Christmas is almost here!! And we’ve just finished up most of our Christmas shopping, phew! Side note: Paw Patrol is SO popular right now, Brent and I drove all around the city just to find the characters for Max — Thank you Mastermind Toys, you’re a lifesaver. I wanted to squeeze in some Holiday decor before the season is over and to show how I slightly transformed this mantel.

Before

For $30, this mantel has some good bones. I had been searching high and low for a mantel without the fireplace insert, ideally something antique but I wasn’t planning to spend $100+ for one. I had designed one for my dad to build, but at the same time I know my mom has a mile long list of Christmas projects for my dad to build… therefore the mantel wouldn’t be finished until after Christmas, and I really wanted to dress up a mantel for the holidays. And so, this guy came along! I debated keeping the mantel black, but I thought it was a little to dull for my liking. Or maybe painting the mantel something fun and colourful? But I’m the type of person that gets sick of colour quick, so I figured I would keep it simple and use my go to colour…

My dad and I spent some time collecting and cutting an assortment of wood logs, 8 inches long with a few different diameters, to use as the faux insert for the inner part of the mantel.

After

Here’s our Holiday Mantel Makeover! The colour I used to paint the mantel is called Polar Bear by Behr (in semi-gloss) and I used Zinsser Primer, which is the best primer I have ever used! Overall, the mantel is not stark white, but does contain a little bit of yellow which allows the colour to feel warm in your home. The mantel was styled a little bit differently in Our Christmas Home Tour.

The great thing about a faux fireplace mantel is that you can move it around and customize it whenever you feel like it! There’s just something so cozy about a fireplace, even if it doesn’t work, it’s still a great centrepiece to dress up ;)

Thanks for stopping by and Merry Christmas!