Halloween Mantel

I saw this idea in Country Living last year and I fell in LOVE. 

Source: manolohome.com via Sarah on Pinterest

I wanted to do it to our front door but I never got around to doing it.  So, I was planning on doing it this year.  Paula found some bats on sale at Joanne's and bought them for me so I didn't have to make them. Then I saw this . . .

Source: kimmccrary.blogspot.com via Sarah on Pinterest

when I joined pintrest two weeks ago and again I fell in LOVE!  Stacey made it for me (I helped a little) and it was just too beautiful to put on the door.  I didn't want anyone to ruin it - or touch it.  It was so pretty that I wanted to look at it all the time. 

As you saw from the Family Room tour, we have a beautiful fireplace.  It pretty much stays the same all year, but I decided to "dress" it for Halloween.  Here is our naked mantel: 

I put up the amazing wreath - tutorial is here.  Just to warn you it takes like 4 hours with two people - so, be prepared.

And got the bats . . . Here is the template for making bats if you would like it. 

Here they are . . .

Fold one wing towards the body.

Fold the other wing in too.

See how it looks like it is flying now?

Put some duct tape on the back

And put it on the wall (or the fireplace in my case).

I started the bats at the bottom - I wanted it to look like they were coming out of the fireplace.

I tried to duct tape the bats on the felt wreath but that doesn't work.  So, I hot glued a safety pin on the back of two bats.

Just put a dab of hot glue on the back of your bat.

And put the safety pin in the hot glue.

Let dry and attach to the wreath. 

I knew I wanted the bats to go up toward the wreath and stop at the top edge, so I made a rough path.

Then I just had to fill it in with more bats.

When bats fly they fly in a line, then it becomes and group, then they all kind of disappear.  It is pretty amazing to watch them!  I wanted the bat path to look kind of real.  So, I put them in a line, then a group, then fizzled them out to a line then they disappeared. 

I LOVE it!!

What do you think?  Are you going to decorate for Halloween?