Decorating your home should be a fun experience that showcases your interests and loves. No one likes walking into a ‘model home’ looking house without personality. It looks nice but isn’t a unique experience that is memorable for you or your guests. A great way to display what makes you tick is shelving or a contained space with your personality written all over it. You can keep the rest of your home model perfect but having a few elements that are unique to you will make all the difference. Here’s how to stage and display your shelves of personality.
Identify Your Space
Whether you choose a bookcase, floating shelves, or a coffee table, pick a design space and keep it contained. This will be your area to flourish and express yourself. By setting limits on these areas, it won’t look like clutter and makes it a design choice. Preplan what you want the theme to be or what you want the space to say. This is your chance to display your interests in a fun design-forward way.
The Right Essentials
Take a page from designers at unique stores like Anthropologie – you want levels within your display and well-defined areas. Purchase glass jars for filling, books, or wood blocks to create levels and depth in your space. You can display virtually anything if it’s contained within an area. Have vintage action figures you want to display but worry about looking like nerd? Fill a glass container with a lid with all of them – you’ll create an interesting display and showcase your love all in one. Containers and jars are a great way to keep things neat and uncluttered. Using blocks or ways to create levels will make your display interesting and keep the eye moving. Mix tall and short items to keep it stimulating.
Always Edit
Once you’ve designed and placed your items, think about what is distracting the eye from seeing the space as a whole. You should always edit and try different placements to see what works the best. Maybe your collection of first edition Harry Potter books would look better a shelf down or breaking them up and spreading them out would make all the difference. Take a step back and enter the room and see where your eye is drawn. If you have trouble with this step, invite a friend over to help you give their first impressions. Never be 100% wedded to an idea or concept, it will be a process getting the right look and you’ll know it when you see it.
Design Choices
There are many ways to tie everything in all together. Think color scheme or an overall way to make the collection a whole. You could display the same type of plant or flower throughout the space so it looks cohesive. You could try to keep the same color popping up here and there. Establish what your connecting design choice will be early on so it’s easy to work in as you go.
Have fun designing your home by injecting personality in carefully curated areas. You will have a swoon-worthy space filled with personality and charm. It’s the best of both worlds.
