One of my favorite hobbies is "styling". My
grandfather jokes that hobbies "like those" are just another form of OCD behavior. Maybe so, but I find it to be one of the more enjoyable,
relaxing, even therapeutic past-times. When Paul takes Roswelle to the park on
Sunday afternoons, you’ll most likely find me at home “styling” our pantry,
coffee table, even my closet.
Isn’t that just glorified organizing you
might ask? Nope. The reason an organized linen closet looks so appealing in a
magazine isn’t because they finally figured out the perfect place to store
fabric softener, it’s because it was styled. Every object was strategically
chosen and intentionally placed. Geometry comes into play when styling; angles,
odd numbers, lines, symmetry, all crucial. Fun fact: I received the Geometry
award in the 9th grade, which is telling I think.
We recently purchased a new acrylic coffee table from CB2. I chose the sleek style of acrylic to offset my rather traditional
decorating. Gold and Navy go so well together because they are on opposite ends
of the color wheel, and the same goes for style. Next time you are making a
purchase, consider looking at the exact opposite of what you typically choose.
You’ll be surprise at how well it compliments your current decor! The see-through element of the acrylic also opens up our rather small space; every square foot is important in city living. It was fun to have the challenge of selecting the perfect pieces (from around our home) to curate an interesting vignette in our living room.
I've been using a long wooden cutting board as our "coaster" and it has been working so well! Small bowls of cheerios, sippy cups and cups of coffee all sit together giving my OCD something to smile about. Roswelle is also a little toddler that likes things in their place (wonder why) so she typical complies with the coffee table rules: no climbing, no banging, and putting her cup back on the board. Speaking of Roswelle and the coffee table, she loves laying underneath it and watching TV through it; it's become another great little cubby for her. And her tiny, slimy hands leave plenty of smudges on it all day long, but it's nothing I can't wipe up at the end of the day and doesn't bother me.
I was so delighted to find the little white whicker tray already in my home!! It was turned upside down on the breakfast tray I was using in front of the fireplace (seen here). It's the perfect size and color for the new coffee table and I'm really happy it has curved, circular handles to offset all of the lines. A tray on any table always adds an element of style and forces you to curate an interesting collection. A great rule of thumb that I learned from Emily Henderson, author of the Styled book on the table, is to have something vertical, horizontal, and finally a little mis-shapen piece to tie it all together and for this tray that is the little Jonathan Adler zebra dish.
