Inspired Lately: Styling Shelves, pt. 2

Two years ago (!!!) when I posted part one of our shelf-styling, we still had quite a few things to do in order to make the bookshelves in our den look complete. I’d just begun brainstorming a silver frame collection, grasscloth hadn’t even crossed our mind, and I was digging through a wealth of accessories in our basement that would act as compliments to the few things I knew I wanted displayed in this space.

I love where we ended in here! Our den now has a focal point (especially since this wall is the first thing you see when walking in from our kitchen) that’s slightly bold, very collected, and takes the focus away from the giant TV over the mantle (a decision that still gives me heartburn…).

It definitely took us several months to decide on what belonged here and how said belongings would be arranged, but in the end, I don’t really feel like things look “styled” apart from the books, which I’ll get to in a minute.

The base: Our shelves and cabinets are painted the same as the trim in this room: Benjamin Moore’s White Dove in a semi-gloss. At first, we painted the rear of the bookcases to match (as seen in part one of this post, here), but after getting a few things placed, it just looked… flat. A single roll of Serena and Lily’s grasscloth in shade Amalfi fixed that, and I feel in love with it the moment it was installed! Coupled with the navy wallpaper in the powder room at the opposite end of this space and the seafoam green-colored candlesticks on the mantle, that blue just pops out at you.

The frames: All of the frames you see are from Pottery Barn. I just adore their silver collection, and remember once hearing that there is no photo too boring to frame, so, here, you’ll see formal snaps from our wedding and the Speed Art Museum Ball alongside selfies at the Pacific and cell phone shots of the doods. We did buy a few sizes of the same frames, but there are no two that are 100% the same, meaning that while everything was purchased from the same place, at the same time, it feels very collected.

The “stuff”: Everything from the crystal geodes that my grandfather collected to a brass-look vase from Target are here. In between the books and the frames, objects that just make me happy have found a home. There’s a tiny brass beagle, a horn bowl, and those seafoam-colored beads that echo our candlesticks- little treasures are tucked in on almost every shelf.

The books: If I’m being honest, Bryan and I have WAY too many books in our house. At last count, there were several hundred stored in the basement, so there was no way that all of our books could live here in the den. Knowing we’d have book storage everywhere, I wasn’t upset to “style” what was here in this room. We pulled books that had hardcovers in colors that went with the decor, so black spines, white and ivory, and shades of blue and green took over this space. For sake of conversation and to keep this textural and interesting, I did flip a few around so that the spines faced the rear of the shelving. I know that this is such a hot spot in the eyes of so many, but even in our house- where I’m reading between 25-50 books a year and Bryan isn’t far behind, we may have had to pull things out to find the one title we’re looking for on only a couple of occasions. Some of our coffee table books- like Palm Springs Modernism and Athena Calderone’s Live Beautiful lay flat as an elevated surface for other frames or objects.

Overall, we love how this space has turned out! It took time (two years, to be exact) to build this space into exactly what we wanted, so my advice to you when styling an area: Take a deep breath and take your time. It doesn’t have to be finished and perfect tomorrow. And- nothing is permanent. Shift things around, bring out your favorite items, and play with the space. When you step back, and things feel like they’re a reflection of you, then the job is done.

** this post is not sponsored in any way. all thoughts and opinions are my own **

** photos by Don Lehman **