Shelf Decorating Tips
Shelves are one of my favorite spots to decorate! I love creating a display filled with collections and beautiful objects. Today I wanted to share some of my tips to help with decorating your shelves. Whether you are decorating a small shelf or a large bookcase, these tips can be applied to any size shelf!
Balancing old + new
When styling my shelves I love to have a mixture of antique pieces and newer items from stores. I like to collect a few different antique items like vintage crocks, brooms, and of course art. I use my shelves as a way to display my collections. The newer items help to balance the shelves and to me they honestly make my shelves look less like an antique shop and more like a curated collection of things I love. 😊
Create a visual journey
Where do you want your eye to travel as you look at your shelves? I like to balance things diagonally, it keeps your eyes traveling throughout the ‘canvas’ (aka the area of your home you’re working on). You can start by literally placing two plants, or two bookends diagonally, as I did in these photos, and fill in the shelves from there! To get a better idea of where the visual interest can be created, take a step back and look at your shelves from a distance.
Pick a color palette
Choosing a color palette upfront will help you a TON when selecting (or eliminating) decor that you want to use for your space! I also recommend balancing your color palette by using that diagonal method I mentioned earlier. 😊 I’m very into earth tones so that’s pretty much my palette all the time haha.
Create depth
Place items forward/behind other objects to create depth. Creating depth is especially helpful when you want to display small objects or small collections. Think about using art as a backdrop for your objects, it creates a lot of visual interest! You can also create depth by layering objects on your shelf, in this photo you can see depth on the second shelf with the brooms and beads & depth on the third shelf with the artwork layered behind on the small clock.
Bring in nature
I’m all about using plants on shelves, they visually bring the space to life, regardless of whether they’re real or faux! As long as you have a fair amount of light, you can use plants inside closed bookshelves. I have found my plants love my closed bookshelves. It’s kind of like a really large terrarium that they can thrive in. If you don’t have a lot of light I’d recommend faux plants or adding grow lights to your shelves. If a small lamp fits on the shelf you can switch out the light bulb to a grow bulb to give your plant the light it needs!
Get creative
Use ornate objects throughout your shelves! To give you some ideas, I LOVE to use unique objects for bookends, I do it all the time! For example—I’ve used anything from DIY blocks to industrial clamps, and now these vintage corbels (linked some dupes for you). Also, think of using small baskets and trinket dishes to style beads or dried florals or use alone as a display!
Don’t be afraid to try something unique or different when it comes to styling your shelves. I love using them as a base for exploring my creativity! It isn’t permanent so it allows for experimenting and change at any time. I hope these tips help you with decorating your shelves!