Hope you had a great weekend! I found some fun yard sale and thrift store finds I will share on Friday and just enjoyed staying busy soaking up these last few weeks of summer. Can’t believe the month of July ends tomorrow! 
I told you I would be sharing some ways I am adding some beach-inspired décor to our home. It is still quite a while before the temperature here in GA will have me in the mood to celebrate fall. So I enjoy bringing a lighter, beach-inspired feel to my house usually in the second half of July through September after putting away the red, white, and blue décor I enjoy from Memorial Day to 4th of July. If you missed my first summer mantel decorated out in red,white and blue you can see it here.
So here is my Summer Mantel (part 2)– Beach and nature inspired!
I also mentioned that in my patriotic mantel post that I would probably do a more symmetrical and not as layered arrangement on my next mantel. I love the layered look but I also enjoy this “cleaner” and lighter feel too. And when I put a center object such as a mirror or this DIY sunburst mirror up, I instantly fall in love again with a more symmetrical look!
And yes, that is a DIY sunburst mirror! I have sort of been hiding it from you after making it a while back. But don’t worry the full tutorial is coming tomorrow!
Now I know I always want to know where everything came from when I see a mantel so in case you do to, here is the breakdown:
- Shells/starfish/sand – recent beach trip
- white vase – clearance Michael’s find a few years ago
- yellow forsythia – faux stems from Michael’s a few years ago
- blue mason jars – yard sales (found the larger one this past weekend!)
- faux coral – Kohl’s summer clearance a few years ago – borrowed from my guest bathroom
- DIY sunburst mirror – tutorial tomorrow!
- sailboat – $1.51 Goodwill find borrowed from my guest bathroom
- basket/vase – borrowed from my guest bathroom
- large jar/vase – clearance Marshall’s find from a few weeks ago
- green stems – weed removed from my garden 🙂
So yes, my guest bathroom has some empty spots for now but that’s ok. I get to enjoy them every day right now on my mantel.
Loving the yellow and turquoise together!
I seriously need to bring green cuttings in more often! They are FREE and almost like having fresh flowers in the house. I’ll have to see how long they last in water.
Totally wanting to lighten up a few more things in the living room now after putting up this mantel. I LOVE the fresh, clean, and light feel…
Unlike this scene if I turn the camera around. Just keeping it real folks! 
A camera only shows you what “I” want it to show you. It doesn’t show you all of the previous mantel things tossed to the side, all the extra décor things I had out to try on this mantel, the pile of toys on the floor that got dumped out of the basket that now holds the magazines in front of the fireplace, and the random other junk that needs to be put away. Oh, and the fact that I am enjoying watching/listening to the Summer Olympics while I decorate and shoot pictures – GO USA! 
No wonder I am liking the fresh, clean look on the mantel – LOL! 
Oh wait, let’s crop that one…now that’s a pretty summer mantel 
Come back tomorrow and I will show you how I made the DIY sunburst mirror – for less than $5 and lots of trips to Home Depot.
{cj}
Sometimes I link up to these wonderful parties:
Sarahndipities, Skip to my Lou, Today’s Creative Blog, How to Nest for Less, Home Stories A to Z, Apron Thrift Girl, Tools are for women too, Not just a Housewife, A bowl full of lemons, Uncommon Designs Online, Someday Crafts, No Minimalist Here,Somewhat Simple, 36th Avenue, Sew Much Ado, The Style Sisters, The Thrifty Home, Domestically Speaking, House of Hepworths, The Shabby Creek Cottage, Weekend Blogging party at Serenity Now, Home Happy Home, Tatertots and Jello, Funky Junk Interiors, The Girl Creative, Miss Mustard Seed, Chic on a Shoestring Decorating, Remodelaholic, The Lettered Cottage, Before and after party at Thrifty Decor Chick, Pinterest Challenge at Young House Love
Looks great – I love the blue jars – I have a big one like that we put hydrangeas in, which is lovely. And I so enjoy the fact that you show the “behind the scenes” looks… aka “real life” !!
Looks great Christina! I do the same thing and trash my whole house just for one little corner:)
i have two half mantles since we have a heater pipe between the two. I envy you the space for the sunburst. I have a partitioned pass thru from my kitchen to my dining room that i change occasionally. My problem is what to do with the things I move. What kind of storage do you use?
ha ha ha! I love the keeping it real shot. THat is ALWAYS what my mantle projects look like.. so many options. I also love that you were able to do “summer” without being patriotic. I left my patriotic mantle up and am telling everyone it is for the Olympics. Ha!
Love the mantle, Christina! Gives me so many good ideas as these are the accent colors I’m planning to use in my kitchen. The yellow and very pale beachy turquoise are perfect together and although I’m a fan of dark wood, I’m learning to appreciate and work with the lighter wood flooring in our home and more light colors. Thanks for the inspiration!
PS: I wondered if that sunburst mirror was made with “things” acquired from a hardware store 🙂
Looking great!!! I decided to keep with my patriotic ‘mantel’ all summer starting with Memorial Day~4th of July~Olympics~Labor day then I will try out a fall one I think. One reason why I like to change out my special shelf is it gives me something new without redoing the whole house.
Oh, and I LOVE the other side of the room. Way to keep it real! I feel better now.
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the mantel. What color have you painted your wall?. I am looking for that exact color right now for my beach sand colored walls. Thanks for all your fabu ideas.