How to Style Your Shelves
One of DGI’s most frequently asked questions is how to successfully style your shelves to achieve a professionally designed look. While there is no exact formula for styling a shelf, there are plenty of tips and tricks DGI has picked up through the years that we want to share with all of you! So, we’ve created our complete guide to styling shelves including our top five tips and our favorite accessories.
Tip #1: Style your shelves in layers
It’s important to think about your shelves in terms of layers, from the front to the back of the shelf. On my own living room built-ins, I opted to lean some framed artwork along the back of the shelves and layer smaller accessories in front of it. Whether you are using art or another accessory, DGI suggests starting with bigger, sculptural items followed by the smaller accessories in front or to the side. Be sure to overlap some of the accessories to help the eye move around the composition.
Tip #2: Incorporate Greenery onto your shelves
Pops of greenery are a must-have on the shelves that we style. We all know it can be hard to take care of a live plant, especially when its placed high up on a shelf. So we typically opt for faux greenery in these cases. You would be surprised how realistic they can appear! On these fireplace built-ins, we layered in several faux plants that spill over the shelves to create a continuous movement and overlapping feel. It’s one of our favorite looks for faux greenery!
Tip #3: Follow the Rule of three
This easy to remember tip will make a big impact on your shelf styling process! It’s important to style your accessories in groups of three, whenever possible, to achieve a continuous, connected look. Using at least three accessories ensures that there are enough pieces to move your eye around without overwhelming your shelf. You’ll want to select three pieces of various shapes, sizes, and heights. Be sure they complement each other and stick to a cohesive color palette. Once the accessories are selected, begin layering them onto your shelf.
Tip #4: Overlap your accessories
If you haven’t already caught on, the key to successfully styling your shelves is ensuring that your eye continues around the composition. One of the simplest ways to achieve this is overlapping your accessories to minimize gaps on your shelf.
Tip #5: Think outside the box when styling books
It’s called a bookshelf for a reason! Books are the most versatile accessory to use when styling a shelf, but DGI suggests you style them in non-traditional ways to add interest. Some interesting ways to style books include turning them backwards, stacking them horizontally, and color coordinating for a monochromatic look. In the library bookshelf above, DGI opted to turn the books backwards for a neutral, textured look.
Now that you’re familiar with our top five styling tips, it’s time to be sure you have some designer-approved accessories in your collection. And we have exciting news! Devon just added an amazing new selection of accessories to our decorative objects collection on Shop DGI! You can shop them all here.
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