I’m stepping out of my comfort zone here with you today. :)
I am showing you an actual place in my house that I have . . . gasp . . .decorated.
I know. That’s not my thing. I’ve never claimed to be a decorator.
I’m a . . . well I don’t know what I am but I know what I’m not.
But I’ve decided to be brave and show you my Halloween Mantel.
We’ve never really decorated for Halloween before,
just some pumpkins and things scattered around for Fall.
But there is soooo much inspiration out there that I got caught up.
I knew I wanted to do something fun, but our budget doesn’t run to lavish holiday displays.
So fun and cheap were my criteria.
I think I did pretty good but I’d love to hear what you think.
Some disclaimers –
1. It’s Cloudy in So Cal. So these pictures are a combo of flash and not much sunlight. It goes against everything I believe about blog pictures but I didn’t have a lot of options.
2. Did I mention I’m not a decorator??
Brace yourself. There are lots of pictures here.
Click on any you want to see better for the enlarged images.
I’ve included “before” pictures when applicable so you can see where I started.
Ok. Down to specifics.
My favorite thing on the mantel – the mirror.
I started out with a 3.00 mirror from a Garage Sale.
I taped off the mirror and spray painted the frame black.
I left it kind of splotchy because I didn’t want it to look too new.
I found an image I wanted to use behind the mirror – from the Graphics Fairy of course.
I flipped the mirror over and printed out an enlarged image of the woman for sizing.
I sprayed Oven Cleaner on the back of the mirror to remove the silvering.
If you’d like the whole tutorial for this process, click here.
After 4 applications of oven cleaner, the center of the mirror was clear.
Girls (and guys) PLEASE wear gloves if you do this.
I did not listen to Mr. F.T. even though he nicely suggested it.
As I mentioned on FB – my fingernails are jacked up after this. Stained dark brown.
From who knows what chemical.
Learn from my mistakes. ;)
I did listen to one of Mr. F.T.’s suggestions though. He recommended adding a skull image over the woman’s face to make it a little spookier.
(Though I don’t think he used the actual word “spookier”.)
Here’s the close up of the mirror with the skull image added.
I have one of those little battery tea lights flickering behind this at night. It looks great!
Karen from the Graphic’s Fairy had generously allowed me to share the altered image with you.
Click here if you’d like to download her face with the skull added.
The Candlesticks I picked up for $5 for all of them at a garage sale too. Spray Painted them all glossy black.
The Vase of Skulls are dressed up Dollar Store Items. My daughter glittered the skulls up for me.
I put them in the hurricane with netting at the bottom for filler and glittery ribbon in a big bow.
The bowl of black roses started out like this . . .
I spray painted the bowl silver and the roses black.
Inside the frame is a crow I traced onto black scrapbook paper and framed over a pink background. (It had to have pink!)
The crow came from here. I gave him a rhinestone eye for a little bling.
I got the idea for the metallic pumpkins from Roo at Nice Girl Notes.
The pumpkins and big flocked spider (sorry Cindy) came from the Dollar Store. Yeah!
(Cindy has an intense hatred for all things flocked)
I found a couple of things at Michael’s I couldn’t live without.
The Terror This Way sign was 4.60 on sale and the kitty was the most expensive thing at 7.00. But really. When you see a giant purple glitter kitty how can you pass that up????
The mice running around the bottom are silhouettes from Martha and the black runner thing came from the Dollar Store too.
So my mantel cost $27.00 not including what I had on hand.
And we all know that stash materials don’t count right?
I was going for Disney rather than Night of the Living Dead.
I want to hear what you think!!
Advice for a decorating newbie is much appreciated. :)
Update:
My Mantel made the Top 10!!!! (Insert Happy Dancing)
Wow! It’s great…I love everything. The mice at the floor are hilarious! The mirror came out great. The cat…you needed that cat, it fits right in. Great job!
LOVE it!! That cat is so cool and the mirror is spooky/awesome!
Bev-ski! You’re a natural!! I love everything about it, and I love how it all ties together.
The black and the glitter and the pops of bling and sass.
Looks great! Now throw a Halloween party, and make sure to invite me.
Love it! Everything fits perfectly! Wishing I had a mantel right about now!
Jeanine
Okay, this.is.CREEPY!! I think its the frame that’s doing it. Eeks! Love the addition of the mice at the bottom. And that netting along the mantel is perfect!! I think you did a magnificent job, Bev!!
LOVE it! You did a fantabulous job! That mirror is , pardon the expression…TO DIE FOR ( I crack me up…no one else maybe, but me)
I LOVE it! You are so creative!!
That mirror is significantly more spooky than the semi-scary wreath. I’m going to have nightmares tonight. ;)
Oooh, me likey!! I’m using that same poor lady in my Halloween display. ha ha
~ The Speckled Dog
great job, that looks fab! love the black painted candlesticks and that black runner thing. can’t believe that came from the dollar store, i am going to have to go back. no, i’m not allowing myself to!
I think it looks amazing! Love the mirror!
I think you did wonderfully! I would never know that you hadnt done this 100 times before! I love your attention to detail with the glitter skulls and the picture behind the mirror. You did great!
~Jessica
http://www.myhappinessexperiment.blogspot.com
That is fantastic! Very well done on your budget too.
Wow! I love it! Spooky yet classy (up until the purple glitter cat. I love him and all, but purple glitter cat and classy just wouldn’t ever be used in the same sentence, I don’t think).
Sooo great! I love the mice! I think they’d look cute for Christmas too!
LOVE your spooky mantle! For “not being a decorator” you did a GREAT job! I love that you kept your budget low and made/remade a lot of the decor.
I will be sharing my Halloween decorating this weekend! I hope you will stop by :)
What a Great job you did on your mantel! I love the mirror so cool! It all looks so great!
Looks great! I was looking for the same runner the other day but they were all gone :(
ooooooo! looks pretty creepy! fantastic job.
You did a fantastic job! My mantel looks all nekkid in comparison.
This is fantastic – LOVE it!
Melissa
http://www.burstsofcreativity.blogspot.com/
Very clever! I’m really enjoying your site. Keep it up. Oh, very good tutorial, easy to follow!
Fantastic, I love it! I love Halloween, but usually stick with the fall decorations I can keep up through November, but I’m really liking this. I especially like the mirror/picture, but think it would probably freak me out a little too much to have in my own house.
I REALLY need to make some of those silver pumpkins. I’ve been meaning to do it since I saw Roo’s tut about them & keep forgetting to pick up the materials.
Great job!
Looks very kewl to me!!
I love it all! You did a great job.
looks great! who says ur not a decorater? good job on all of ur projects for the mantel. bootiful!
this is fantastic really do love it!! x
That’s an amazing mantle. I’ve never seen the mirror technique before…and now I need to go try it! Thanks for sharing your great ideas and talent. Glad to have found you on the “follow”.
Happy Halloween.
Your mantel is spooky. You are very talented.
I also made your witchtowels and posted about them today. I’ve made three so far, and want to make two more, at least. Brilliant idea. Thank you for the great tutorial.
Bev, you did a fantastic job! I love the black candle sticks and that cat is too funny! Everything looks very cute, not creepy!! :)
Hi Beverly, I found you at Roo’s site. I was laughing so hard at your 50’s add. The babies in the cellophane made me laugh for 5 min especially when I realized they didn’t have photoshop and how the heck did they get the babies to sit still. I’m sure they weren’t in the cellophane for long. lol
I’m in Southern California too and I’m loving the rain and cooler weather. Whew! I’m in the SF valley and the heat was killing me.
I’m your new follower. :)
Katharine
I just love it! You did a great job. Thanks for checking out my Bacon and Ranch Chicken Tacos over at A Little Bit of Everything!
That looks awesome! I love EVERYTHING about it;) That spooky skeleton lady image is so cool!
I’d love for you to stop by and check out my fun giveaway this week!!
http://justsewsassy.com/2010/10/04/tuesday-tutorial-halloween-ribbon-ornaments-giveaway/
WOW! That turned out beautifully! It all looks so good right down to the tiniest detail. Visiting from Spotlight Yourself @ It’s so very Cheri. Your post definitely caught my eye first!
I tried to decorate on a budget this year too. I love your blog! Feel free to hop on over to mine to see my decor!
azhoenigmans.blogspot.com
I can’t believe the whole shebang only cost $27! Looks way more expensive and for a “newbie” you decorate like a pro:) Love all the touches like the candlesticks you unified with paint and the netting. Thanks for linking up to A Crafty Soiree! Please come by again next week!
Awesome job! I’ve never seen anything like that mirror before. And that cat might just have to become part of my year-round decor, lol. We take our cats, and our purple, and our bling, seriously around here! Now you just have to have a party. Cheers!
super fun… looks great. all you stuff always does (-:
You did a great job. It looks wonderful. I only wish I had a mantel to copy yours.
You did a great job. I love the spooky picture. This would be fun to do to some of my family pictures I have around here. What silver spray paint did you use? It seems so shiny. I have a hard time finding a truly shiny silver spray paint.
http://froufrugal.blogspot.com
I’m here from It’s So Very Cheri! I love your mantel, so frugal and gorgeous! My favortie part is the black netting… it jsut adds so much.♥
The mirror is spooktacular!!! I love it!!! And I love the candlesticks as well.
Super cute! But also super creepy lady! ;)
Visiting from It’s so Very Cheri!
This looks fantastic. I love when other people post decorating on a budget ideas, cuz I definitely have to keep to a budget. =] I’d love for you to come link this up to my Halloween party this weekend! Hope to see you there. Have a wonderful night.
Krista
It looks great – not too macabre, which is how I like my Halloween. :)
I think it is darling.
You should enter that in thediyclub.com “Weekly Showcase” party. We have a fun give-a-way each week this month.
We are looking for crafty talented people to showcase in our eZine-if you are interested let us know.
Check out our monthly contest as well, we have a $1500 give-a-way–one week left. Check out the guidelines and enter qualifying projects.
Cheri from ItsSoVeryCheri
What a fun mantle! I absolutely love the ideas you came up with! Thanks for linking up and sharing on Thrilling Thursday @ Paisley Passions :)
Awesome, awesome, awesome! I seriously need to stalk you more often.
Cute! Cute! I love the little mice at the bottom! I don’t think I could live with the pic of that lady though…I would avoid my own mantle! Of course my dc’s dolls and stuffed animals freak me out…lol!
I am having a DIY Halloween Linky Party and giving away a Halloween Tutu. Hope you like up!
Awesome job! I love all the little details.
Thanks for sharing these cool ideas. I love the mirror/picture!
Warmly, Michelle
It turned out so great. My mantel is black and white too. I love the mice. Great details.
Wow! I really love your mantel. It is chic and different. Great job!
I just love the black and white theme. And I love that you remind us all that with a little elbow grease and artistic inspiration, we can turn budget purchases into something special!
Love this and all of your tutorials so much. I hope you won’t mind that I bragged about your wonderful blog and added a link to it over at Creating The Hive, an online social network of artists and craftsmen.
http://creatingthehive.com/
I really love your ideas. Thanks for the inspiration…heading to the thrift store to pick up some candlestick right now.
This looks wonderful! You are so creative- you did SUCH a great job!
-Kendall
{songbirdsandbuttons.blogspot.com}
Looks great! A little spooky but not to goulish. I’m more fond of the harvest ideas, pumpkins, mums, cornstalks and apples, than I am of Halloween, more positive, I guess! You did a beautiful job, you’re very clever and this is fun!
You did such a great job! It is darling and spooky all in one:)
Oh my goodness -you are truly a decorator -Please don’t stop here –esp when you use dollar store and michael’s as your supply resource -this is where a lot of us shop -esp for seasonal supplies. I so totally want to do this project and thank you so much for providing the link for the images :-) Isn’t that lady really creepy
I love it! It’s spooky chic! It looks awesome! I bought the other version of that lacy skull sign at Michael’s, mine says Ghostly Greetings. I couldn’t pass it up for under $4. :)
Come by Thrilling Thursday on 10/14. I am going to feature your adorable link! Also, feel free to grab an “I Thrilled on Thrilling Thursday” featured button off my sidebar if you would like :)
Thanks for sharing your creative talent with me and my readers. Hope you stop by and join in the party again soon!!!
~Lori
phenomenal! I love the mirror and will have to try one too!
You did a great job! I love the black/white. Very classy and on a budget too. Thanks for sharing. I’m visiting from Creative Girl. Nice to meet you! Vicki @ rustyroostervintage.blogspot.com/
Love, Love your budgeting decorating ideas!!
the black lace and skinny black candlesticks totally make this mantel!
Kimra
http://crafty-cove.blogspot.com
Great job! I love the mirror, and I just realized I had an excess of candle holders and idea what to do…now I do! Love it!
Just hopped over from Brag Monday! Your mantle looks wonderful~ I just love the mirror, too! Thanks for the tutorial! So glad to have found your blog…I am a new follower!
Thanks for sharing…I love this idea.
I’m your newest follower.
http://www.beckhamandbloom.com
Melly
Love this…what an awesome job!!! Did you just die the cheesecloth fabric? That is the perfect touch!!! Fun!
One of my favourite colour combinations, your decorations look simply great.
What a great project! Loving all your details! Hope your fingers get better!
Love the mirror/easy off technique. Such good inspiration!
I absolutely love it! It makes me want to tear mine apart and start over.
Coming over from All Things Related! I think your mantel is amazing! That picture…so cool! I will have to borrow some of your ideas and incorporate them into my mantel display for next year! Come check out my ‘Dr. Jekyll’s Laboratory’ for the mantel…used many of the Graphics Fairy images…she is so cool! http://www.threepixielane.blogspot.com
Oh Beverly! I love the mirror – What a fantastic idea – so spooky! Your whole mantel looks great! Thanks so much for linking to The Sunday Showcase. I’ll be featuring this today. Stop by and grab a featured button if you like. Hope you have a wonderful week. ~ Stephanie Lynn
Thank you so much for this. I think it looks really good! I love the mirror idea! So spooky! Love your blog, too. Thanks for sharing!
I collect pink flamingos so I absolutely had to visit your site, btw!
Thanks for linking up with Anything Related! ~Bridgette
Yay!! I’m so glad I got to see the finished mirror, it looks fabulous!! In fact I love your whole display!
Thanks for linking this up to Brag Monday.
Just wanted to let you know I am featuring this for FTF this weekend! Stop by and grab a featured button if you would like! Thanks!
Beverly! You always come up with the greatest idea. Thanks for linking up to A Crafty Soiree… hope to see you back tomorrow.
Well I hope with over 80 comments you now will believe that you have the decorating a mantel thing down just fin! Pfffft. “I’m not a decorator.” Girlfriend, this is fabulous! I’m so glad you linked up so that I could come over and find your blog. The mirror trick is a great one. Just tweeted about it to a friend in fact :). Thanks so much for sharing!
Love your ideas especialy the mirror ? picture . I was going to buy one for $40.00 ! You saved me so much and si’t so much more fun to make it rather than just buying it . thanks so much.
I LOVE those black candlesticks! What a find, all those fun shapes and sizes. Thanks for linking up to Topsy Turvy Tuesday’s!
$5 for all of those candlesticks?! What an awesome find! That mirror is FABULOUS as well and if you didn’t tell me you weren’t, I’d assume you were a decorator year round!
That creepy mirror is GREAT! Really creative!
The mirror technique is awesome…I have been wanting to try that – didn’t you do a cool mirror awhile back too! Fun decor!
Congrats on making the Top 10 over at the CSI Project’s Halloween Extravaganza!!
WOOT!!
You are a crafter after my own heart. I love the Martha Stewart Halloween mag, and would love to transform my house into the Haunted Mansion for a month, but the stores are filled with chinzy decor and how many wooden board signs do you really need. This year I came up with an art project to celebrate the haunting season. I’m going to try your mirror and add that to the fun for next year. Sadly, I do not have a mantel (not so practical in AZ where winter stays in the 60-70’s) but I can always put up a cool shelf. Thanks for the inspiration.
Here’s the URL if you want to check out my Halloween craft:
http://secretstitchclub.blogspot.com/2010/09/easy-halloween-decor-tutorial.html
It looks awesome, I love it. the mirror DIY is sooo cool I didn’t know you could do that. Thnaks for sharing.
Love your mantle! The mirror is so cool! I can’t wait to start decorating for hallween!
I bet your kids just { L O V E } this!
You are an amazing inspiration.
Thanks.
Once again your tutorial is tops. I love the mirror. Don’t underestimate yourself, you are a wonderful decorator. I love how your kids are part of your blog. I’m not even allowed to post pictures of my kids without previous approval. :-) Your kids are very nice looking, and I think it’s wonderful that they are part of your blog. This mantel is just wonderful! Thanks for sharing it.