10 Cozy Autumn Fireplace Mantel Decor Ideas to Try This Year

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Imagine this: It’s a cozy fall weekend, the air is crisp and cool, pumpkin cinnamon rolls are baking in the oven, and you’re lighting a fire around your cozy fall fireplace. How dreamy does that sound? 

Despite the fact that it’s still August, we’re unashamedly those types of people who like to decorate for the season early. We’re beginning to dream of how to decorate our home for the season, and we love to start with the living room. It has a way of setting the tone of the rest of the house, and it’s the room we spend a lot of time lounging in throughout the week.

Whether you live in a house with a fireplace mantel or a big city apartment with just a TV console to decorate, you have the perfect opportunity to decorate the space exactly how you’ve dreamed of. Today, we’re sharing 10 autumn fireplace mantle decorating ideas that will transform your space for the season.

Can I recreate these mantle decor ideas without a fireplace?

Yes! Even if you have a TV console that grounds your living room space, you can create a version of these ideas as well. When it comes to design, being creative and interpreting the inspiration you find in your own space is what makes it uniquely yours. You can still decorate your TV console with fall garland, pumpkins, and decorative candles.

10 Cozy Autumn Fireplace Mantel Decor Ideas

1. Decorate with Autumn Branches

A festive way to make your fireplace mantel stand out for fall is to add a vase with autumn branches. Seasonal foliage has a way of transforming a space for the season. It also brings the season inside your home for a cozy fall touch. 

Plus, adding the branches to your mantle creates height and dimension to the space, and then you can layer in other decorative objects around it.

2. Swap Your TV Screen Art for Something Festive

An inexpensive way to make your TV not look so much like a TV on the mantle is by displaying digital art on the screen. There are so many adorable fall Frame TV downloads we’re loving this year. Everything from cute ghost art to stunning fall landscapes.

3. Hang Fall Garland

Much like you hang garland on your mantel for the Christmas season, adding fall garland to your fireplace is an easy way to add fall foliage as well. You could opt for an autumnal leaf garland or something more real, like dried magnolia leaves and eucalyptus. 

4. Add Cozy Candle Decorations

We tend to go crazy with candles this time of year. We aren’t quite sure what it is, but making our space as warm and inviting as possible is the goal year over year, and the look of burning candles always does the trick.

There are a couple of ways you can style candles on your fireplace mantel:

• Add several taper candles in candle holders.

• Layer different sizes of candle jars.

• Vary heights of pillar candles (we love using flameless candles for this look)

5. Pumpkins, Pumpkins, Pumpkins

Pro tip: You can never have too many pumpkins around your home in the fall. Placing some small pumpkins on your mantel and decorating below your mantel with a layered pumpkin will make the space feel festive for the season.

6. Add Halloween Touches

As Halloween gets closer, we love to add spooky touches around our home. Whether you have a fireplace mantel or a TV console, Halloween decorations make the most adorable statements on either. Opt to add a cute ghost figure below your mantel, some black candles to your mantel top, and maybe some faux cobwebs to complete the look.

We like to keep Halloween decor simple, so it’s easier to pick up and gather when you want to transition back to fall decor for Thanksgiving. 

7. Burgundy is In!

Burgundy is one of our absolute favorite colors to decorate with during the fall season. It’s such a luxurious color, and can make its debut on the fireplace mantel in a few ways — whether through framed art pieces, red-toned fall foliage, or decorative candles.

8. Swap Out Art Pieces

An easy and inexpensive way to decorate your mantel for a new season is to swap the art pieces or photographs in your frames. We love ordering cheap seasonal prints from Etsy to decorate around our home. You can buy and download art for as cheap as a few dollars, print it at your local Walgreens or print shop, and you’ve got a gorgeous print ready to hang.

9. Install Cozy Lighting

Cozy lighting on autumn evenings…there’s nothing like it. A small lamp or sconces on either side of the mantel give the space a warm glow. If you don’t want to hire someone to install sconces, you can still create the look with plug-in sconces. Here are some of our favorites that are affordable too:

10. Decorate Below the Mantel

Decorating below your mantel will bring the design together.  While the decorations on your mantel draw your eye up, adding pumpkins, a basket with chopped wood, and some other festive decor for the season adds character and intentional design to your living room.