Making a Mantle

Ever since we moved in, I’ve wanted our fireplace to have a mantle.  I was envisioning candles and photographs and stockings and besides, the fireplace felt a little naked without one.  I knew we’d have to build one, and I knew it wouldn’t be too difficult, but we just never got around to it (what with the boxes still to be unpacked and all).  Finally, on the same day we got our Christmas tree, we purchased the supplies and mantled the heck out of our fireplace.  And I love it.

We bought a piece of wood at Urban Ore, a salvage yard/warehouse that is just full of all kinds of crazy stuff.  I don’t know what this piece of wood used to be, but it was the perfect size and shape for our project.  And it set us back $2.  Another $1 for two L-shaped brackets, and we were on our way to Mantle Victory! 

When we installed the mantle, we noticed that the wood was just a little warped, but a quick screw through the top in the center pretty much straightened it out.  The left side still slants ever so slightly forward, but not so much as to make things slide off, and really, I’m ok with a little imperfection.

Now the mantle is decorated for the holidays, with lights and faux-berries.  I’ll probably leave the candles up there all year round, and I’d like to add a few pictures too. 

The Crate and Barrel version. 

Mine is almost as awesome.

Right now, I’m kind of (really) excited to have created my own version of this picture.  I almost bought those candleholders until I reminded myself that we had some very similar ones already. Ours were much cheaper ($1.99 for the tall ones and $0.99 for the small ones), and since they have dots instead of snowflakes, they’re less seasonal – booya!)

I'm proud of our handiwork.  Mantle!