Holiday mantel two ways

Did everyone catch the DIY floral doorway arch that Bows & Arrows flowers and Apryl Ann shared with us last month? (If not it will surely set your heart aflutter.) We love it when beauty and simplicity go hand in hand. The team is back with another DIY to try your hand at—this time for the holidays. Alicia + Adam of B&A each set up their own mantle decoration… Pick your fave and give it a go via their directions below!

This marbled mantel is a pretty great blank slate to work with, huh?

Directions for Alicia’s mantle design

1. Gather materials (brass candlesticks, beeswax taper candles, winter evergreen foliage, onyx hurricane candle holders, and water tubes).
2. Start with a clean slate for your mantle installation.
3. Place hurricane candle holders, then layer in your candlestick.
4. Once all the candles are in place fill around them in with your greenery of choice.
5. Finally, put individual blooms in water tubes and plug into your loose garland.

This next one’s influenced by the relaxed southwestern style of the Ojai Rancho Inn in Ojai, CA.

1. Gather materials (terra cotta pots, cacti and succulents, evergreen foliage, paddle wire, metal hooks, candles).
2. Gather succulents, cacti and pots for planting. Make sure to follow instructions given at the greenhouse when you purchase them and plant in an area that can get dirty.
3. Arrange candles and potted cacti on mantle.
4. For the garland, gather the evergreen foliage and lay two pieces on a surface facing the same direction.
5. Connect the base of the first branch to the top of the second branch with the paddle wire, this will ensure that all needles or leaves flow in the same direction.
6. Wrap the wire around the branch until you get to the base of the second branch then add another.
7. Continue this process to create a garland.
8. Once you have a piece about 4ft long finish the wire by cutting and tying it off.
9. Create another 4ft garland.
10. Connect both garlands together at their base stems to create a symmetrical 8ft evergreen garland. (To attach I use gold hooks with a screw on one end and attach it to the underside of the mantle at three points.)