• Decorations can be hung from the mantel.stockings on a mantle image by Michael Drager from Fotolia.com
  
  Mantels are usually built over fireplaces or as small shelves which become centerpieces of a room. There are a number of different ways to create a mantel, naturally off of another structure or piece of furniture or by building one completely separate from the fireplace or a piece of furniture. There are also a number of different items which you can place on the mantel, giving the room a look and tone that suits you.
  
  

Seasonal Decorations

• Mantels are great places for seasonal decorations, if decor is a hobby in your household. Small pumpkins and eerie bits of Americana can dominate the mantel through October and November, for Halloween and leading toward Christmas. Wreaths and Christmas lights can be draped over the mantel in the winter time, and Christmas stockings can be hung from it as well. For Valentine's Day, photos of those you love can be placed on the mantel with pink and red Valentine's decorations. The Fourth of July can feature red, white and blue decorations, more Americana and perhaps an American flag. The mantel in your home can be the festive focus of the household.
  
  

Fireplace, TV Stand or Stand-Alone

• Mantel shelves can also be created with multiple levels. Most mantels are naturally created by the top level of a fireplace or are installed with the fireplace to be a sort of natural overhang to work with a fireplace screen. These are simple to transform into just about whatever you want. As our entertainment centers have, in some senses, replaced our fireplaces these days, a mantel can be created from the top of that piece of furniture above the television. Shelves can also be installed against the wall to create their own mantel, hanging above a television or centerpiece in the room.
  
  

Fireplace Candles

• If the mantel you have is over a fireplace, using candles all along your mantel can create a gothic or attractive look, especially when they are lit. Allowing the candles to sit freely on the mantel and the wax drip around them will make a real mess over time, but will create a colorful cascade of wax in the short term. Glass or metal candle holders are also great pieces to have sitting on the mantel, holding these candles and allowing them to burn. These candle holders are designed to look like pieces of art themselves and can accentuate the look of any room from their place on the mantel.