Up on the mantel, once Christmas was cleared

After the extravagance of Christmas decor I do enjoy a palate cleansing clean sweep of all that is merry and bright. Except for when I don't. A few things from the previous season's abundance made the transition to the New Year.

The protea flowers in the brass "vase" were past their prime, so I kept the evergreens and added dried fern fronds and bits of Disporum cantonese ‘Night Heron’ from my garden.

Always a sucker for more light this dark time of the year I pulled out a few taper candles but quickly remembered why I don't use them as often as I do pillars or tealights... they're messy! One quick puff to put out the flame and wax went everywhere. Plus their wicks are much more exposed, they feel a little dangerous—especially when I move about the house and forget they're lit.

Thus... I went the flameless route! I know...it's cheating but I love them (I bought these). I can set the timer and they come on and run for 2, 4, or 6 hours and they flicker a bit. I see them as lights that look like candles, rather than thinking of them as candles.

Anyway, back to the plants!

I love this mossy tray...

I took an enameled metal tray and mounded soil around the root ball of a few plants, then covered it all with moss. There's a tillandsia tucked in there...

And a fern that was labeled with the super helpful name "pteris fern," never mind that pteris genus of about 300 species of ferns...

False aralia, aka Plerandra elegantissima. Check out the spots!

Polystichum tsus-simense, commonly known as the Korean rock fern.

Turns out this one should be hardy in the garden, so when I get tired of this scheme (and it's warmer outside) I can plant it out.

Can you make out the warm glow behind the plants? I'd bought a pack of flameless tealights pre-holidays and discovered they're handy for adding a little extra light even when the votive holders have been put away for the season.

Really I based the whole mantelscape around this mantel clock I inherited from my grandparents several years ago (it originally belonged to my great-grandmother). I remember thinking it was about the most fabulous thing ever when I was a kid and it sat on my grandparents mantel. I've displayed it here once before, but it has been in basement storage for several years. Having a small house with limited horizontal surfaces means that things I love aren't always visible.

The columns are almost convincingly marble, but they're actually plastic.

The details are pretty fantastic.

I bought the glass domes at IKEA several years ago and was happy to pull them out of storage for use again.

Inside the largest dome is another Plerandra elegantissima along with a small Adiantum raddianum ‘Fragrantissimum’. Another of the adiantum is in the smaller dome. After I planted the ferns I read they want moist soil but don't respond well to misting. We'll see how they do in this terrarium-like environment.

I picked up this piece of bark on a walk, and planted it with a third Adiantum raddianum ‘Fragrantissimum’. 

Hello in there...

At the far end of the mantel is a grapevine wreath I wove pieces of holiday eucalyptus into.

This arrangement should see us through until early spring when I'll lighten up the mood...

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