Fourth of July Mantel with Nautical Decor

Looking for simple ideas to spruce up your home for the summer? Don’t miss this pretty, patriotic Fourth of July Mantel with touches of nautical decor.

The mantel in my family room is one of my favorite spots to decorate and one of my least favorite spots to try and photograph.

While I’ve shared some of my holiday mantel decor at Christmas and Halloween, many of my summer vignettes have gone unposted simply because it can be hard to capture this space.

I’ve been encouraged by a few friends and today I am joining in on The Happy Housie’s Seasonal Simplicity series and sharing my mantel along with a couple dozen others.

You can find links to all of these pretty summer styles at the bottom of the post.

Fourth of July Mantel

I know most bloggers tend to change up their decor monthly, but honestly it’s just too much for me. I am definitely more of a seasonal decorator.

Today I am sharing my summer mantel, which happens to feature red, white and blue. I figure that I can get away with a patriotic/nautical theme from Memorial Day until the end of July, right?

Fourth of July Printable Art

One of the things I love to display on my mantel is printable artwork. Not only is it relatively easy to create/find, but it’s an inexpensive piece that takes up a lot of space.

I first used the two prints on the left side of my mantel two years ago. You can read all about that year’s patriotic mantel, grab the prints and see how my sail boat collection has grown, by visiting this post.

I wanted to add another nautical style print to the right side of this year’s Fourth of July mantel and created this fun America the Beautiful print a couple of weeks ago. You can grab the free Fourth of July printable download here.

Fourth of July Garlands

I am a firm believer in owning a felt ball garland that will go with every holiday and season. I still have a few to add to my collection, but this red, white and blue version is the second felt garland I ever purchased…The first was a red and white one most recently used on my Christmas mantel. I can’t believe how many times that one was pinned!

Tip: I like to purchase my garlands when they’re listed on Happy Little Felt run on Instagram!

While there are times I utilize just a simple felt ball garland (like this St. Patrick’s Day mantel), I generally like to layer with other textures.

This season I decided to create two confetti or ticker tape style Fourth of July garlands made from ribbon. It’s the simplest project ever – we’re talking 10 minutes total.

I love that the ribbon flutter when the ceiling fan is turned on and the glitter ribbon catches the sunlight from the windows. Fourth of July mantel garland perfection.

Fourth of July Collectibles

I filled in the remaining space on my Fourth of July mantel with a few of the items I’ve collected over the last couple years.

When I was younger, I often bought things each season just because I “liked” them. I am a bit more discerning now and I’ve really learned the power of a collection.

At Christmas I display gnomes and wooden Christmas trees, while I’ve got an ever growing number of skeletons that make themselves at home around Halloween.

Two years ago, I started picking up wooden sailboats to display in the summer. I tend to pick up those that have a little Independence Day flair, but honestly I have farmhouse style, neutral and even industrial style boats on display.

This year I’ve added a handful to the mantel and even added a cute little whale that I picked up on discount for $4 at Home Goods!

Phew. That was a whole lot of chatter about a pretty simple mantel. Wasn’t it?

If you liked this Fourth of July Mantel post, you might also like…

Today I’m joined by a fabulous group of blogging friends who are also sharing their Summer Mantel or Vignette Styling Ideas as part of the Seasonal Simplicity Summer Series…

The Happy Housie // Shabbyfufu // Lolly Jane // Rooms FOR Rent // Modern Glam

The Turquoise Home // Taryn Whiteaker // The Handmade Home // Jenna Kate at Home // Zevy Joy

She Gave it a Go // Town and Country Living // Tatertots and Jello // Southern State of Mind // Tauni Everett

All Things With Purpose // This is Our Bliss // Setting For Four // Life is a Party // Sincerely, Marie Designs // Finding Silver Pennies