Coffee Table Styling: 8 Easy Tips for that Perfect Look

I love making anything and everything look pretty. It makes me feel happy, in literally affects my mood. I’ve learned early on in my career that visuals affect my psychological state – good and bad.  Anytime I can am in a space where it’s beautiful and free of clutter my mind seems clearer, and my creative juices flow with such positive intensity that I am able to create better work; for me and my clients.

If I am in a space that is dirty, ugly, chaotic then that will drag down my productivity as well. Even the smell would bother me if it didn’t smell fresh and clean. That’s why I always have my diffuser on. Pretty smells is like cherry on top of that thick yummy chocolate shake. That’s why every part of my home is basically a work in progress. I’m always finding new ways to make it better and it’s fun changing things around when the seasons change. I also work from home which means it better be nice especially my office right? 

How to Decorate Your Coffee Table with Style: It Only Matters What You Think and Feel

Okay so in this blog post I’m going to share my favorite decor tips for coffee table styling. There are definitely some rules you need to follow but not many. This is your space so you can do whatever your heart desires. When it comes to things that makes you feel happy (and isn’t that the whole point here?) I say go for it. Don’t give a crap what other people say or think. Their opinion doesn’t matter.  

What a Coffee Table Styling Really Mean

A coffee table is not just for people to place their coffee there. In fact, you can have several coffee tables in your house. I have a tea room and I also serve coffee there. I’m also in the middle of designing a coffee bar in my home which I’ll share with you in my future posts.

I personally decorate my coffee table based on the current season plus with things that inspire me. I don’t necessarily put personal mementos on there although you could if you wanted to since they make great conversation pieces. 

 

 

 

Here are 6 Easy and Simple Ideas for Styling Your Coffee Table

1. Choose your color theme

This is a rule you need to follow. Choose a color that will obviously harmonize with the rest of your space. 

2. An object you love 

I’m not talking about little trinkets here. I’m talking about a decorative object that has meaning to you. I brought these corals from one our tropical vacations and another ojbect I love are crowns!

One rule you have to remember is that the object you choose must NOT be the same height or width as the other items on your table. I’ll get into heights shortly and it will make more sense to you. 

 

3. Favorite Books

Books can be very expensive so it’s up to you how many you want to stack up. If you don’t want to spend a whole lot of money go to thrift stores or stack magazines instead. Don’t use anything that is ripped, torn or stained, etc. You want everything to be in good condition. It’s called Feng Shui. ☺

4. Flowers or plants

Oh wouldn’t be lovely if you could have fresh cut flowers every week delivered to your house? If fresh flowers are not an option for you then go with plants or potted flowering plants in season. Anything seasonal will obviously be less expensive. Please avoid plastic or artificial flowers/plants. Not good Feng Shui. 

I personally go with orchids for 5-6 straight months per year because that’s how long they can last if you take good care of them. They’re low maintenance and best of all I think they have a classic elegance. It’s timeless. They’ll go with anything. 

 

5. Soy Candles

Diffusers are so popular these days but I don’t recommend you use diffuser for coffee tables since the mist may ruin the items on your table especially if you have little trinkets. 

I recommend that you use candles made with natural ingredients. Last thing you want to do is fill your home with toxic crap. Choose scents that are in season. With spring around the corner the perfect scents are; orange, lilac, and mint that come to mind. 

Look for candles that have a lid. That way you don’t have dust sitting on the wax. If you want to add a bit of luxury use pretty match sticks. 

6. Tray

You will need a tray. The number of trays will depend on how big or small your coffee table is. 

Mementos, nick knacks and little trinkets look better when they are merchandised and styled on your tray rather than sprinkling them everywhere – that’s too busy and cluttery. 

 

7. Different heights

You basically need five major pieces on your coffee table. I mentioned a tray, books, a living plant or flowers, natural candles and an object that has sentimental value to you. 

You need to work with an odd number. So depending on the size of your table you can choose three or five. 

Make sure all your objects are different heights so the eye moves around which makes it more exciting. Otherwise it’s like looking at a flat field which is boring. Aren’t mountains so much more interesting to look at and explore then the plains? That’s how I want you to think about your coffee table. Coffee table styling: it’s a work of art baby!

8. Styling your coffee table

Now that you have all five major pieces how do you merchandise properly on the table? 

This is the part that most people get wrong but I’ll keep it super simple because I want you to get this right. There’s two parts to this. The first part is what it looks like at eye-level and the second part is the aerial view, what it looks like when you’re looking at it from the top. 

 

 

Part 1: Your goal is to make sure that when you set all the items on your table that they are shaped like a pyramid as shown in the image above. 

That means the center will have the tallest objects, then move the next tallest object close to the tall object, and keep doing that until the smallest object is farthest from the middle. 

 

 

Part 2: This is how you would merchandise your coffee table as shown in the image above. Make sure the object are close together especially in the center. You want it to look and feel cozy, but not too tight. 

Keep it balanced. You want the tallest object in the middle and then on either side the two objects should also be balanced. For example, you wouldn’t want the two smallest object on one side.

I encourage you to play around with it but the bottom line is to use the pyramid rule. Now, put up your feet and let’s enjoy a cup of matcha! 

Summary

Coffee table styling is easy and fun with just a little practice. You can use this same concept for your office desk using the pyramid rule. 

I hope I’ve inspired you today and if you have any questions use my contact form as I’d love to see what you’ve come up with. If you need some help, take a photo of what you’ve done and email it to me. Make sure all the objects you want and love are in the image. I will email you back with recommendations.