope it helps with the spring fever I’ve been feeling lately!
I am teaming up with some very talented bloggers today for a Spring Home Tour! We will each be posting about an area of the home decorated for spring. Be sure to read all the way to the bottom of this post so you don’t miss all the fabulous inspiration from our Spring Home Tour!
(This post contains affiliate links. For more information, read my full disclosure here.)
Usually, the first area of my home that I change seasonally is my fireplace mantel. It’s my favourite spot to style, and the mantel is in our main living area. Guests will therefore see it when they are over. We also spend a lot of time in our living room as a family. I find myself switching things up on the mantel often.
Our family recently took a trip down to California to go to Disneyland. So of course, we made a couple trips to Target for groceries. And…maybe a few souvenirs for me! We don’t have Target in Canada anymore, so I always take advantage of any chance I get to go there! My spring accent colour is dusty pink this year, so I bought two pink Hearth & Hand pillows. Thankfully, I was able to squeeze them into my suitcase!
I also picked up this pretty candle that I thought went great with the pillows. Note to self for next time though: candles can set off the alarm when they go through security clearance at airports. Security was VERY interested in this candle, and they swabbed it and our backpack out thoroughly. My husband even got the full body pat down (I was thankful it wasn’t me!) Do you think Joanna Gaines knows this about her candles?!!
When styling my mantel, here are some great tips that I always consider:
Start with a large focal piece.
Begin with a large anchor piece, like a mirror or piece of art. In my case, I chose a large gold rimmed mirror for my backdrop. I picked mine up at HomeSense, but I found a very similar gold mirror here!
I love how my mirror ties in with my gold floor lamp in my living room!
Keep it simple.
Remember that less can actually be more. Using too many pieces can cause your mantel to look cluttered. When I style my mantel, I often have to remove pieces if I stand back and things look too busy. I’m really drawn to simplified spaces lately.
Use mostly large pieces.
On my spring mantel, I used larger items like the wine jug and the tall vase on either side. Next, I added in the candle and small succulent plant as fillers. I like to elevate the smaller items on stacks of books.
Grouping objects in odd numbers is more visually appealing to the eye.
I’m not sure why this is true, but it is. For example, I used a group of 3 with my vase, plant, and small succulent.
Balance visual weight.
Using pieces that will balance each other out visually on both sides of the mantel is a good rule of thumb. You can group items of varying sizes and heights. On my spring mantel, I used vases that were similar in height on either side. The pink vase is smaller in visual weight than the chunky green vase. So, to balance things out, I used my pothos plant that helped fill the space beside the pink vase.
Add greenery.
To add a little life to the space, I always add greenery to my spring mantel. For example, my pothos plant has made a rather permanent home on my mantel lately. It’s easy to care for (my kind of plant!) and I love how it looks. But, I also like to use faux greenery sometimes—like my little succulent plant.
I had to carry my cat around when I was taking these pictures since he kept trying to sneak in all the photos. I let him stay in the last one!
Shop This Look:
I hope you enjoyed these little tips and found them helpful for styling a mantel—or any shelf for that matter. It does take a bit of trial and error to get it just right, but I always enjoy that process! Lastly, don’t forget to check out the Spring Home Tour for some more spring inspiration!
It looks great Kyla!! Love it!
Thank you, Deb! I love simple touches of spring!
There are so many beautiful layers on this mantel, Kyla! I love the mix of your fireplace rock and mantel too. They both look so good. Everything you picked up from Target is perfect. I swear that place can really get you in trouble. They have so many fun finds. Hope you and your family are all well. Hugs, CoCo
Thank you, CoCo! You are right that Target can get one in trouble! Thank you for the lovely feedback on my mantel!
These are such fantastic tips for decorating, Kyla! Your home has been one of my favorites for such a long time. I don’t know how you do it, but somehow you manage to combine a clean and fresh minimalist style with cozy and comfortable. It’s amazing!
That airport story, though…how funny! Who would think that could happen with a candle?! I’m glad you managed to get your treasures into the country because your living room and mantel look incredible!
xo, Kristi
Thank you, Kristi! It was so crazy that the candle was such a big deal coming through security! I sure do appreciate your sweet comments on my post!
I am in love with that glass bottle and your entire mantel is lovely.
I can’t imagine no Target. We actually have 2 Targets in our town, another 5 miles away and a 4th 10 miles away. Oddly, ours town is the smallest of the 3 towns and I’m wondering if one might close during the crazy times we are living in right now.
When Target was in Canada (and I had just two little ones) I used to go for lovely little walks to Target when I had nothing else to do. I miss those days!
These are great tips! I love your mantel! It’s simple but beautiful!
Thank you so much! Sometimes it’s just best to keep it simple. Glad you like it! 🙂
This is so beautiful friend!
Thank you so much, Rebecca!
What a lovely living area and your mantel looks perfect! Thanks for sharing the decorating tips and tricks, too… I especially like the ‘less is more’. 😉 Pinned, and thanks for touring with me!
My tips were simple, but I hope they were helpful for some. Thank you for reading and sharing!
Oh I love how bright this room is! And that glass bottle makes my heart go all pitter patter! What a beautiful space to welcome Spring into your home!
Thank you, Jen! I painted the walls white last year and it sure did help brighten the room!
Your gold mirror goes perfect against the rock fireplace. I love all of your pretty touches. Mantles are so fun to decorate and yours is beautiful. ❤️
Thank you, Danya! I sure do appreciate your kind words! I’m loving the gold mirror.
Hi Kyla! Love your clean and elegant mantle decor. I also appreciate the style tips that you shared. It still takes me a few tries to get things just how I like them. Your space looks beautiful.
Thank you, Lauren! The trial and error part of decorating I actually enjoy!
Love how cozy this is and the pops of blush are perfect!
It’s such a happy colour for spring. Thanks, Ana!
I love the touches of pink and the styling is perfection! Great job! Happy to be on this tour with you!
Thank you, Laura! I don’t usually decorate with pink but I’m loving it this year!
The green and the blush colours are so beautiful together! Getting ready to stye my mantle too.
Thank you, Shawna! Looking forward to seeing your spring mantel!
Everything looks so beautiful. Thank you for all of the ideas.
Thanks, Amanda! You are so sweet!
Hello Kyla! Your Spring Mantel looks amazing! Loving the blush idea for Spring and I too believe that the touches of greenery are the perfect tell-tell sign of Spring! Gorgeous my sweet friend! 🙂
Thank you, Dee Dee! Now if only the weather would cooperate and it actually felt like spring outside! Still so much snow here!
I love your fireplace and mantel and the lovely way you’ve decorated it. Do you happen to know the name and manufacturer of the stone on your fireplace? We are building a new home and I would love to have a fireplace and mantel like this!
Hi Kathi! Sorry it took so long to respond! I believe it is Cultured Stone in Echo Ridge Country Ledgestone.
Hi Kyla,
Hi! I sent a post a few days ago asking if you knew the name/brand of your fireplace stone but I didn’t see my post or your answer. If you do know, you can even just email me. And if you don’t know, could you let me know that. It is just exactly what I’ve been looking for to go on our fireplace in our new and last house. We call it our “Feet first” house because we plan on it being our last house so they will be taking us out “feet first” when we go, ha! I appreciate it so much, thanks!
I just replied to your previous comment. Covid had me very busy with work and the kids at home so I haven’t been checking my blog comments. I hope you are able to find the stone, and good luck with your build! 🙂