As I've mentioned previously, we don't have a fireplace, which means we also don't have a mantle. I spend many, many minutes gazing longingly at all the lovely pictures other bloggers have of their gorgeously styled mantles. They're always so seasonal and, well, perfectly mantle-y. Alas, I have no such space on which to exercise my seasonal decorating skills, so I've had to improvise. Enter IKEA. A few years back I purchased a pair of lovely shelves with pretty wrought iron brackets, and they have since provided me with a canvas for seasonal decorating! Woo hoo! With the notable, and tragic, exception of my first attempt at hanging them (which began with my ludicrously foolish idea of not using wall anchors, and ended in one of the shelves crashing to the ground and smashing several of my favorite glass and ceramic pieces to smithereens...), they've performed swimmingly.
I really love decorating for the seasons, and as each one approaches, I'm always telling Stephen that the one I'm decorating for right then is my favorite. I'm apparently very fickle. There are so many elements that I love about this year's Christmas-scape. This clock is a perpetual shelf resident, but his neighbors are always changing:
I can hardly stand how cute that little cheese dome is with the tiny pine cones under it! I put shells under there in the summer, and I was delighted that the pine cones fit so perfectly for the winter. The glass Christmas tree was a crazy Salvation Army store steal. I happened to be in the store last summer when they announced that all Christmas items were 15 cents each for the next 5 minutes. What?! Yes, please!
This is the other end of the clock's shelf. I went with a natural winter theme this year, with lots of pine cones and a few shells thrown in for good measure. We live in Florida, after all, so I really can't leave out the shells entirely even in the winter.
That lantern is one of my very favorite pieces. I found it at a flea market, and just can't get enough of it. This shelf also has 2 of my favorite mercury glass pieces. I love how they sparkle, and how they contrast with the rustiness of the old lantern.
Lastly, here's my little elf, tucked under the fern with the lovely glass bird my sister gave me. Isn't he cute? I made several from a Martha Stewart pattern and gave them as gifts a few years ago. Oh, and yes, I'm aware of the sea of dust in which he's standing. These shelves, being as high up as they are, happen to be quite low on my dusting list. As in, they don't really make the list at all.
So that's how my shelves look for this Christmas. I'll probably leave that all up until February or so, since none of it (other than the elf) is overtly Christmas-y. Hope you like them, and I hope you have a wonderful time celebrating Christmas this week!!
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