How to Hang Garland on a Mantel | Full Natural Look

Learn my process for how to hang garland on a mantel for a gorgeously full and natural look. It’s easier than it looks and it’s absolutely timeless!

Hello friends! Due to popular demand, I’m bringing you a quick and easy tutorial on how to hang garland on a mantel for a stunningly full, natural and classic Christmas look. No skimpy garlands here – we’re going for something thick and luxurious!

I adore the look of a full and fluffy cedar garland. For years, I would purchase some fresh cedar garland each holiday season to place on our fireplace mantel and around our home.

You can see some of that garland in our Old Fashioned Christmas Living Room, our Old Fashioned Christmas Kitchen and our Old Fashioned Christmas Front Porch. And although I love the touch of greenery, I will admit that by the end of December those real garlands were usually looking pretty crispy and spent.

I’m still a big fan of beautiful real evergreen garlands, but in my opinion this faux version looks fantastic! Today I’m sharing all of my product sources with you as well as the tricks that help achieve this dreamy result.

Watch Me Hang this Garland

If you would like to see the YouTube video where I show you how I hang this garland from start to finish, click on the button below!

Where to Buy My Faux Cedar Garland

This year, I happened to stumble upon this faux cedar Christmas garland at my local garden center (shout out to Anderson’s Seed and Garden!). It was love at first sight! The price was great compared to similar garlands and the look was much better than I’d seen before. I snagged a few and headed home to start experimenting.

Because I bought my garland off the shelf without tags or wrappings, I can’t tell you for sure the product name or brand. Instead, I’ve scoured the internet and found sources for what I believe is the very same garland.

• House of Jade – 6′ Cedar Twig Garland
• Pottery Barn – Cedar Twig Garland – Set of 2
• Michaels – 6 ft. Cedar Twig Garland

Garland Tips for a Full Look

My first tip for getting a nice and full looking garland is to use multiple layers. I used 6 garlands for the look you see in my pictures.

Garlands can be notoriously skimpy. While this one wasn’t too bad in it’s single state, I still wanted a nice, full look and knew that I’d need a few layers to achieve this.

If you’re at the store, you can play around with layers and different types of garland to see what you need for your desired look. Most garlands look better when they’re layered up.

How to Hang Garlands and Stockings on a Mantel

My garland came with a loop on each end, which was very convenient. I used small nails that we nailed into the top of our mantel at either end to hold the loops. This is the easiest way I’ve found to make sure that heavy garlands stay where I want them.

Similarly, we use thumb tacks to hang our TIDBITS & Company stockings. By the way – I love these 100% pure linen stockings! We sell both a quilted stocking and a non-quilted stocking in our TIDBITS shop. You can also find them on my TIDBITS Moonsift collection page.

Ok, now back to the garland!

How to Attach Garlands and Stockings Without Nails

Like I said, I used small nails for hanging the garland and thumb tacks for the stockings. I don’t mind a small nail hole here and there, especially since I tend to repaint often, but if you don’t like the idea of putting a hole in your mantel then Command Hooks would be a good option.

How to Hang Garland with an Asymmetrical Swoop

Do you notice that asymmetrical swoop we have going on at the end of this garland? I really like that look. If feels very natural and flowy.

My garlands don’t have enough length to go all the way across the mantel and swoop down the side. So, to achieve the extra swoop, I take 2 of my 6 garlands and start them farther down the line, rather than at the nail on the end of the mantel. They will rest on the other garlands for support. Having that extra length gives me what I need to drape the garland over the edge of the mantel and down the side.

Once you’re done positioning your artificial garland, just fluff, tuck and adjust the branches to cover anything that you don’t want to see. If you’re having trouble keeping any of your garlands in place, you can always try a small piece of floral wire to give extra stability.

After the garland is hung, I took a few branch clippings and used them to cover the nail and loops on the end of my garland, like you see in the pictures below.

Adding Embellishments to a Garland

With my garland hung, I decided it would be nice to add some lights to this garland swag. I had a small string of battery powered string lights that I ran from one end of the garland to the other. I made sure to tuck in and hide the wire and battery box out of view.

Embellishments are the fun part of decorating. I kept mine pretty simple, with just a string of lights and some gold velvet ribbon, although I may add more decorations later.

Simple strands of fairy lights, ribbons, berries, pinecones – really any accessories that you love can add a festive touch to your Christmas mantel garland.

Decorating a Mantel Top

Finally, with the garland and stockings hung, it was time to decorate the mantel itself. I used candle holders that I already owned along with battery powered wax taper candles. I chose red candles to match our stockings, but there are many options to choose from.

To compliment the candles, I also brought out some pine cones that we’ve been using for several years. These are just pine cones that we collected outside. Some of these have white painted tips and some don’t. I mixed them together and spread them along the mantel for some nature-inspired Christmas decor.

Product Sources for this Mantel and Garland

I’ve collected all of the products that I used to decorate my living room on my TIDBITS & Company Moonsift page. If there is anything you’re curious about, just click over and you’ll be able to get all the details.

More Christmas Decorating Ideas

I hope you’ve enjoyed seeing how I hung our faux garland and decorated our Christmas mantel. These same ideas would work for a tabletop, banister or any other space in your home that you’d like to spruce up with some real or faux greenery and holiday decor.

It is so much fun to decorate this time of year and I love getting inspiration form the beautiful ideas of others! If you would like some more Christmas decorating ideas, please try one of the following:

• How to Make Vintage Sheet Music Garland | Frugal Christmas Decor Idea
• How to Make Dipped Beeswax Tapper Candles with Old World Charm
• How to Make Yarn Wrapped Star Ornaments for Christmas
• Homemade Dry Christmas Potpourri
• 5 Ways to Use Ribbon in Your Christmas Decorations
• 15 Farmhouse Christmas Ideas and Inspiration
• 25 Classic Christmas Ideas and Inspiration
• 25 Rustic and Woodsy Christmas Ideas and Inspiration
• 25 White Christmas Ideas and Inspiration