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    Baskets in the Dining Room (a place for everything!)

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    This Post May Contain Affiliate Links. Please Read Our Disclosure Policy here

    Rattan Lidded Basket
    My focus this year is on creating a space for everything we love! This week I added two baskets in the dining room, I’ll explain them in this post.
    I’m pleased that every year we own less stuff due to our continual efforts in downsizing and being more intentional in what we keep. But I am determined to find joy in everything we have.
    I find NO joy in trying to find places for things we don’t use often. Through the years I’ve come to understand that there is no point in keeping a lot of items “just in case” we might want them someday. Not only do we not have room in this home to store items like that, it’s futile to hang onto so much “someday stuff” that even if you do want something, you can’t find it. Or when you know yourself well enough that if the time comes to use it you know you won’t want to make the effort to look for it, even if you do have it “somewhere”.
    These points may seem obvious but it is crazy how stuff seems to multiply if you don’t start to set boundaries for what you keep and where you keep it. We are still in process!
    Rattan Lidded Basket
    You have to understand yourself and your habits in a particular home or your general tendencies in order to make better decisions, so it takes time to figure these things out.
    Baskets can one of those questionable storage options for me. A basket can be an attractive organizer but it can also invite you to stash a lot of things you will never use or find again LOL! They can be a clutter multiplying risk. But with that said, it’s nice to have a place to stash some things so your house feel less cluttered. I am not a minimalist 🙂 — I assume minimalists wouldn’t want baskets but to me they look cozy and add texture so even if there are one or two there where you stash stuff, so be it.
    In my quest to find a place for everything and put everything in its place, baskets will be used with intention.
    Amazon Baskets and Bins I Have and Love (click here for sources)
    How I make baskets functional is to give each one a dedicated purpose and put them in a location that makes sense to me. If I will use the items often in that location, it makes sense to me to keep a basket or two there.
    I realized I had two shelves by my dining room banquette where attractive baskets could be handy to hold little items that bring joy in setting a table such as napkins, candle holders, or taper candles. We have larger drawers below the banquette but I imagined a basket being a simple spot to store small items. That way they could easily be pulled out and set on the table to select items.
    We love using our bookshelves here for books or decorative items, so I didn’t really want it to be a storage unit but because the lower two shelves are usually hidden by pillows anyway so adding baskets here would be the most convenient spot to organize these items.
    My main hesitation was some baskets might not look as attractive as I wanted for this spot so I wanted to take the time to find the right wood tone and quality! Baskets like I wanted are not cheap so I had to compromise a little on my dream baskets, but also was willing to spend enough to get something that looked attractive here.
    Rattan lidded baskets
    I also wanted them to be large enough to fill the space so they felt intentional, so the right size and scale was important. The other qualifications were they had to be very sturdy and have removable lids so they could be as functional as possible. I actually tried baskets I had here for awhile before but they didn’t have lids so it just felt cluttered.
    After quite a bit of searching, I decided that these were as close to what I was looking for as I could find with my time and budget. Turns out they work perfectly! I love the removable lids and the baskets look very pretty here.
    I also considered THESE baskets, I love the idea of the removable dividers so it was tempting, but after much deliberation, these baskets turned out to be the right choice for our shelves. I still might consider the others for another location though!
    I haven’t yet worked on exactly what will go in them or how I will organize them, but I’m excited to have a dedicated place to hold items so close to the dining table! Stay tuned for more of my journey to find a place for everything :).

    More baskets I love on Amazon
    7 Home Organizing Tips + Organizers That Changed Our Lives
    Decorating & Organizing with Baskets (A Place for Everything!) — Lidded Trunk Basket in my Bedroom
    Our Tiny Mudroom (Pantry + Dog Feeding Station) Makeover
    Little Updates Around My House Lately
    Basket Storage Trunk Round Up
    Shoe Storage Solutions
    Browse all organization inspiration posts on The Inspired Room More

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      How I Chose My New Couch (my top considerations and priorities)

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      This Post May Contain Affiliate Links. Please Read Our Disclosure Policy here

      After much research, I finally bought a new couch (actually, it’s a loveseat!) we’re excited about. I know many of you have been on the hunt for one, too. It’s not always easy to make a decision, so I thought I would share a little of my thought process and which one we chose in case it helps someone else.
      If you missed the backstory on why I needed a new sofa, you can read what happened in this post.
      Sofa Source
      Here is the couch we chose (in the mist performance double stripe fabric).
      We had several requirements and preferences that made finding the right sofa a little extra challenging. 🙂
      Here are some questions and considerations I look for and what helped us to make our sofa decision (I’ll share more later, too!):

      Quality: This is our forever home and the first thing you see when you walk in, so it was worth it to me to find one we will love. I prefer to buy quality furniture that we can keep for a long time. For health reasons I hoped to find one that was Greenguard certified (tested to be free of a lot of chemicals).
      New or Secondhand: I was open to buying one secondhand if I had found one that met our requirements in the short period of time I had to look. I did see a lovely one on FB marketplace but alas, it was much too big for our little space. It’s always worth looking though!
      In Person or Online Shopping: It was far more convenient for me to shop online. I wish we lived where there are lots of in person places to look for new or secondhand. It is a risk to buy online, so I carefully read reviews and felt even better if I had a positive past experience with the brand. And I carefully looked at every detail of dimensions and fabric etc to be sure it would be what we expected.
      Size: The couch needed to be 61 inches wide (to be able to walk all around it comfortably in the small space we had for it). That’s not a very common size, but anything else would’ve been way too big!

      Sofa We Chose (click here for details)

      Focal Point or Supporting Role: Some couches look good sitting against a wall or will be in supportive role, but in our space, the couch floats in the middle of the whole main floor. That makes it feel more like a focal point, so the style matters even more.
      Style and Shape: Because of where it sits as well as my own style preferences, I wanted it to have an interesting but classic shape and exposed legs. I felt that would feel less like a barrier in the middle of the room and more of a style setter. It needed to look good from all sides.
      Fabric and Color: I haven’t bought any furniture that it had to coordinate with, but it did need to look good with our paint colors since we just painted and we love the colors. As much as I’ve loved my past neutral or white couches in the past, I felt like a print or soft color would work better in this space and still fit with my style.
      I thought about various fabrics, even some lovely velvets that would make a room extra cozy, but I decided to go with one that felt like a summer beach house (since this is a beach house!). In the fall and winter I’ll pair it will cozy colors and textures. It’ll be fun to play around with new combinations and moods in every season!
      Also I wanted it to be a fairly easy to care for durable fabric because of puppies and babies. No fabric lasts forever but I think slipcovers are nice! I knew I could always have some made years down the road, so I decided that wasn’t a deal breaker for me.

      Sofa We Chose (click here for details)

      Cushion Styles: I looked at all options. I wasn’t going to be as picky about this because we had so many other must-haves, but there are different style preferences. Do you want down filled cushions / foam or no cushions, back cushions or solid back, removable or two sided cushions, one bench seat or two/three seat cushions? There are pros and cons for all of them! A plus of no back cushions is dogs can’t squish them or throw them on the floor. 🙂 The down filled are so comfy, but they will flatten out and you have to fluff them periodically. We chose a bench style cushion with down and I’m sure we’ll be happy with that! I really love a sink in cozy couch.
      Price: Quality and customizable couches can be very expensive, so if you are going to get one, you will want to love everything about them. I found options I liked under $3,000 (like this one) but in the end with the size, style, specifications and exact customizations I wanted, it became clear I was going to spend more. Fortunately I was getting a smaller sofa and not a sectional ha, plus we don’t need a lot of furniture in this house so this one investment felt worth it. I have a trade discount at some places, so that gave me a buffer to extend my budget, which helped.

      I can’t wait for it to arrive! It’ll unfortunately be a long wait. But in the meantime, I am excited to think about what else we may want to use in the room. I’ll share some mood boards for my overall inspiration soon, too.
      I’ll also do a round up post of the other sofas I considered, there were quite a few top contenders!
      Subscribe to my newsletter here to make sure you don’t miss my posts, and follow on Instagram here.

      Introducing my new step by step decorating course Room Recipe Method! Click for details. More

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      in Organization

      Decorating & Organizing with Baskets (A Place for Everything!)

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      This Post May Contain Affiliate Links. Please Read Our Disclosure Policy here

      Sources: Wicker trunk // White Lamp by Bed // Rug / Blue and White Chinoiserie Lamp by Teal Chair // Ruffle Striped Pillow on Chair // Similar Teal Chair
      This post is in partnership with Wayfair
      For the last few years I’ve set aside the month of January to focus on making small updates to our bedroom. This month, inspired by my phrase for the year “a place for everything and everything in its place” I decided to work on beautifying and organizing our room (along with other areas of our home). When I saw this wicker trunk at Wayfair, I knew it would be a charming solution for one of our bedroom storage issues.
      Today I’ll share more about my basket and why it’s solved this problem beautifully for us!
      I love organizing with baskets and have added several other new pretty ones to our home, too. Here’s a peek of a few of my other favorites which I’ll share about in a future post!
      Click here for above sources

      We don’t have a large room, nor a lot of closet space, so I wanted to come up with some creative options to store things we use often.
      One source of storage frustration for us in this house has been a pile of blankets.
      Blankets can take up a lot of room.
      Where do you keep extra blankets when you don’t have a linen closet or extra space?

      I decided I didn’t want blankets to continue to take up precious space in our closet, so I’m thrilled to have found this basket! It is lined with a removable liner, so it’s perfect for storing blankets, sheets, mattress pads or even bed pillows. It could really hold anything from books to linens to hobbies and more!

      A trunk with a lid is ideal because it keeps the room looking tidier than an open basket and the blankets are still easy to access. The size of this one is so nice for the end of our bed, or even to tuck in a corner or against a wall. Unlike a large storage piece or wider trunk, the basket is tall enough to hold a lot but takes up very little floor space and is shallow enough to go just about anywhere.

      The rattan is a pleasant mix of warm browns and soft grays along with rope accents. The convenient handles make it easier to transport it. I love the personality and texture it adds to the room, too!

      I use all kinds of baskets and trunks for storing so many things around the house, including to:
      stash (useful) clutterkeep dog itemsorganize seasonal flowers and branchesstore paperwork hold tableclothsorganize gameshold cords and electronicsfold blankets and pillow covershide bathroom essentialshold remotes and keysand so much more!
      Are you organizing your home this month, too?

      Bedroom Sources:
      Wicker Trunk
      Rug
      White Lamp by Bed
      Blue and White Chinoiserie Lamp by Teal Chair
      Ruffle Striped Pillow on Chair
      Similar Teal Chair
      White Woven Planter on Deck
      Click the images below for more pretty Wayfair finds (+ some of my bedroom sources): More

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      in Organization

      A Phrase to Inspire You and Your Home in the New Year

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      This Post May Contain Affiliate Links. Please Read Our Disclosure Policy here

      Do you ever choose a word (or words) of the year to inspire you? This year I decided a word isn’t enough, I need an entire phrase.
      “A place for everything and everything in its place” is a very motivating and inspiring phrase for me right now! It’s not just motivating me to simplify or organize (although it certainly does that!) but to thoughtfully consider how each place in my home could be intentionally designed to contribute to a more peaceful rhythm and experience in my day. 
      An inspiring place to get dressed for the day. An peaceful spot to put on makeup. A lovely place for my jewelry. 
      On Sunday I repeated the phrase of the year as I began making some adjustments to the arrangement of our our bedroom, bathroom and closet.
      While I still have a ways to go to bring it all together together, without buying a single thing, I’ve already improved our bedroom and how I feel in it.
      I’m always delighted with how rewarding it is to slow down long enough to put your mind and heart into creating a sanctuary.
      If you’re craving a meaningful transformation in your home this year, come join us for Home Therapy sessions and the all new step by step Room Recipe method, now in HomeBody Gathering Place! More

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      in Style Tips

      Lamps and Lights for a Cozier More Stylish Home (tips + lamps I love)

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      This Post May Contain Affiliate Links. Please Read Our Disclosure Policy here

      Blue and White Lamp // Botanical Art // Rug // End Table Cabinet
      This post is in partnership with Wayfair
      Lamps and lights are my favorite ways to make my home instantly feel more personal, cozy and stylish. I always opt for classic styles and even timeless statement lamps that can set the tone how I want our home to feel. Lamps can bring so much personality to a room, why choose boring styles?
      Did you know Wayfair has stylish lighting? I have been updating the lighting around our home and have found so many pretty fixtures and lamps I love.
      Today I’ll show you many of my most recent additions! It’s a great time to refresh your home not only for the winter months but for a fresh start to the new year. You can shop for so many home essentials during Wayfair’s End of Year Clearance sale to get big savings, including up to 60% off and fast shipping!
      I’ll share some tips throughout along with a round up of the lighting I have in my home and favorite sale items from Wayfair at the end of this post, too.
      Source: Semi Flush Mount Light
      This little hall had a builder basic ceiling light that we recently replaced with this classic beauty. I love the traditional look! It never fails to amaze me how a lighting change can update the feel of a home.
      Checkered Shade Navy Lamp
      We needed a table lamp for our puzzle table in this book nook. This darling one has a fun style with a timeless shape.
      Lamp
      It’s a perfect size and height — it doesn’t get in the way of doing puzzles! Form and function in a room is essential in a personal decorating style and in a cozy home.

      This classic blue and white chinoiserie lamp is a beauty! I fell in love with the birds on it. It’s the little things.
      Chinoiserie Lamp

      I prefer to mix and match timeless pieces in my home for many reasons but I love that it results in an inviting, charming, collected over time feel. That is applicable to our lighting as well!
      Lamp
      This little cutie fits everywhere, I love it so much I bought three in two different shapes and colors. How many of these lamps would be too many? Asking for a friend.

      You really can’t have too many lamps this time of year. Am I right? Lamps are an investment in our personal well-being as well as in our home.

      Floor Lamp // Botanical Art
      I suggest considering a floor lamp in every seating area. Task lighting has been wonderful for cozy winter nights reading in the snug! Pharmacy lamps are a classic style.
      One of the many design principles I teach in my HomeBody community is to use lighting effectively, not only to set the style of the space but to make people comfortable in the room.
      It’s my philosophy that our home should be our sanctuary. Everything we choose to include in a room is opportunity to make a difference in how we feel! It’s not about spending a lot of money or following design rules, but choosing elements with intention. If you need help making decisions for your home, join us for the new year in HomeBody Gathering Place and I’d be happy to help answer your questions.
      Click here for above sources
      New year, new you? Start by making your home your sanctuary. Save up to 60% off and get fast shipping when you shop during Wayfair’s End of Year Clearance event.
      Below are some recent decor finds I love from Wayfair, many of which are on sale. Click each image below for details. More

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      in Organization

      My Quick & Easy Organized Gift Wrapping Closet

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      This Post May Contain Affiliate Links. Please Read Our Disclosure Policy here

      Today I wanted to show you my “use what I have” quick & easy organized gift wrapping closet.
      I’ve been working on organizing and fixing up small spaces in my home little by little this year. I’ve been sharing behind the scenes and progress in our HomeBody Gathering Place community (and these projects will continue even more in 2025 — come join us!). Since October in the HGP I’ve shared before photos and progress updates in my mudroom, pantry cabinets/closet and coffee station! It feels great to be making steady progress on decluttering, simplifying and beautifying spaces.
      This guest room closet really was getting out of control so something had to be done.
      In a smaller home, you can’t afford to lose any space to clutter or disorganization, especially a much needed closet.
      My dream and eventual goal was to wallpaper this closet and repaint the dresser, but I decided in order to quickly get some sense of organization and function before Christmas, I would leave the more creative or time consuming ideas for another season! My goal was to declutter and use what I have rather than get sidetracked on any grand ideas.
      I finally got a lot of the random stuff out that had piled up there (thanks to the motivation of our HGP Bag A Day challenge which we held this fall. We’ll be doing another community challenge and focus on simplifying our homes in the HGP in January, so I’ll be working another closet or room then!).
      If you could use a dose of weekly Home Therapy to inspire you to action in the new year, come join us.
      Sources: Gift Wrap, Ribbon, Floral Box, and Cards
      Once the clutter was out, I started to think about how I could better use this space.
      When a closet or cabinet has a distinct function or organizational system, it won’t be as likely to get cluttered again. I had just bought some new gift wrap so I was inspired to focus on using this closet mostly gift wrapping and packing supplies. But also decided to use the upper shelf for guest sheets (I had bought these containers a year or two ago, they work great for organizing our lesser used guest sheets) as well as hung some out of season clothing to one side.

      Recently I shared my over the door organizer in this post: 10 Organizers We Use in Our Home. I bought this for a different purpose but now I love the organizer in here as it can hold all of the small gift wrapping items that had previously filled up one of the drawers in this dresser.
      I will probably organize the cubbies of this organizer even more, but it was simple to just toss items in and instantly have an empty drawer to use!
      This is a Restoration Hardware dresser that was here in the house when we moved in. It’s good quality and I never like to let a dresser go to waste so we moved it in the closet to make best use of space.
      Now it’s the perfect spot for gift wrapping and the drawers are a handy place for rolls of gift wrap, small boxes and bags, and a spot to stash gifts, too.

      Then I got an idea for what to do with the rolls of ribbon we’ll use when I wrap Christmas gifts this year. Some of them are in the door organizer, but I thought it would be fun to keep some of the new holiday ribbon I got from Rifle Paper Co. separate to use for Christmas.
      Since I only wanted to use what I had to organize this closet, I found I had an extra tension curtain rod to use for the Christmas ribbon. The tension rod fit perfectly on one side of the closet. Now this ribbon is organized and very convenient for use in this season. Plus there is a lot more room on the rod so I can add more ribbon!
      By the way, the trick to making ribbon functional on a rod like this is taping the edge of the ribbon when not in use. Otherwise it will unroll and land on the floor :).

      Our closet doesn’t have a wired in light so for now I used this set of two rechargeable lamps (on Black Friday sale right now!).
      I bought these earlier this year and have already found so many places for them around the house, but I decided the lamps in this spot will make gift wrapping extra cozy in these dark evenings!

      I’ve had the linen boards since my navy office two homes ago.
      I loved that office so much, I think I might want to paint this whole room navy in honor of it. 🙂
      The printable gift tags and Hygge art on the linen boards (which I bought at HomeGoods years ago) are free gifts for members of HomeBody Gathering Place! If you are an HGP member, you can find them in your dashboard.
      I got all of these adorable wrapping supplies from Rifle this year … including the cards, gift wrap, ribbon etc! I love them all!
      Now that I have a cozy spot to be, I can’t wait to make a hot drink, turn on some tunes and wrap gifts!
      Gift Wrap Left to Right: Penguin Village // Nativity // Christmastide
      Click here for all above sources More

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      in Organization

      10 Organizers We Use in Our Home

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      This Post May Contain Affiliate Links. Please Read Our Disclosure Policy here

      1. Back of door organizers.
      I have this one in a gray color, and also a beige color. This is our guest room and we use this organizer for gift wrapping supplies like ribbons, small boxes, bags, tags, cards, tape, scissors, etc.

      2. Bedsheet organizers.
      These neat organizers have become so handy for storing our lesser used guest and seasonal linens. Now we’re able to efficiently organize and maximize space on the upper shelf of the closet. Plus this allowed us to make more room in other areas of our home.

      The cases are hard — you wrap the sheets inside so they stand up like a box.

      3. Under bed organizers.
      I love these attractive linen toned under bed organizers (we use them in our guest room for extra pillows!).

      I also love these under bed organizers for under our daybed (pictured above). I talked more about them in this post: No Linen Closet? No Worries! 3 Reasons These Shallow Underbed Storage Bags Can Help!
      Lidded Trunk
      4. Lidded trunks.
      Click here for all above trunks
      I have two of this one! I use them for extra blankets.
      Cabinet Riser and Mug Source
      5. Cabinet risers.
      These cabinet risers come in a set of two — they are very handy to organize in cabinets!

      6. In-drawer knife organizer.

      7. Kitchen drawer organizer.
      I have several types:

      8. Kitchen wrap organizers.
      Foil, Plastic Wrap and Wax Paper Organizer with Cutter
      Similar Sandwich Bag Organizers

      9. In-drawer spice organizers.

      10. Lazy Susans.
      I have these wood lazy Susans above, and these black and white lazy Susans in my pantry.

      Find my Prime Big Deals blog post here with photos and mood boards of my finds on sale! Only one day left of this sale — there are so many good deals.
      Here is The Inspired Room Amazon Storefront — bookmark it to return to all of my faves and deals from Amazon.

      Shoe Storage Solutions
      7 Home Organizing Tips + Organizers That Changed Our Lives
      Small Space Hacks: Collapsible Laundry Bags (7 Ways They Can Simplify Your Life)
      The Secret to Decluttering, Organizing, Decorating and Homekeeping Success that No One Tells You About!
      Click here for more Organization inspiration posts on The Inspired Room. More

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      in Style Tips

      Decorating with Fishing Baskets

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      Source: Whale Tail Hooks
      Over the past couple of years I’ve gathered a few fishing baskets. A few people asked about this basket in my kitchen from a recent post, so I thought I would share about my little collection.
      You can find similar baskets in my Amazon shop, or if you have secondhand shops near you stop in now and then to see if you can find one!
      I discovered my first one tucked into the back of a local vintage store before I knew they had a name. The unique shape of the basket just caught my eye!
      Baskets of any kind are wonderful for decorating and organizing, but these definitely have extra character and charm.
      Click here for basket sources
      Source: Whale Tail Hooks
      We have a larger fishing basket hanging in our mudroom right now. I noticed my husband is using it for some of the dog supplements! So clever :). Love that it has the long handle — I think a basket looks so charming on a hook.
      How to Style Open Shelving in a Kitchen (+ secret ingredients to add to the mix!)
      This one that we had the apples in my recent shelf styling post moves around the house all the time. It really comes in handy to hide or elevate the look of a room with useful things inside.
      Wall Sconce and Shade Details
      These baskets also look adorable with a plant or flowers. I love using unexpected pieces like this.

      We hung this one on our door (on this white rope) with plants in it for our fall porch! You can line a basket with a plastic bag or put flowers in jars or drinking glasses.
      Sources: Whale Wallpaper // Lighthouse Guest Towel (comes with a sailboat one as well)
      I love the texture, shape, character and multi-purpose function of these baskets, don’t you?

      I’ve even used them as a charming way to hide extra toilet paper in our powder bath!
      You can find several similar basket styles in my shop here.
      Happy decorating! More

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      in Style Tips

      How to Style Open Shelving in a Kitchen (+ secret ingredients to add to the mix!)

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      This Post May Contain Affiliate Links. Please Read Our Disclosure Policy here

      Sources for above — click here
      Styling shelves can feel daunting, but it can be fun and less stressful when you know a few designer secrets for selecting the right items and how to style them.
      Here are some of my favorite tried and true tips for selecting items to display and how to style open shelving in a kitchen (or anywhere!).
      Botanical Plates // Brass Bells // Blue and White Chinoiserie Ginger Jar
      Pair practical and pretty
      I like to use both practical and pretty items decorate a kitchen. This philosophy is true of shelves, too. Often some of what I choose to display are pieces that are stored on the shelves because they are practical. They could be brought down off the shelves and used, such as a stack of plates, a pitcher or a basket.
      Seascape Art Print in This Wood Picture Frame //  This art print and others are in my Amazon Art and Frame Storefront // Blue and White Plates // Stoneware Crock
      Set the mood with a palette
      Determining a mood for your shelves will help you narrow down what you want on the shelves and ultimately brings everything together. The mood can be built around your style or the items you have to work with. It can be altered through the selection of colors and textures to give your shelves a more intentional, cohesive, streamlined look.
      A cohesive palette doesn’t mean everything has to match, or stay neutral or that you can’t use your favorite colors.
      Pick a mood word or two to describe the overall feeling you want to achieve. Do you want your shelves to reflect a certain season? What word would help you to describe the overall vibe? Moody? Happy? Colorful? Serene? To establish a strong mood, be intentional with what you add to the shelves. If something doesn’t contribute to the mood or is a distraction, it can go.
      Sources: Blue and White Chinoiserie Ginger Jar // Botanical Plates // Brass Bells // Favorite Cookbooks // Artificial Artichoke // Seascape Art Print in This Wood Picture Frame // This art print and others are in my Amazon Art and Frame Storefront
      A formula I use often in my home:
      A few shades of two colors + a wood and a white tone + a metal tone. Any additional hues are included in small doses.
      On the top two shelves you can see I used shades of blues and greens with mid-tone woods and whites. Then I included a few very small pops of reds and yellows only within the dishes on the plate rack.
      Blue and White Chinoiserie Planter Pot on Shelf // Seascape Art Print in This Wood Picture Frame
      Use unmatched + unexpected
      While you certainly can style shelves with one kitchen collection for impact, such as a matching set of dishes or all cookbooks, you can also mix pieces that don’t necessarily match or are unexpected in a kitchen. This makes it easier and more affordable to change the look through the seasons and show off smaller or growing collections in fresh ways.
      Mismatched pieces can look pleasing together because they all contribute to the mood and color palette you’ve selected. While it can be nice in a kitchen to display every day items on my open shelves I like to include pieces that aren’t necessarily just “kitchen related.”
      I use various collected or vintage items, interesting textures, a few plants, books, faux or real organic elements like florals, vegetables or plant stems, as well as artwork and vessels.

      Blend a mix of sizes and shapes
      Rounds, cylinders, rectangles, spikey or feathery shapes … blend together elements with opposite or unique shapes to add interest! Don’t use too many small items, but a couple of smalls will make the overall look more pleasing, interesting and natural.

      Pair, Lean and Layer
      To make mismatched pieces look more intentional and cohesive on shelves, practice the pair, lean and layer techniques. Start in the back. Depending on the length or height of your shelves, you may be able to lean a piece or two against the back wall of the shelves. Artwork and large platters or plates work well for this. Then layer / slightly overlap some pieces in front of others. Pair different heights, allowing some breathing space. Try to style three items together at least once for a cohesive grouping. Combine textures and colors for style and function — for example, placing apples in a basket.
      Kitchen Hardware // More Kitchen Details
      Step back and look
      Does the overall look feel natural and pleasing? Step back to look around the room, too, not just directly at the shelves. If it’s too cluttered or crowded or not interesting enough for your taste, nudge items around, add or take away colors, sizes or shapes, until you like the way it feels!

      Would you like to go behind the scenes of my home and be a part of a community of like-minded home lovers? Join me in real time each week to get insights into creating a sanctuary you love. You will learn my simple homemaking and decorating tips, be able to ask questions and get help decorating your home! Join us in HomeBody Gathering Place!

      Click here for mood board sources (and see more below)
      Botanical Plates
      Brass Bells
      Blue and White Chinoiserie Ginger Jar
      Seascape Art Print in This Wood Picture Frame // I ordered this art here because I wanted a specific size but you can also get these prints (and others) HERE on Amazon in a variety of sizes and some already framed as well!
      Blue and White Plates
      Stoneware Crock
      Favorite Cookbooks
      Artificial Artichoke
      Kitchen Hardware
      Blue and White Chinoiserie Planter Pot on Shelf
      Basket plant is in (pineapple lidded basket)
      Paint color: Classic Light Buff Sherwin Williams
      Kitchen Tour and Details
      Shop More of My House and Style
      Shop My Amazon Favorites More