Easy Steps to Hang Garland on a Mantel

Let me show you 3 different ways to hang your garland on your mantle. It will help you  figure out how much garland you need, plus simple tricks to make your garland stick without damaging anything!

DIFFERENT WAYS TO HANG GARLAND

There are several different ways you can hang garland on your mantel and I think they all look beautiful. Let me show you 3 popular ways.

DRAPE THE GARLAND FLAT ACROSS THE TOP

An easy way to add garland to your mantel is to lay it across the top of the mantel and let it hang off the ends. If you have a deep mantel there is still room for candles and other decor.

SWAG THE GARLAND ACROSS THE FRONT OF THE FIREPLACE This is a classic garland look with the garland swooping down over the front of your fireplace. You can do one, two, or three swoops depending on the size of your mantel.

HANG THE GARLAND ASYMMETRICALLY OFF ONE SIDE OF THE MANTEL Hanging garland asymmetrically has become very trendy. To get this look, either lay your garland across the entire top of the mantel or partway across and let it drape down on one side nearly to the floor.

HOW MUCH GARLAND DO YOU NEED FOR A MANTEL That will depend on these 3 factors: 1. How wide is your fireplace?  2. Do you want your garland to swag across the front of your fireplace? 3. How much do you want your garland to hang off the ends?

HOW TO CALCULATE YOUR GARLAND LENGTH Your garland needs to be as long as the top of your mantel. If you want it to drape off the ends, add about 4' to your measurement so it can hang 2' off each side. To swag across the front, it needs to be at least 1.5 times the top of your mantel. To hang to the floor, measure the height of your mantel and multiply that by two. Add that measurement to how wide your mantel is.

HOW TO GET LONGER GARLANDS If you need a super long 16′ garland for the look you want, there’s an easy solution. You can attach multiple garlands together to create a super long garland. Just buy enough standard garlands to add up to the length you need.

HOW THICK DO YOU WANT YOUR GARLAND TO BE Now that you know how long your garland needs to be, you need to consider how thick you want it. This year I doubled up my garland and I love how thick and full it looks.

HOW TO HANG YOUR GARLAND If you are laying your garland over the top of your fireplace and letting it drape off the ends, you may not need anything extra to hold it in place. I wanted my garland swag across the front of my mantel, so I a few more supplies.

MATERIALS – Garland - I used 4 – Command hooks - the wire kind is the easiest to work with – Floral wire - any flexible craft wire will work.

HOW TO HANG GARLAND WITHOUT DAMAGING YOUR MANTEL The trick to perfectly swagged garland – command hooks. They are inexpensive, easy to place wherever you need them, and they remove cleanly! When the holidays are over remove them without damaging your mantel.

HOW MANY COMMAND HOOKS DO YOU NEED? To drape your garland once across the front of your fireplace, you’ll need a command hook in each corner. To drape it more than once, you’ll need a command hook in the  corners and where the garland swoops back up to the mantel. Place the command hooks with the hook facing away from the front.

CONNECTING MULTIPLE GARLANDS To connect more than one garland to make a garland long enough for your fireplace, use floral wire or other thin craft wire. Add command hooks first then overlap the two garlands wrapping floral wire around them to keep them in place.

FINISH YOUR CHRISTMAS MANTEL Once your garland is in place, you can fluff it up and make sure the branches are draping nicely. You can also dress up a plain garland by adding real or artificial evergreen branches, pinecones, or berries to help fill in any bare spots.

Get the full tricks for fireplace garland here.

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