~A Mantel Story or The Little Mantel That Could~
Welcome to Metamorphosis Monday, hosted by Susan at Between Naps on the Porch. Visit Susan, Sunday evening, after 10:00 PM, eastern time. You will find makeover inspiration, all around the land of Blog.
The subject of my first Metamorphosis Monday, in January, was the fireplace/tv cubbyhole, at our condo at Lake of the Ozarks. The photo collage, below, shows the fireplace before painting and after. If you remember the first Met Monday post, this fireplace arrangement has been a dilemma, since we purchased the condo in 2003. We painted the interior of the cubby, Sherwin Williams Mink, which helped diminish the size, in appearance, of the opening. The wall color is Sherwin Williams Snowflake.
A neighbor, here at the lake, told J he had a discarded mantel we could have, if we wanted it. Of course we accepted his generous offer. He also offered to make a shelf for the TV.
Last week, we received a call from our neighbor, who resides in Illinois. He told J he would bring the shelf and mantel to the lake, midweek. We threw a couple of bags and the cooler in the back of the truck, loaded up Molly and left for the lake immediately. We were that excited about seeing the mantel.
The fireplace/cubby, below, as it appeared before installation of the mantel and shelf. 
The above photo was taken during the process of accessorizing the mantel. In the end we decided we like the shells best. Another idea that didn't quite fit the scheme of things; a row of birdhouses. One accessory, we tried, particularly upset Molly. We removed it pretty quickly. That item is a metal fish sculpture, we like very much. I had made up my mind, it just didn't work on the mantel, when Molly put in her two cents. She is an opinionated dog, that is certain.
After painting and installation of mantel and shelf.
I call it the little mantel that could because, even though rejected it found a home, with us, here at the lake.
We plan to paint out the outlet covers, inside the cubby, with SW Mink.
Through the window, you can see the gull carving has returned to it's seasonal home. The deck is a project in progress. More about that in an upcoming post.An Edit:
Just a note about the previous "Beautiful" post. The photos were taken at our place at Lake of the Ozarks and Bennett Spring State Park. These two gorgeous places are located in the Missouri Ozarks.
The Ozarks stretch from northwest Arkansas, up through southwest Missouri, to the central part of the state, near Jefferson City. The region also extends into Oklahoma and Kansas.