Marshmallow Wonderland Christmas and Winter Mantels

Hi everybody, are you staying busy busy with all your holiday projects?  December is whizzing by so fast that I've only had time to make half of the things that I planned to.  New Christmas stockings for my mantel shelf were on my list of things to make, but they might have to wait until next year.  I'm just about out of time to get them done, it's crazy how fast the days are going by!  As I am writing this, my 5 year old just came in and said  "When will Christmas be here, it's taking for-e-ver."  Lol, wish my Christmas would come as slow as his. :)

Christmas Mantel

So even without the new stockings, I wanted to show you my Christmas Mantel.  It's an expanded version of the Marshmallow Wonderland Vignette that I posted about earlier.  The subway art and trees alone were just not enough for such a large shelf .  I also wanted to display something for December that reflected more of the 'reason for the season'.

Winter Mantel

Here's a peek at how it will probably look in January with the Marshmallow World side of the subway art.  I may switch it up some.  The snowman family is carved from wood and was a sweet gift from a friend.

Scripture Subway Art

When I posted about my marshmallow wonderland vignette, I mentioned that I wanted to add another subway art to the back of the marshmallow world verse.   My sister directed me to a scripture that could be used for both Christmas and Easter or really at any time.  It's found in 1 John 4:9.  I fit it onto the boards as best I could, looking back I may have changed a couple of things, but I really love the scripture and it's message so I can overlook the spacing.

The subway art wasn't tall enough and didn't look quite right, so I set it on four small cut logs to give it some height. 

The rattan balls are from the dollar store and came in a pack of six.  I think they look like snowballs, so they were a fun addition.  They fit better with the Marshmallow World side of the subway art, but I think they still look okay with the Christmas theme.

The garland is from JoAnn's.  I only paid $10 for it on sale and it was enough for my mantel, to run across my stair rail, and also to put over a mirror. 

The 'snow' is just a low loft bonded batting that I cut to fit the top of the mantel shelf.

Berry Twig Wreath

As soon as I saw this wreath at JoAnn's, I knew it was just what I wanted.  I used a coupon and was able to buy it for only $20.

I bought the nest separate from the wreath and added some feathers to it.  I wanted to place a white dove in the nest, but could only find them in a box of 8.   Since I have no use for 8 doves (and the box was still $8 at 40% off,  I'm perfectly happy with just the feathers for now.  They add a little softness to the wreath and who knows maybe I'll find a little white or red bird on clearance to use next year.

Decorative Vinyl Plate

This was one of the easier projects.  I cut out a vinyl nativity silhouette in three colors, then put it on a plate from the dollar store.  The easel is also from the dollar store. The vinyl image is from the Silhouette store.

Trees

Click here for tutorials on each of the trees and the subway art.  You can learn how I made the mantel shelf here.

Well, that's it!  It's not your typical mantel, but I think it's uniqueness is what I love the most about it.   I still want to add some battery powered tea lights and of course the new stockings if I can get them sewn in time.   If I get it done I'll be sure to show you. :) 

Today's Fabulous Finds...Christmas and Winter Mantels

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