Valentine Mantel

My name is Diane and I've decided to join the world of blogging.  I follow lots of fantastic blogs, and I am constantly amazed and impressed with the level of talent that exists out there!  I've always enjoyed decorating, and have never had a fear of trying anything, mostly to save a few bucks when I see something I want, but don't want to pay the price for it.  When first married, I really needed to be frugal, but also wanted to decorate things the way I wanted them.  And so began my love, dedication and ingenuity to try and duplicate styles while keeping costs low.  Fast forward 20+ years (how in the world did that happen?) and I've developed a style that I find to be unique and interesting.  The most common comment I get when people come to my house is, "I'm going home to start thinking of what to change at my house."  I take it as a compliment that my style and design inspire others to try something new!    

And so for my first blog, I'd like to share my Valentine mantel with you.  I just put it together this afternoon, and my goal, of course,  was to create a romantic display of cream and pink.  

  This was put together using a mix of old and new things.  Felt die-cut hearts and sequin ribbon are draped across the front.  The hearts are attached with tiny clothespins that have a pink pom-pom glued on. 

The books were a new purchase from Michael's.  I was going to cover some of my books with love title's, but then I found these and they were on sale, so I thought, what the heck! The candles were ordered a few months ago from etsy.  They are very cute with French writing and tied with a darling ribbon, I stole these from my bedroom, and the box I had lying around.  I printed out a picture of the Eiffel Tower and put it on a tiny easel.  I've since added a pink border around the picture and colored the clouds with a pink marker.

The flowers are a mix of old and new.  The big pink ones are from Jo-ann's and I had the vase.  I love the big pop of color these flowers add!  The butterfly wouldn't ring up, so the girl gave it to me for .10 cents (score!)

The candlestick is my own doing. A tall candlestick and an old french candlevase balanced on top, again stolen from my room!

I found these vintage canning jars at Kirklands for a measly $5.99.  Added some stickie hearts, some silver ribbon, and some pretty pink gift tags (Michael's for $1), and filled with candy, all $1 at Kroger.  

So that's it! My first blog!  I still have so much to learn about this, so I hope you'll hang on while I figure out things!