It's not too late to create a stunning seasonal display!

Decorating your fireplace mantel has to be one of the biggest joys of the festive season. If you’re looking for inspiration for the ultimate Christmas fireplace mantel, then we’ve got a treat for you!

Festoon your fireplace mantel with twinkling fairy lights

There’s nothing more Christmassy than sitting in front of a roaring fire, cradling a mug of steaming hot chocolate, with strings of sparkling fairy lights adorning your mantelpiece.

If you’re a ‘less is more’ Christmas decorator, then this look is perfect for you. Add a simple star to your oak beam and the look is complete.

Garland your oak beam with greenery

Adding some greenery to your mantelpiece is a great way to inject some Christmas magic into your living space. Unless you’re not intending to light your fire, we would always recommend going for fake plants rather than heading out to the garden, unless you’re happy to do your decorating at the last minute. Otherwise, you could find that your display looks a little sorry for itself in a matter of days.

You can pick up faux-greenery garlands in the shops for a few pounds and add your own pine cones, berries and fairy lights, or you can buy one already pre-decorated for you.

Just make sure it’s properly secured to your fireplace mantel, so there’s no way it could drop down and cause a fire hazard.

Once you’ve got your garland in place, add a few other decorations, such as candles and stars, to add some height to your display. Your imagination is the only limit!

@athomewiththehorsleys

@amysnorfolklife

@linsdrabwell

Hang your stockings from your fireplace mantel

Your fireplace mantel is the perfect place to hang your stockings from, ready for the big guy to come down the chimney!

You can use a drawing pin either underneath or on the front of your solid oak beam to suspend your stockings. If you want to make it really special for your little ones, you could wait until Christmas Eve and do this when you leave out the mince pies, sherry and carrots for Santa and his reindeer.

@the_griffithshome

Make your solid oak beam the star of the show

We love this photo from one of our customers who has created a little Christmas village in front of their fireplace, leaving their solid oak beam as a beautiful backdrop.

@house_on_the_way

Whether you choose to bedeck your fireplace mantel with fairy lights and greenery, or leave your oak beam bare and create a display around your fireplace, we’d love to see your photos. Send them in and we’ll add them to our gallery section – we all need to share a little Christmas magic this year!

This is our final blog of the year and our last opportunity to wish you all a very Merry Christmas from all of us here at Traditional Beams. We hope you have a wonderful festive season and get the chance to celebrate with family and friends, whether that’s in person or via Zoom. Happy Christmas!