How to Decorate a Fireplace Mantle for a Fall Wedding

Carry over your wedding color scheme to the decorations on the fireplace mantle.

Whether you are holding your fall wedding in your own home or at a reception hall, the decorations you choose can set the tone for the entire evening. The way you decorate a fireplace mantle, for example, can make a difference between your guests feeling like they are simply guests visiting a friend's home and feeling like they have been invited to enjoy an elegant occasion. If you want your wedding reception to feel like more than just a night at home, decorate the mantle using fall colors and dress it up with an assortment of candles or lights.

Things You'll Need

• Leaf garland
• Sticks and branches
• Glass jar (optional)
• Scented candles
• Strand of lights
• Hot glue
• Tea candle holders
• Fishing line
• Framed mirror
• Miniature framed photos

Instructions

1. Decide on a color scheme for the decorations. If the bride has already chosen a color scheme for the wedding as a whole, try to work those colors into the fireplace mantle decorations. If no color scheme has been chosen, stick to fall colors like gold, brown and red.

2. Drape a leaf garland over the mantle so it hangs down on either side, or gather it in bunches on top of the mantle. Select a garland that features some of the colors from your wedding color scheme, or simply choose one that features fall leaves.

3. Add height to the decorations on your fireplace mantle by arranging sticks and branches in and around the bunched or draped leaf garland. Select a long branch with multiple smaller branches and prop it on its side at one end of the mantle, or gather bundles of sticks and stand them upright in a jar at either end of the mantle. If you use a jar to support the sticks, try to cover it with the leaf garland.

4. Position a variety of scented candles along the mantle. Try to balance out the height of the sticks at the ends of the mantle by placing the taller candles nearby, reserving the smaller candles for the center of the mantle. Do not be afraid to use colored candles instead of plain white ones; simply select candles that fit with the fall color scheme.

5. Wrap a strand of white or colored lights around the leaf garland before arranging it on the mantle if you prefer electric light to candle light. Wrapping the lights around the leaf garland will create a filtered light effect because some of the lights will shine from behind or beneath the leaves.

6. Turn the branches on the ends of the mantle into a light feature by hot gluing tea candle holders in the Vs where some of the smaller branches extend from the main branch. In order to get the glue to stick, the branch should be completely dry, and it may also be wise to use clear fishing line to tie the tea candle holder to the branch for extra support.

7. Place a framed mirror in the center of the mantle to reflect the flames from the candles. If you choose a tall mirror, make sure there is a height difference of several inches between the mirror and the branches so the mantle looks proportional. You also might choose a long, low mirror that extends almost the entire width of the mantle.

8. Set miniature framed photos of the bride and groom amongst the leaf garland in place of some of the candles. Select decorative frames with dark wood to go with the fall color scheme.