Shelf styling can be such a daunting task. Whether you’re tackling bookshelves or floating shelves, mastering the art of arranging and decorating these spaces can transform the look and feel of your home.
From arranging books and decorative objects to incorporating the perfect color palette, we’ll explore practical tips and creative ideas to help you design captivating and organized shelves. Let’s learn the rules (and then break them) to elevate your home decor game and curate some stunning bookshelves.
Identify Your Color Palette
When planning your decor scheme, clarity in your color palette is essential. Take stock of your space as a whole, if you have been super intentional about your design, it’s probably super simple for you to identify the colors of your space. If you’ve been living in it a while, this may take some detective work to call out your permanent pieces and the colors that are reflected there.
When it comes to your space as a whole as well as these little vignettes, we should follow the 70-30-10 rule. You’ll begin by selecting or pinpointing a primary color that dominates 70% of your decor elements. This color will set the foundation for the overall vibe of the space.
Next, you’ll introduce a secondary color which compromises 30% of your palette. Use this color in accent pieces like planters, artwork, and book colors.
Finally, decide on your super small but impactful accent color. I like to use black so long as the room isn’t primarily black with lots of contrast. Look to your rugs, other artwork, and any small details in your upholstery pieces to find some inspo on this color!
Utilize Negative Space
My first internship experience was perfect(-ish). We had a full wall of bookshelves behind a desk and needed to style it. The client had of ton books and knick-nacks, and honestly, even the throwing styling out the window, it all still wouldn’t have fit. As much as we want to display every single book were ever owned – just don’t. Instead of placing your books traditionally (think library style) try to only stack odd numbers together. Three, five, or seven books on a shelf max. Add a beautiful bookend. Think of your book collection as being the background or grounding pieces of your display.
Rule of Three's
Remember our rule of threes! Aesthetics always look nicer when decor pieces are grouped in a set of 3. (Really any odd number.) Three books stacked horizontally or three candlesticks will look better than just one or two!
Don’t forget you can change this up. It doesn’t have to be three of a similar item, but rather a group of three items. Think maybe a mirror, a framed art piece layered in front, and then a tchotchke or faux candle layered in front.
Curate & Rotate Decor
Our styles and tastes will change with the seasons. Update that baby photo for something more recent, add a few holiday pieces, and change out that burnt out candle.
Instead of opting to go out shopping immediately, just rotating pieces around can help the vignette feel refreshed and new!
You could also decorate for the seasons and holidays. This isn’t something I’ve ever really gotten into myself, but now that I want to create a little magic for the baby, it’s something I’ll be adding to my decor stock over the upcoming years.
Create Triangles
Well, visually at least. We like to see 3 focal points when styling your shelves. Examples include adding height, other decor elements, or some sort of greenery. See below for an examples:
This tip aligns with the magic of three’s as well. Seriously, every job or internship I’ve ever had when in residential design this magic number will level up your decor game so much!
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