Last week, I shared I upgraded my holiday garland this year and I took you along for the ride on how I styled my staircase with the Norfolk pine real touch garland. We’re going to keep the garland theme and move onto the fireplace mantles. That’s right, fireplace mantles as in more than one! Since I’m lucky enough to have two mantles, I decided it might be fun to try two different techniques for hanging garland on the mantel. Today we’re going to focus on a symmetrical draped look in the cozy tv den.
If you’re new here, you might have missed the massive transformation this room has gone through. We went from a band aide to a full on color drench in a dark blue grey, and this room is just begging for Christmas decorations. Since it’s now such a dark space, we are going to go a little “extra” in here this year, and sprinkle in several different layers of lights.
In the past, I’ve set my garland on top of the mantel, hung stockings on the sides and middle, and called it a day. This year, I felt I could do better. I spent quite a bit of time in November browsing garlands, and I stopped my scroll when I found Crate & Barrel’s faux hemlock pine pre-lit garland. It’s a fuller garland, and drapes beautifully, plus it has battery packs that can operate on a timer. I was able to go into the store to see it in person and it was just as beautiful as it was online.
Anchoring with Cup Hooks
With the size of my specific fireplace and mantel, two of these 74” garlands was just perfect to achieve the look I wanted. Since the garland is extremely heavy, I did not want to rely on command hooks. I also didn’t want to run the risk of the command hooks peeling off the paint on my shelving.
Luckily, since this is a 90’s house, my mantel is made out of wood which means I can easily drill into it. I decided to use 7/8 inch matte brass cup hooks for this and drilled on the inside lip of the mantel, disguising the visibility of the holes. I placed a hook four inches from both ends of the mantel and placed a third in the center.
Adjusting with Zip Ties
Placing a zip tie halfway up one piece of garland, I hooked it on one edge of the mantel. From there, I hooked it onto the center hook. I repeated this on the other side, and with some adjusting of the zip ties, I had a romantic look with minimal effort.
After the holidays wrap, I’ll unscrew the cup hooks and store them for the following year, and no one will know there was ever a hook there in the first place. What do you think about hanging garland on the mantel this way? I love the look of it, and can also rest easy knowing these hooks are tightly secured, and my garland is safe.
Tools for this project:
Faux Hemlock Pine Pre-lit Garland
Sharpie
