Having a two-sided fireplace is both ascetically pleasing and helps to heat the two most used rooms in my home. Our Great Room and Playroom. However having two mantels with open space between them presents its challenges. Follow along as I share10 decorating tips and show off my Spring Mantel along the way.
Tip #1 Start with a focal point in the main room and then expand. I began with my Mossy Egg Wreath hung from a vintage window frame. Not only is this my focal point but it set the tone for the rest of the mantel.
On each side I made my own springtime cloche with more DIY Mossy Eggs set in a bowl with a smaller twig wreath around it. I set the bowl on top of another bowl that was upside down to give it more height and then disguised it with a piece of muslin cloth. I placed a cork on top of the upside down glass vase to finish off the cloche look.
Tip #2 Pick a color scheme to carry throughout both sides. For the Great Room side I went with pinks, earthy greens, turquoise and subtle highlights of yellow.
The candle holder on the far left reminds me of a cherry blossom tree. I decorated the candle in the middle with my DIY Mossy Washi Tape project I posted yesterday (you don't want to miss it!). Did you catch that the chevron patern matches the burlap ribbon on the wreath? Print the Spring free printable here.
Tip #3 Add height to stop the eye from seeing into the other room. A bonus with having a two-sided mantel is making the separated rooms seem bigger, and not so separated. However seeing the backside of the opposite rooms' mantel decoration isn't what we're after here.
Add something that fits with your theme that serves as a shelf to place your decor on. I used vintage chippy drawers, one on each side for visual balance. Do you like my turquoise vase? Learn my trick to Distressing Glass the Easy Way. I fell in those with this cute Spring Essentials free printable, she even created one for each season! You can find the Butterfly printable here in lots of colors.
Tip #4 Add a decoration in the opposite room to stop the eye from seeing through. In the case of this Spring Mantek I applied both Tip #3 & #4. In the Playroom side I re-hung my shabby material banner that you might recognize from my
The material is various shades of pink so it worked with my Spring Mantel color scheme too. Having a decoration from one room that you want to be seen in the opposite room is a great way to add depth. Just make sure it applies to Tip #2 as well.
Tip #5 Add a banner to bring your theme together. Just like the famous line "The rug really tied the room together Dude," in this case it's the banner.
I could of went with a Easter theme but I chose Spring so that it would last longer (less decorating can be a good thing). I printed the Spring Banner here, hot glued it to a pink ribbon and then embellished it with a bit more Mossy Washi.
Seriously, this stuff is addicting both to make and to decorate with!
Let's move to the Playroom side, shall we?
Tip #6 Changing styles is OK as long as the color schemes coordinate or are complementary to one another. Some might be able to pull off a vintage/ultra-mod two-sided mantel display but it would be pretty difficult to do!
You can see here the colors are still the same but the yellow is no longer subtle. I also introduced silver as a highlight in the Mercury Glass Mason Jars...
Tip #7 Incorporate elements and decor items on both sides. Although the Playroom side has new bright yellow items I've also included a turquoise Mason Jar, another Distressed Glass Vase and embellished a galvanized planter with, you guessed it, Mossy Washi!
Are you wondering what the heck the peony-looking white flowers are? Would you guess they're shower scrubbies from the Dollar Store! I hung them from trees right along side glass votive candles in my wedding decor too.
Tip #8 Leave room for personal touches to add along the way. For a banner (Tip #5) in the Playroom I simply strung a thick cotton string and placed wooden clothespins so when beautiful springtime art came home I could hang it with pride!
A few more pieces have been added since I took this picture and I love it. So do the kiddo's. Even though they are messy. I added my favorite sign to the very top to help hide the backside of the naked backside pictures from the Great Room. Scroll back up to Tip #4 if you have no idea what I'm talking about. =)
Tip #9 Shop your home for decor items. The only thing I purchased for BOTH sides of my mantels was the materials to make the Moss Covered Eggs. Everything else I had in other rooms, in my go-to decor cupboard or repurposed for a different use. Think outside the box! See the pallet looking thing behind the flower picture above? It's actually the backside of a State Love Plaque I made. I'll use the front side during 4th of July!
Tip #10 Tie any tablescapes or vignettes into your mantle decor. Our Playroom is actually supposed to be the Living Room because it shares space with the Dinning Room. This is what I did with the tabletop.
I created another cloche but instead of the muslin I used extra pieces of the pink cloth strips. I also added a couple more Mossy Eggs, a sweet burlap rosette and a fun clay bird nest my preschooler made for me! I brought in another touch of chevron, this time in blue. And surprise, they're actually two pillow cases from Pick Your Plum. I love that site!
Do you have a two-sided mantel? I'd love to hear any tips & tricks you use
I love your tips! I have enough trouble decorating a single mantle, but you did a great job with a double! :)
ReplyDeleteHow cute! Oh my gosh this brings back so many memories! My aunts house used to have a double sided fireplace! She replaced it, but I didn't even remember that until seeing this post! I'm kind of obsessed with the idea now though! Thanks for linking up with us!
ReplyDeletexx Caitlin