Learning how to style the flat surfaces in your home will really help to pull things together and give your home a styled finished look. Here are 8 easy to follow tips for you.

How to style any shelf or flat surface in your home

The video below has some tips for arranging shelves, mantelpiece and the top of a chest of drawers.

1. Clear the surface off or out then clean it

2. Sort through the items. If you don’t use them, or they don’t bring you joy, do you need them? could someone else benefit from them?

3. Play with pairings. This tip is about creating lovely balance. This pair can be symmetrical or asymmetrical. Add a pair of armchairs. A pair of lamps. A pair of vases. A pair of art prints. A pair of book piles. A pair of cushions…. You get the idea. 

4. Group/ stack/ pile things. Grouping, stacking and piling are about creating a balanced arrangement. You can use grouping, stacking and piling to create visual balance, make sure things are in proportion, or that there is a nice rhythm through the space.

5. Always incorporate some white or blank space. This tip is about facilitating flow through the space and allowing your eye to breathe.

6. Repeat certain elements to create unit.  Choose some colours/textures and shapes to repeat through the space to create a sense of flow and rhythm. 

7. A useful shelf styling rule is to use the rule of thirds. Create imaginary grid lines on your surfaces and places your objects either on the lines of the grid, or in the spaces between. Gathering objects in clusters of 3’s also looks good.

8. Contrast different textures. Mix materials! Whether you’re styling a sideboard, shelf or table; use contrasts - hard shiny surfaces with soft, matte ones, for example. Mix books with plants. Stone with florals. Contrast different shapes too. Books look good when you mix up the way they are facing. ie a stack of vertical books next to a row of horizontal books. Arrange books with pretty covers to the front, and display them like pieces of art.