Happy Monday! Did you have a nice weekend? We did and we were very productive at the same time! We had several things on our to-do list that we finally finished. Re-building and decorating the mantle was a big one!
We have lived in this house for 13 years, which is a LONG time according to our history. Over the years we’ve made many improvements around the house but the mantle in the den is one that never got addressed. Until now! The mantle is a nice length but was only 7 inches wide. What can you possibly put on such a skinny mantle? I’ve been bugging my husband for years to make it wider and more substantial. So this year it finally happened!
We ran to Home Depot over the weekend and picked up a piece of 1’X10″ wood. I think it was around $13 for the board. I wanted the new mantle to be about 2 inches longer on each end and 3 inches wider than before. Three inches doesn’t sound like much, but trust me. It is!
My husband cut the board to the proper length and then using his router, cut a nice rounded edge on the sides and front. He sanded it well and then screwed the new mantle on top of the old one. (The bandaged thumb was from the toilet installation that took place right before this project.)
We had a piece of egg and dart trim from a previous project and we had just enough to trim out the underside of the new board. This hardly ever happens to us. Usually we are a few inches shy and it requires multiple trips to the hardware store. Luck was on our side this time and we had everything on hand. We patched and sanded the entire mantle and gave it a few coats of the semi-gloss paint to match the rest the trim. Much better!
Our mantle before was discolored and small. Now it is larger and looks brand new with its fresh coat of paint. I was finally able to decorate the mantle for Christmas with larger pieces and still have room for the garland and lights. I added a spray of fresh greenery above the mirror and we are officially ready for Santa!
The gold leaf candle holders are from the thrift store and the silver reindeer are from Bombay Company years ago. I need to buy some matching pillar candles but for now I used what I had around the house. It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas! Now for the tree…..
How is your decorating going? Am I the only one that hasn’t bought any gifts yet? Thanks for stopping by! I appreciate it so much! Hope you have a great week! xoxo Dell
