A Fall Mantel

Hey all!  This is week 3 of our blog tour and it continues with fall mantel and shelf decorations.  Jennifer of The Striped House began our week with her burlap, birch branches, and mercury glass...beautiful!  Yesterday, Lisa of Concord Cottage shared her easy, no sew banner that she added to her charming mantel along with candles, pumpkins, and beautiful empty frames...love that look.

Today, I'm sharing a faux mantel.  My real mantel is also home to a huge TV...not so lovely to decorate.  Here's a shot from my Fall 2012 post.  You can see that I have a tiny spot on each side of the TV to decorate.

The mantel I decorated for today is one I created from an old door.  I made it to be used in my work room.  My room is in the basement garage with no heat so when I purchased this adorable heater for my room, I knew I'd need a mantel for it someday.  That day is now thanks to hubby's help this past week.  :)

I added the shelf and crown on top and it fits perfectly in my tiny 10x10 room.  

The decor theme is pretty neutral, using a lot of natural pieces.

Inexpensive plastic pumpkins from the Dollar Tree that I painted, dried okra pods, preserved leaves, and an old gold frame from the thrift store

An old Colorado state map and a 1921 silver trophy, both found at a local thrift store.

Isn't this old trophy adorable?  From July 4, 1921, awarded for the 220 yard dash...love it!

An old brass lantern (originally wired for a lamp post) found at a church rummage sale for $5

By the way, church rummage sales are the BEST sales around...lots of great stuff at great prices!

The large candle is wrapped with a strip of burlap webbing and I wrote the word autumn with a black Sharpie.  The webbing is great to use on candles and if you use a tape on the back to secure it, you 'll be able to use both sides of the webbing!  The other side could say happy thanksgiving, boo, or whatever floats your boat ;)

More dried okra pods, preserved leaves, and dried hydrangea 

Curly branches cascade over the top

That's it!  I hope you're enjoying our Fall Mantels week on the blog tour.  Be sure to stop by 2 Bees in a Pod tomorrow!  I know Jennifer and Vicki will have something amazing for us.

Here's a pinnable pic for you (see Pin button at the top of sidebar).  I appreciate it!

By the way, this guy's outside my work room door awaiting his debut in next week's Outdoor Fall Decoration theme ;)

Thanks for stopping by and God bless!

Angie

I'm linking here:
THE STYLE SISTERS
JENNIFER RIZZO
HOME STORIES A TO Z
FROM MY FRONT PORCH TO YOURS

COMMON GROUND

HAVE A DAILY CUP OF MRS. OLSON
COASTAL CHARM'S NIFTY THRIFTY TUESDAY

FRIDAYS UNFOLDED

FEATHERED NEST FRIDAY

ONE MORE TIME EVENTS

TWIRL AND TAKE A BOW 
SAVVY SOUTHERN STYLE

STONEGABLE
UNDER THE TABLE AND DREAMING

A DELIGHTSOME LIFE
ART IS BEAUTY

CLEVER CHICKS BLOG HOP DIY SHOWOFF IT'S OVERFLOWING

THREE MANGO SEEDS

ELIZABETH JOAN DESIGNS

WEEKEND CRAFTS

PRETTY PINTASTIC PARTY
THOUGHTS FROM ALICE
HYMNS AND VERSES
MISS MUSTARD SEED

Faux Oxidation Technique

I've owned this huge black lantern for several years now.  I thought I loved it but as the years passed, I've grown to just like it.  I couldn't understand why.  I drool over the lanterns on the pages of Restoration Hardware's catalog.  I already own a lantern.  Why do I not love it anymore?

Whew! That's a bad photo, but you get the gist of the flat black look of the lantern here.

Cue the "light bulb over the head" moment...it's too new looking!  Too flat black.  Too meh for me now.  It needed some aging.  Something that said "I've got a history, I've been around for a while."  That's when I began toying with the idea of adding the look of oxidation to the metal.  You know, that powdery white patina that happens to metals that have been outside for a l-o-n-g time.

Use a lot of water and little paint.  Allow paint to run and even puddle on the edge.

This is what I came up with.  It's similar to using a dry brush technique EXCEPT you do not want to use a dry brush.  The brush must be wet, loaded-with-water wet.

I didn't do anything to the lantern to prep it for this but a good wipe with a damp cloth never hurts to remove dust or any oily residues.

I chose a light gray craft paint.  Use a plastic tray or plate to mix your paint and water.  With your brush loaded with water, grab a little gray paint on the brush and slightly mix on the plate.  Next, begin painting the lantern.  If yours has any curved areas, like the top of mine, be sure to paint in the direction of the curve.  It will help the oxidation look more natural.

Top done.  Bottom still flat black.

This may take a couple of coats.  The paint will pool at the bottom edges of the lantern.  That's okay.  If there is too much color pooled at the bottom, simply use your brush to pull some of the paint back up.

The more coats you add, the more "oxidation" look it will have.

I stopped at 2 coats.  I wanted you to be able to tell the original color was black under all that oxidation.

So, here it is all aged and beautiful.  I've not found the perfect spot for it yet.  I'm kind of bored with the vignette inside.  Hmmm...the wheels are turning.  I'm thinking ironstone and wooden utensils would look great in it for the kitchen island!

Thanks for stopping by and God bless!

Angie

I'm linking here:
THE STYLE SISTERS

JENNIFER RIZZO

FROM MY FRONT PORCH TO YOURS

COMMON GROUND

HAVE A DAILY CUP OF MRS. OLSON

COASTAL CHARM'S NIFTY THRIFTY TUESDAY

FRIDAYS UNFOLDED

FEATHERED NEST FRIDAY

ONE MORE TIME EVENTS

TWIRL AND TAKE A BOW

SAVVY SOUTHERN STYLE

STONEGABLE

UNDER THE TABLE AND DREAMING

A DELIGHTSOME LIFE

ART IS BEAUTY

DIY SHOWOFF IT'S OVERFLOWING

THREE MANGO SEEDS

CLEVER CHICK BLOG HOP 

ELIZABETH JOAN DESIGNS