Coastal Inspired Summer Mantel

I have come to the conclusion that these days I can manage to muster about 10, maybe 15, minutes worth of time and energy that I’m willing to dedicate to decorating. Which means that I pulled off a simple, coastal inspired summer mantel in the time between tossing in a load of laundry and being summoned to observe my daughter’s latest trick on the trampoline.

And really, why should it require any more time and energy than that? It’s summer after all. The season of simplicity and lingering over dinner on the deck. I want to be sitting around our new fire pit (photos coming soon!) roasting marshmallows or snipping flowers from the garden. I don’t want to be fussing over a mantel.

So, I grabbed a fun print that was just sitting in the attic and qualifies as ‘coastal’.

And a wooden sailboat off of a closet shelf.

I tuck greenery into the same metal bucket that I used in my spring mantel.

And beside it, three books that were part of a collection of vintage books my mom recently passed on to me. They bring back so many memories. Those books weren’t just for looks! As a young girl, I cherished getting to read the same books my mom had read when she was a girl too. They are like links in our heritage chain and I love incorporating them into my decor whenever possible.

‘The Bobbsey Twins on the Deep Blue Sea’ just had to take the place of prominence alongside a beautiful shell on this coastal inspired mantel.

These days, you will find me doing some things that I haven’t really done much of in the past few months.

You’ll find me sitting outside in the sunshine reading a book, savoring each breeze that flutters the pages.

You’ll find me focusing on my health and working on new recipes that are not only full of flavor but full of all of the things my body really needs.

You’ll find me on the deck with my husband after the kids are in bed, glass of wine in hand, dreaming and planning for our future.

You’ll find me worrying less about what I can create for you, my At the Picket Fence friends, and more about how I can connect with you.

You’ll find me resting.

“Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer’s day, listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time.” (John Lubbock)