Christmas Mantle Decor and Gallery Wall

A traditional Christmas Home Tour of the Living Room in red, white, and green.

Merry Christmas, y’all! It’s time to deck the halls and get to baking, shopping, and general merriment. Each year gets better and better as we go along in this adventure of DIY and making a house a home.

One of many surfaces that gets decorated for the holidays at our house is our mantel. Besides the tree, the mantle area is probably the biggest focal point for traditional Christmas decor. The mantle has gone through several changes year to year and this year is no exception.

The living room has been going through a very slow transformation the last few months, and one of the ideas I had on my list was to add some window box trim to the area above the mantle. I feel like it adds so much more dimension. The mantle itself is a new thicker, deeper board that we had laying around the shop as well. It feels much sturdier than the terrible mdf that it was there before.

Most of the elements are the same from last year including our embroidered stockings and my favorite greenery swag. Of course, I had to include the Merry and Bright Sign I made a few years ago (the design files are available to newsletter subscribers).

Christmas Mantle Decorating Tips

Even if you don’t have a mantle, there are so many fun ways to decorate an area like a mantle. You could use a big chunky shelf or even a sideboard or entry table to hang your stockings from.

Tips for Hanging Stockings

With our new mantle, I don’t want to be poking any nails to hang our stockings from so I purchased these stocking hooks this year and I am very happy with them. They hold about 5 lbs, which I know that I can go over that, but they are sturdy and I have no worries of them falling over like with the hangers that sit on top of the mantle.

Use Layers for Fullness

Garland can be really expensive for the beautifully full and decorated garland. One of the ways I have added fullness to make those lush and full garland is to purchase one more expensive garland and if you want more fullness, pick up some cheaper greenery on sale in the floral section and add clippings into the garland. This will create visual interest with different textures as well. I also find that flocking adds dimension.

Another way to add fullness is to decorate the areas around the mantle such as shelves or a coffee table. I was so in love with our fall vignette on the coffee table this year so adding a special moment there too seemed like the way to go. Using our mirrored tray, I  added these faux paperwhites and some birch candles. I have also been having a lot of fun putting these wood bead garlands in places around the house.

Shop sources below by clicking on the image. (Mobile users may have to click twice.)

Match the Mantle and Tree (if they are close to each other)

I have three trees in our house and each of them is decorated uniquely with different color schemes and even themes. For the living room, I try to incorporate similar elements between the mantle and tree such as pops of red and greenery. I have been sharing a lot about our tree this year on Instagram and there is really no way I can do it justice on the blog. My mother-in-law brought her amazing tree and put it up for us this year. It lights up like New York City and has about 60 electric motion ornaments that my Mother-In-Law has been collecting from Hallmark for over 30 years! The whole tree even spins so that no ornament goes unnoticed.

I thought it would be great to have my husband’s family tree because his whole family gathers here every year for Christmas. It’s a nostalgic addition that truly warms my heart to think about the littles opening their presents under Grandma’s tree.

Other Christmas Decorations Around the Room

The newest change to our living room are these two arm chairs which replaced our old loveseat. I added some deer head pillows and love the look opposite of the tree.

Behind the chairs sits our awkward wall between the stairs that I put a gallery wall on. I may be simplifying this area after Christmas, but I love the little touches of Christmas this time of year. It feels like this room is coming a long way though since last year. The new blinds, curtains, mantle, rug and chairs are giving me all the good vibes that this will work throughout the year.

Merry Christmas from Our Family to Yours!

Links to Decor Sources

• Area Rug
• Arm Chairs
• Bamboo Shades
• Mantle Swag
• Personalized Stockings
• Standing Deer Figurine (Stag) – Mine were from Costco years ago, but this is similar
• Rotating Christmas Tree Stand
• Personalized Quilted Tree Skirt
• Potted Paperwhite flowers in Tin
• Wood Bead Garland
• Metal Tray (similar)
• Deer Head Pillows
• Blue Throw Blankets
• Gallery Wall Deer head
• Letterboard
• Gallery Wall Lighted Star