That way there is no chance of dripping and harming the shelves. I let them dry fully before putting them back. Once a week, I take the real ones off and water them in the bathtub. For me, greenery is an absolute must! The plants add color, life, and happiness to any room (you can read about my indoor plants here). I have three real plants and one faux plant on our office built-ins and they add lots of color to the space. Keep it to threes or odd numbers for the best look. Items look better when grouped together like this. The rule of threes is common in decorating. Tall vases (like this one with champagne corks), candlesticks, and other taller accessories are great decor to add when shelf styling. Add Some Heightĭon’t neglect height when styling. These big items break up all the visual clutter and keep the shelves from looking too messy. I have one cubby that just holds a big pothos plant and planter.Īnother has a large crate that I found at an antique store in Wausau, Wisconsin when we lived there. If you put small items on every single shelf it can feel a bit cluttered. I think it’s important to have some shelves that aren’t too busy. See above…the wood, white, and gold elements are all spread evenly throughout the built-ins. I made sure to spread these items out evenly so you could find elements of each category all over. I love how so many things pop off of the dark blue! I ended up keeping a few themes throughout the entire display…wood, gold, and cream/white. These are the first dark-colored built-ins I’ve ever styled and it was such a fun new challenge. Trays are also a wonderful idea (I have this one from Amazon)! You can group a few smaller items together on a tray and they look more intentional and less dinky. I used a couple on one shelf and placed a basket on top. Large coffee table books work really well for this. Small items usually don’t look good floating all by themselves, so I like to add books to “ground” a space. If you need to add to your book collection, I recommend hitting up a half-priced bookstore in your area or thrift store! You can find great titles at low prices for your shelf styling needs. Hardcover books make for great accessories, so don’t be stingy with them. I like to have some horizontal, some vertical, some touching the sides of the bookcases, and some floating in the middle. I know some people are horrified by that thought (it’s crazy how polarizing that can be), but it works for me! Do what works for you…it’s your house! Once I know which ones I want to display, I add them around the built-ins, making sure they’re evenly scattered. I do have books with other spine colors, but for those, I put them at the top and have the spines facing the other way for a more natural look. Then, I sort my books by color, putting all similar colors together before I add them to the shelves.įor my office built-ins, I stuck with white, black, and blue books to display. I recommend removing the book jackets because the natural spine looks a lot better than the jacket. I always like to add books when shelf styling and I prefer hardcover books. You’ll probably need more than you think, so feel free to “steal” items from around the house.

That way, I have a clear sense of what I have and what I can display. Books, greenery, wood items, gold items, etc. Next, gather all of your stuff! I like to group my items into categories.

This is also a good time to give those shelves a good dusting! Starting with a blank slate is important so you don’t get stuck styling the shelves exactly the way they were before. Remove everything from the shelves and put the decor into piles. Whether you’re styling an area for the first time or you want to tweak your shelves, I think it’s important to start from scratch. But if you want things to look cohesive and intentional, there are some steps to follow. Shelf Styling Tipsįirst, there is no right or wrong way to style built-ins or a shelf. What do you display? How do you display it? How much is too much? How much is too little? Today, I’m going to break down my best shelf styling tips to help you with any surface in your home (dressers, built-ins, bookcases, etc.). Throughout that entire project, I kept thinking of the day when I could blast music, get out all of the items I’ve had in storage, and go to town styling away! Let me just say, it was an amazing day.īut I know shelf styling can be intimidating for a lot of people. As you saw in this blog post, I had a field day adding decor to our new office built-ins. Okay, now onto the topic of the day…my best shelf styling tips. I love you and there’s no one else I’d rather quarantine with than you!

Today is his 33rd birthday! Thanks for everything you do for our family, Finn. Before I dive into today’s post, I’ve gotta give a shout out to that husband of mine.

Coffee mug display shelf