I couldn’t wait to decorate our new mantel for summer.
Decorating for summer patriotic holidays is one of my favorites – second only to the holidays. I love red all year long, and summertime gives me free reign for red. (So does fall, Christmas, and Valentines Day, by the way. So red is just a way of life here.)
I actually have found it pretty simple to decorate as we’re moving in. I already have everything out anyhow, so it’s easy enough to add patriotic decor as I’m unpacking and settling in. And it makes it feel so much more homey.
The mantel is nothing fancy, but it has some of my favorite things. The barn wood mantel isn’t very deep, but it works well for frames and signs. And it’s quick and simple to pin in flags and pennants, which I love.
I get tons of questions about the Woodward window – it was a window was from our first house. When we replaced the windows, I had to keep one of the originals to decorate with. (I seriously wish I had kept them all – #hoarderproblems.) It’s made an appearance in every home.
I think the window will soon be getting an update, but it’s meant to live on that mantel. The only hitch in the plan is that there’s an outlet behind it – which is clearly visible behind that glass. Doh!
There’s some adjusting to do as we get settled into our house – our new house has almost nothing in the way of wall space. And it has TONS of display shelves and space. Which is basically the opposite of our last homes.
I have bins and boxes of photo frames and wall art. And very little in the way of shelf/vignette decor. It’s a balancing act, because this lady doesn’t have any inclination to spend time dusting “vignettes,” but there are some spots I want to add some decor.
It just takes a little time before the house starts coming together in the way I envisioned. And it’s only been a week. So I’ll give it another few days before I expect everything to be completely finished. 😉
At this point, I’m just throwing stuff up and calling it a day. And I’m happy with it, overall. I’m sure I’ll have more tweaks as the summer goes on. 
But first, I need to get some flags on that front porch. The porch has been begging me for bunting, and who am I to say no?
I always mean to get around to 4th of July decorating, and I almost never do. Maybe this is my year (but, honestly, probably not). I’ll live vicariously through you!
I am so inspired by this, I’m going to put some bunting on my mantel right now!!! Love how everything is coming together. Your house has always been so cozy.
looks great, and even if you don’t have all the wall space you’re used to, you have a great wall space by the stairs, can’t wait to see everything evolve. 🙂