How To Decorate a Christmas Mantel With a TV Above It

Do you have a television over your fireplace and need help making it look good for Christmas? Then you’re in the right place! These tips on how to decorate a Christmas mantel with a TV above it will give you some inspiration.

How to decorate a Christmas mantel with a TV above it

One of the things that I wanted when I bought my house was a fireplace.  So I was very happy when I got one (even if I did have to build a mantel).

I didn’t even mind the fact that it came with a designated space over the fire place where the TV was supposed to go.  

Although I love the idea of having a beautiful mirror or picture over the fireplace, having the television there instead works very well in my house (it’s open concept so there aren’t a lot of walls to put a TV on).

And having the television out in the open doesn’t really bother me (if you are someone who would prefer not to see it, you can find some ideas for hiding the TV HERE).

The only time of year when I really don’t like this set up, is Christmas.  

I love to decorate the mantel for Christmas, and having to work around the TV is a little (ok…more than a little) awkward.  

So I am always on the look out for good ideas on how to handle this and (since I’m sure I’m not the only person with this dilemma) I thought I would share what I’ve found.

So keep reading to find some ways to decorate a Christmas mantel with a TV above the fireplace.

1 | Swag a long garland over the mantel

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This very large, absolutely beautiful garland by Regina Gust immediately draws your attention to it. Which keeps you from really noticing the TV above it.  

I just love all of the details she has in this garland!  (She has a lot of really pretty Christmas decor on her website so be sure to take a look if you want some inspiration!)

A note from experience: If you still want to use your remote for the TV, you will need to make sure that the garland does not cover the bottom of the TV where the remote sensor is (not a problem in this case since the TV is hung fairly high over the mantel).

2 | Decorate in front of the fireplace

How To Decorate a Christmas Mantel With a TV Above It

For my blue and white Christmas home tour, I created this large garland with ornaments hanging down in front of the fireplace to direct your eye downward and away from the TV above.

Adding the poinsettia, reindeer and garden stool creates even more distraction.

You can find the step by step instructions for making this garland HERE.

A garland with large ornaments hanging down from a fireplace mantel
via alveo.co (site no longer available)

This Christmas mantel from alveo.co did something similar with an evergreen garland and has large ornaments hanging down. 

They added the small Christmas trees and JOY sign to keep your interest on the fireplace, and away from the TV.

Poinsettias and white feather boas used as Christmas decorations on a fireplace mantel under a TV

I have also done this by using white feather boas as a garland with some poinsettia ornaments as a focal point.

The bright red and white Christmas color scheme distracts from the TV above.

3 | Put tall Christmas decorations beside the TV

Another way to decorate a fireplace mantel for Christmas is to use tall decor on either side of the TV like this collection of nutcrackers and evergreens from Color Outside The Lines.  

This way the TV is framed by the decorations and looks like it is supposed to be there.

My note from experience: This works best if you have a wide mantel so that your decorations build up gradually to the taller height.  In my case, the mantel isn’t much wider than the TV, and I think tall decorations on either side just emphasize that the TV is there.

4 | Use the TV as a backdrop

If you don’t mind blocking part of the TV screen, you can use it to make your Christmas mantel decorations stand out.

 he white Christmas trees on this fireplace mantel from ana-white.com really pop in front of the black TV screen.  

Without it, they would blend right into the wall color.  All of the other nature-inspired decor helps to pull the whole scene together.

The other great thing about this mantel?  It has built in storage!  Get the DIY instructions at ana-white.com.

5 | Distract with lots of color

Fireplace mantel with a TV above it decorated for Christmas with bottlebrush trees beside a Christmas tree

I used some really colorful decorations to make my peacock-inspired Christmas tree a couple of years ago. 

Repeating those same colors in the bottle brush trees across the mantel and in the stockings keeps your attention on the Christmas decor and off the TV.

A TV over a fireplace mantel decorated with a garland and Christmas ornaments beside a blue and white Christmas tree

Since it worked so well then, I tried it again with my blue and white Christmas decor

6 | Repeat small decorations across the mantel

Candles and a white feather boa across a fireplace mantel under the TV

This is obvious. But when you have a TV above the mantel you may not have a lot of room for large Christmas decorations.

To make it look like a cohesive scene, repeat small decorations across the mantel like these repeating candles (you can find the DIY project to make the candle holders HERE).

It’s also a great place to use one of my favorite non-traditional Christmas decorations…white feather boa*.  

The feathers are airy enough that the remote control works right through them which makes them perfect for under the TV!

If you’ve seen my easy Christmas decorating ideas, you know that this is one of my favorite inexpensive ways to decorate for Christmas!

Fireplace mantel decorated for Christmas with blue and purple bottle brush trees above it and stockings

I did this one year with the mini bottle brush trees*…a really inexpensive way to get repeating decor in pretty much any color you want!

7 | Go with non-traditional decor

This is another Christmas fireplace design from reginagust.com

And I think her idea of swagging a garland over the top of the TV is genius!

This is a non-traditional way of using a Christmas garland, but it works because it makes the TV and fireplace look like one unit.

And gives you more decorating space to work with if you have higher ceilings.

8 | Put up trees on both sides

Fireplace with a TV over it and red and white Christmas trees on both sides

Putting up trees on both sides of the fireplace will help to draw attention away from the TV.

I like to use these trees in urns because they take up less space and don’t require as many ornaments as a full-size tree.

To make this work, try to find trees that will come at least half way up the sides of the TV. That will make it look like one big vignette, taking your focus away from the big black square in the middle.

Hopefully, you’ve found some inspiration for your own Christmas mantel decorations. If you have any other suggestions, I would love to hear them!

Have comments, questions or suggestions on how to decorate a Christmas mantel with a TV above it?  Tell us in the section below.

This post was originally published on December 2, 2016 but was updated with new content on November 9, 2021.


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2 Comments

  1. I loved all the looks. thanks

    1. Thanks, Pat! Glad you liked them 🙂