Welcome back to our {Back to Basics} series!

On the second Monday of each month, we’ve been joining forces with an incredible group of bloggers – going back to the basics to bring you all sorts of lovely ideas and inspiration!

Today, we’re sharing all of our fireplace styling secrets!

Styling a fireplace can feel a bit daunting at first. A total blank slate is a great place to start for sure, the only place to start really, but sometimes the possibilities of what it can become can feel totally overwhelming. I promise, with these simple tips and tricks, you’re sure to end up with the most perfectly styled fireplace – a lovely focal point for any room!
 

How to Decorate a Fireplace

Let’s start with the mantel, shall we?

There’s just one general rule that you’ll want to keep in mind as you decorate your fireplace mantel: create a visual triangle. That’s it. Each and every thing you add to your mantel, should relate back to this basic principle.

Step one: Start with your anchor. This could be one large piece, or even a grouping of pieces centred over your mantel that will form the main focal point over your fireplace (think of it as the top of your visual triangle). You’ll want to choose something tall that will fill a large portion of the wall space above your fireplace. Your anchor should create a large visual impact, one that mirrors the firebox below.

Step two: Bring balance to the sides. The next thing you’ll want to think about is bringing some visual weight to each side of your mantel. You want to choose items that will draw your eye from the main focal point outwards, adding width to your design (creating the bottom of your visual triangle). I like to add items that offer some height, but are still smaller than my anchor. Though they don’t need to be exactly the same to maintain balance, but be sure the objects at either end of your mantel are similar in visual weight.

Step three: Accessorize with smaller items. The last step to styling your mantel should be filling it in with smaller decor items. This is where you can make things look as full, or simple and minimal as you’d like. I think the biggest thing to keep in mind here is to add some variance to the heights to avoid creating a horizontal line straight across your mantel, which could overpower your visual triangle. Keep scale in mind here too, be sure to keep your accessories smaller than your first two layers.

Step four: Decorate your hearth. A fireplace isn’t just a mantel, you don’t want to forget that hearth (particularly if you’re working with a faux fireplace like I am today – find the tutorial for ours here)! This is your chance to really make things cozy – add a chair with a warm throw or maybe some baskets of blankets or logs – whatever it is, don’t miss this chance to really finish things off.

And that’s it my friends! Four simple steps to a perfectly styled fireplace!
 

I can’t tell you how happy it makes me every time I walk into my bedroom to this lovely DIY Faux Fireplace! Though we’ve got two real fireplaces on our main floor, this cozy DIY version up in our master bedroom is still my favourite to decorate.

Just in case you saw something you loved, I’ve linked up all of my favourite fireplace finds below:

And my current faves for bedroom decor:

If you’re looking for more cozy bedroom ideas, you might also want to check out…

DIY Faux Fireplace Tutorial

Farmhouse Master Bedroom

How to Make the Most Perfectly Cozy Bed

And of course, don’t forget to check out these fab fireplace styling tips from my talented friends below…

Wishing you SUCH a lovely day!
 
 

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