A Handmade Halloween Mantel

I realize it’s a little bit later than usual for me to be posting my yearly Halloween Mantel but I have to say that I have loved the process this year! I would create a part of it and let it be for a while. Decide one another element I wanted. Make that. Tinker. Add more. And so on and so forth. A classic case of “enjoying the journey” if you will. And I know you will. 🙂

My first big project was to build the backdrop for the whole sh’bang. I posted this photo on Instagram when it was finished:

The story I told on my IG was how my husband was like “So, are you done with your Halloween mantel?” Me: “What? No! That’s just the background!” Husband: (relief in voice) “Oh good…cuz I didn’t get it.” He didn’t GET IT? It was hilarious. In his defense, it had sat there for quite a while like that and the random white pumpkin probably threw him off a bit. 🙂 Anyway, I tell in more detail how I built it at the end of this post if you’re interested in building one yourself!

Other elements I included is my Flying Witch Wreath (click on link to see full instructions). I loved the creamy white against my Halloween backdrop!

I also went about spray painting some things with Heirloom White spray paint which is a nice creamy white. That wirey pumpkin, stand and candle holder were all different colors before. I love a good spray paint job to make things I already had work! And those cute owls were thrift store finds that I made over last year. You can find that post HERE. Oh, and a quick addition of some vinyl lettering on the pumpkin was the perfect touch for that little vignette! The font is “Shipped Goods” and can be downloaded by clicking on that link.

I wanted my little owl to be bit higher but didn’t have anything the exact right height so I decided to use some books to do the job. I just grabbed some off of a book shelf (and they *might* be Twilight books ::ahem::) and covered them in coordinating scrapbook paper that I had on hand. The books still looked a bit plain to me, however, so I went and designed some book spines to stick on there. I designed three of them but only needed two. The three I made are “The Care and Feeding of Goblins & Ghouls,” “The True Tale of All Hallow’s Eve,” and (not pictured) “Witches are From Salem, Wizards are From Hogwarts.” Ha! I don’t know… I was in a weird mood, ok? 🙂

You can download the Halloween book spines HERE if you want to add them onto some books too!

Also included was my Stenciled Halloween Banner that I made this year as well, of course! I added some small vinyl polka dots to a pumpkin and I was done!

Ok, so now here are some super simple instructions to make a giant backdrop for your mantel or anything, really. I plan on repainting mine a few different times throughout the holidays and seasons.

WOOD HALLOWEEN BACKDROP

First, determine how wide you want it to be. I wanted mine to be 46″. So I cut three 1×6 boards to 46″ and then for the other three rows I wanted the boards to be “staggered” if that makes sense. So I cut the boards different lengths while making sure their total length would be 46″. I then laid it all out on my garage floor like so…

Then, sadly, I took no more pictures. 🙂 BUT I’ll just tell you what I did, mmkay? (I know, I’m an idiot). So then I determined colors I wanted to use for my backdrop. I decided I wanted orange, black, grey and dark grey. I then determined which boards were going to be which colors, making sure I mixed them up and spaced them out from each other. I painted my boards the determined colors with just one coat of paint (I just used acrylic craft paint) so the wood knots would show through a little. I let them dry and then sanded the edges of each board a little for a slightly distressed look. Then I laid my boards back down, face down, in the right order. I had two more 1×6 boards that were cut to the HEIGHT of my backdrop. I laid those down perpendicular (geometry is useful, you guys!) to my boards, about 6″ from each side and screwed it all together using my hand drill to make pilot holes first. With the combination of the whole boards and the partial boards, just make sure you have a couple of screws in each and it will all stay together like a charm! I think I bought 4 6 foot long 1×6 boards for this project. Not hard, not expensive, and big impact! My favorite things.