Rustic Chippy Wood Fall Mantel in Shades of Aqua

I’m sharing some fall fireplace mantel ideas using natural materials, chippy wood and aqua tones.

My plans to go yard sale shopping today were thwarted by the rain, so I used the time to do some long-overdue fall decorating.

I always struggle to get my fall decor up for the beginning of the season, because I’m usually planning my son’s birthday party. And it’s hard to get into the fall mood when it’s 80-plus degrees and still feels like summer.

But after been searching Pinterest and my favorite blogs for fireplace mantel ideas, I was inspired to dress up our keeping room focal point.

I decorated my fall mantel wearing a tank top and shorts, and I was still sweating. But it was worth breaking a sweat.

While our house is pretty traditional, we have a stone fireplace in our keeping room, and I wanted to decorate the mantel is a more casual, rustic style. The color palette I chose — cream, brown and aqua blue — isn’t one normally associated with fall. But there’s such warmth to it; I think it’s perfect for the season.

I just love those chippy boards. I bought them for 50 cents a square foot from a local architectural salvage place, and I didn’t do a thing to them before putting them on my mantel. I didn’t even wipe the layers of dust and dirt off them because I thought they were perfect, as is.

The boards were a perfect backdrop for the brown and aqua burlap wreath I made last year! (Don’t you just love it when that happens?)

And speaking of complementary colors — how perfect are these vintage blue ball jars filled with pecans?

I purchased them both — and the blue-green tonic bottle — at yard sales, paying no more than $3 each. I love antique Ball and Mason jars, especially those zinc lids.

Here’s a look at the entire fireplace. I did add some orange pumpkins and fall leaves on the hearth. And I couldn’t resist adding just more one piece of that gorgeous aqua blue wainscoting. I also propped a vintage yardstick behind the picnic basket on the hearth.

Here’s a look at our cozy little keeping room, located just off the kitchen and breakfast nook. We spend most of our time as a family in this room, so it rarely ever looks like this. There are usually toys all over the place, and the blankets and pillows usually wind up on the floor. But I cleaned up, just for you. It doesn’t look like this now!

I’m proud to say that I didn’t have to purchase anything new for my fall mantel and hearth, except the two ceramic pumpkins on the mantel. I bought those last week for $10 each at a local home decor consignment sale. I didn’t buy them specifically for the mantel, but I knew I would use them somehow in my fall decor.

I already owned everything else — the chippy wood, the candlesticks and candles, the Ball jars and tonic jar, the burlap wreath, the picnic basket, the vintage yardstick, the fall floral swag and the foam pumpkins. Either I’m quite an inventive decorator, or I own a lot of stuff. I won’t tell you which!

I do have a little confession to make about this mantel. You see that wainscoting? Well, behind those boards are two doors. And our TV lives behind those two doors, so the boards and the wreath have been moved to the right side of the hearth so we can watch TV and play the Wii. But it was pretty while it lasted! Things can’t always be pretty picture perfect in real life.

Stay tuned next week for more fall decorating. I’m working on my dining room and my front porch, and I’ll also be adding some touches of Halloween to my interior and exterior decor.

More Fall Fireplace Mantel Ideas

Looking for more fall decorating inspiration and fireplace mantel ideas. Check out these posts:

60 Fall Mantel Ideas

How To Decorate a Mantel for Fall