We bought a new piece of art (not in view here) in the late fall that spurred us to rearrange most of the art in the house. There are a few things that always stay where they are but most things move around a lot. Being lovers of art as well as makers of art, with many friends who are also artists, our house is full of art. So are a number of closets and the basement. When a new piece comes into the house, we typically "shop the basement" to see what we have that might enhance the new work.
But rearranging multiple rooms means that we don't want to do it again for a number of months. Thus, this year, I tried to create holiday displays that did not detract from the art or cause us to have to move anything. In the case of the fireplace mantle, I came up with a solution that I've left in place post-holiday. It feels wintry to me, but not Christmas-y.
If you compare what the mantle looked like at the beginning of December, you can see that I left most everything in place. But I spiced it up with pomander balls, some wrapped in gold cord. Then I draped one of my few new holiday purchases across the mantle: a chain of thin brass discs.
These are made from two pieces of soft metal glued together with a cord running between them. A splurge but worth it. I like a bit of metallic glimmer at the holiday but this is more subtle because it's not shiny.
