DESIGN HACKS | TOP 9 TRICKS to Style Coffee Tables, Consoles, and Home Decor | Julie Khuu

hello everyone welcome back to my channel I'm Julie and today we'll be talking about all of the designer tricks to style your coffee table consoles and pretty much any surface in your home with ease I beginning a lot of requests on what the basic requirements are to make a home look elegant style polish really pulled together and to be honest there are no real rules that you need to buy by but all designers do have some styling tricks up their sleeves and I will detail my favorite top 9 so that you could do it at home Before we jump into it please take a moment to give this video a thumbs up if you love this type of interior design content of course comment below I read all the comments I try to respond to every single one of them so know that I am absolutely listening to your feedback and don't forget to subscribe to my channel if you haven't already so if you're struggling to pull your rooms together and learn how to style with ease this video is for you so I'll be breaking down this video into two parts the first part is all about the rules the tips and tricks that designers use to style any surface and then I will dive into all the different types of surfaces from coffee tables to entry consoles bookshelves nightstands and more to illustrate how you can effectively use these tips in any type of setting let's start with my top 9 favorite tricks that designers use to pull any table scape together the goal is to always make your tablescapes look completely balanced you can start by using the rule of threes if you love interior design and home decor I am sure you have heard of the rule of threes the rule of three basically states that items like to be grouped together in odd numbers typically you'll start with a set of three decorative items three just feels more dynamic than two it gives your collection a little bit of variety where your I can land from one item to the next when you have two items you're really just going back and forth and to me that's not enough of variety to make it interesting you want to keep your tablescape looking like a collection and not like a bunch of knickknacks just thrown together the next tip is to use a variation in heights and scales of your decorative objects what you're looking to create is a little vignette of small medium large or low medium high objects when all items are the same nothing gets noticed this type of variation allows your eyes to travel around and focus on something really important next we'll be moving on to the variation in sizes texture and Sheen's maybe you'll have something glassy next to something matte you'll have something small next to something large and you might want to even keep something really textured next to something smooth styling objects is all about contrast if everything looks the same nothing feels important my next tip is all about focusing on colors your color palette could be all similar colors are all contrasting hues I always like to start with my table base if the table is dark look for decorative objects they're a little bit lighter in color on the flip side if the table is light you want to look for something dark to anchor the space if you cut my holiday gift guide from last year one of my favorite decorative items to have in the home is a tray I pretty much have a tray styled on every single surface in my home whether or not it's a little Bowl or an actual tray with handles you want to use a tray to streamline the look it keeps your surface looking tidy clean and uncluttered instead of having all these little knickknacks thrown about your surface a tray can give them a place to land instead of floating around in space the next tip is to play with your angles styling with photos are best used against a wall you can place that photo frame in the bookshelf since it has a backing to it no one's gonna walk around it no one's gonna be able to see this exposed back so that photo frame makes more sense up against a wall on the same note you'd want to keep a photo off a coffee table especially if people are seated all around it if someone is sitting in back of it they'll constantly be looking at the back of a photo frame instead of the pretty front side that you want everyone to see my next tip is my favorite too foliage is your friends every single styling group and can Bennett from something green something fresh whether it's fresh flowers or a branch that you simply cut from your yard I love how a little foliage can just brighten up every space plus it's free I mean just go outside with a pair of sharp shears and look for like a really sculptural branch little bit of green leaves cut that off bring it into your home and you can mess around with how it looks in a variety of different faces bonus points for being able to change this out as the seasons change bringing the outdoors in is one of the top designer tricks and every designers use and make a space feel more lived-in I am all about personalizing your space I love it when a home kind of shares your story and the viewers know instantly who lives there so my advice is to always make these little groupings as personal as possible let those items on your coffee table tell a story about your passions or a special memory it's all about giving your home decor a personal twist and a conversation starter to boot my final tip is to look for interactive decor let just interactive decor mean it basically just means styling with a personal object that begs the viewer to touch it it could be a photo album that encourage your guests to kind of flip through it it could be your favorite coffee table book open to a page that really inspires you the more you encourage activity the more these objects do than just decorate to say something is merely decorative is to miss the point entirely think about styling and decorating with pieces that you absolutely love something that has a special meaning to you something that feels very personal the goal is to be able to decorate your home in a very stylish designer way while still allowing a sneak peek into your personal life let's start with the basics of coffee table styling you always want to consider the shape of your coffee table first if you have a rectangular coffee table you want to look for groupings of course in rules of three maybe even use a tray and fresh greenery you want to group them in a way where they have a dialogue with each other but not so far apart that you miss the story that you're trying to tell if you have a round coffee table or a round ottoman you want to mimic that shape with a round tray or round vases [Music] if you have a beautiful bold pattern rug underneath a glass coffee table that you can see through I like to keep the styling on top really simple and streamlined maybe it's just a vase of fresh flowers or a little bit of greenery for a pop of color coffee table styling is probably one of my favorites to style since its front and center in the living room I love to change it up seasonally with the decor in the springtime I always use fresh vibrant flowers and then during wintertime or fall it gets a little bit moodier with metallics and candlelight you can always use the seasonal changes to dictate how you style the surface for entry coastal styling it's all about function I always like to anchor the entry consoles with the mirror because of course you want to check yourself out before you leave the house a little tray to put your keys your wallet anything that you need to grab right before you leave and of course something fresh in this case a really beautiful sculptural orchid I love the way the organic shape plays up with these hard rigid lines so you also want to play with your shapes and angles in this case if you have a round entry mirror you want to mimic that shape with round faces or round objects maybe like a really cool globe or a little orb the idea is to be able to walk around that round table and not see like unfinished backs of squared items for nightstands I like to keep it really simple of course you'll have your table lamp so depending on the size of your table length you'll figure out how much surface space there is left for all of your decorative objects typically a nice stand doesn't have a ton of surface space so I wouldn't decorate just for looks it's all about function in this case you can style the nightstand with a little box for your vitamins or a larger box to hide your remote control you can also finish the look with a journal or book and even a candle for aromatherapy you want to streamline the look of your nightstands as much as possible because you have to remember bedrooms are for resting so in this case you'd want to minimize the clutter as much as you can I have so many videos on styling bookshelves from dr. Moniz apartment makeover to my own living room makeover but my favorite tip is to always style with larger decorative boxes these boxes can hide a multitude of sins especially if you love to keep like a lot of loose paperwork around you can have these boxes anchored by more personal items like photo frames I love to use marble bookends I mean it just makes the bookshelf look so polished and chic and again you'll always see the rule of threes used for similar items so the rule of three is not about buy every single piece you're counting one two three you're really just counting similar items so for example if you have a decorative box that looks the same these two decorative boxes that are stacked right on top of each other is considered one item just because visually it looks the same and then your next item that has a different texture a different size or a different shape it could be the second item followed by a third item in a contrasting height or color don't just throw the books on the shelves think about a really cool way to display them some of them can be in the vertical orientation some of them can be non horizontal one you want to play with variety and introduce different way to display common items in one of my favorite custom home design the Hacienda Heights project the homeowners and clients are these like crazy world travelers I love that everywhere they go they bring something home from their travels I remember when we were building the house they just came home from this amazing trip to Asia they had these beautiful handmade play figurines that I designed this entire great room bookshelf around I designed these glass of recess niches in the bookshelf specifically for these clay figurines we lit them from above and from every vantage point in the great room I mean if they were just a beautiful focal point when they have guests come to the home it's one of those things that the guests always sit in the living room or their great room and kind of remark about and that's what design is all about it's about decorating with items that really share your story and give the viewer a sneak peek into what you're all about moving on to bar styling I had a client who used to be a bartender and I had designed his home from when he was living you know as a bachelor in apartment and then he upgraded to a condo and then finally his first home so a bar has always been a mainstay and bars are probably one of my favorite things the design just because you know it could be fun it could be quirky it's all about styling really cool bottles really chic glassware and anchoring the console was something that shares more of your personality this vibe is really industrial so we went for this really sleek metal console and we styled it with these industrial cage candelabras it gives you the option to change out the colors of the candles with the seasons or anytime you feel like something new one of the questions I get asked a lot is how to style a dining table it's really a personal preference I have clients who want the dining table to look completely set every time of course over time all of that tableware it gets dusty so you have to be willing to maintain if that's the look that you're going for if you have a really beautiful light fixture above the dining table keep at the table scape really simple there's no need to dress the table because you're trying to draw the viewers eyes up in this case a simple centerpiece with just a little bit of flowers of foliage or even a cluster of really bold colored hurricanes is gonna do the trick my tips for styling a really long console or a buffet is to break your vignette up into little groups the rule of threes still apply in this case but what you'll be doing is creating little groups of threes all along the surface if you're styling up a face set in a dining space you can start it by anchoring that surface with symmetrical table lamps I love placing a mirror right in the center of that buffet because what you'll be doing is bouncing the light back from the lamp you'll also be harnessing that really great Chi for good Fung Shui and lastly you can style that buffet with a little tray that you put fresh flowers on it's a look that's really timeless classy and elegant if you're going for a more modern or minimal look for your buffet try anchoring that look with smaller lamps or even a makeshift bar in the middle remember that you're always aiming for a little bit of contrast so if you have a wood buffet try looking for metal or glass lamps if you have a console that's on a pony wall which is like a half wall or a wall with a cutout where you can see behind it try not to decorate with anything that's too high you want to be able to see through to the other room without any obstructions that's it for this video I know it's a lot of information but there you have it guys all of my designer tips and tricks when it comes to styling virtually any surface in your home before you run out to your nearest door are you shopping online or you're looking for links to anything that you see in this video I want you to just take a minute and just stop shop your home first I bet you that there is like a treasure trove of items just kind of buried in little cabinets bookshelves even your garage that you probably forgot about anything can be considered a decorative if you love it and it has a special meaning to you this weekend I want to challenge you to shop your home lay a blanket or a towel on the floor grab all of your decorative items so they're all in one place and then start styling room by room start with a coffee table use a combination of my tips and tricks and just mess around and play with it that is the fun of interior design you'll start with one surface and then you'll move on to the next and then you can mess around with it start filling in the pieces where you feel like it's missing or sometimes you'll walk away from a surface and just think okay that's it that's the look and then you'll move on to the next don't try to do everything at once interior design is just not a race to the finish line as every great designer knows design is just never done it's ever-changing and ever-evolving just like you I often get lost in like corners of my home I'll start the day off by like cleaning or wiping down my coffee table and then all of a sudden I've picked up a coffee table book or like a photo album and it'll remind me of a moment and then here we are hours later and I'm still sitting here my husband laughs at me all the time because it's like I'm starting to do one thing something as mundane as cleaning and then all of a sudden he can't find me for the morning that's the beauty of interior design it's all about being completely immersed in your space inspired by your own life your own home decor and then all of a sudden you're just in peace and complete lists please let me know if you have any questions when it comes to styling any surface of your space if you like this video please give it a thumbs up comment below and let me know if you have any questions when it comes to styling any surface in your home and of course subscribe to my channel if you haven't already thank you so much for watching guys I'll see you in the next one you

Channel: Julie Khuu

Views: 798,940

Rating: 4.9394207 out of 5

Keywords: Interior design, decorating, home decor, how to's, diy, tutorials, coffee table styling, coffee table decor, entry styling, entry decor, bookshelf styling, bookshelf decor, shelfie, how to style a bookshelf, home decor styling, interior decorating, custom home, design hacks, console styling, console decor, decorations, decorating hakcs, how to decorate, make your home look expensive

Id: Sx1hsKQ1Mec

Length: 14min 53sec (893 seconds)

Published: Tue Jun 09 2020