Accessories can really accentuate and add to the space of your home. What is the best way of displaying these accessories? What are the rules of thumb when it comes to grouping – what to group, how many to group – you get the picture. Nicole Selner with Alair Homes Green Bay discusses this topic with Cassie and Trisha from Ver di Gris Interior Design. In this video, they’ll give us some insight on how we can all elevate our accessory game!

Nicole: Hi, this is Nicole Selner with Alair Homes Green Bay here with Cassie and Trisha from Ver di Gris Interior Design, and we wanted to get your expertise on, you know, when you’re decorating. I’ve always heard that you’re supposed to group some of your decor in groups of three or five or just an odd number. I mean is that true? Is it a lie? Give it to us straight –  how we can make our homes look more impressive.

 

Cassie: We find that with the accessories the best thing to do is to try to create groupings of like items,  so some of your prized possessions. And a lot of people like to go and kind of put one thing here and one thing there,  family photos is a really good example or pottery collections from traveling. And  a lot of people too have like the built-ins on the sides of the fireplace and they don’t know what to do with it. Well, instead of spacing them out kind of lining them up like soldiers. The best thing to do really is to kind of create groupings of like items. So for example, you’ll see us taking people’s pottery and kind of maybe grouping, and it doesn’t have to be three to five or seven but just creating those groupings, and then what that does is that that makes a focal point. People are more drawn into look at it rather than if they’re spread out all over.

 

Trisha: Yeah, and I think staggering heights really helps too, so you need to put a picture up a little taller so they’re not all the same height.  You can use books or wood blocking, just anything to kind of have some variation in the space which just really shapes to what the groupings look correctly. Same with groupings of family photos on a wall. Do a collage.  Those staggering, getting those like items together like Cassie said.

 

Cassie: Your eye sees a room like your ear hears music. So we talk about rhythm in design, and that’s a big deal with grouping of accessories, artwork and then it’s in relation also to what else is going on in the room. So if you have a lot of straight windows and you’re going to go hang a grouping of art,  then we may suggest more staggering.

 

Nicole:  Okay, just to mix it up and give some variation.  And it would also be my perception, don’t be afraid to try something just a little bit different like maybe try grouping it. How does that feel? Then add like you said some varying heights perhaps and you would be seeing outside the box.

 

Trisha: And color, definitely, you know as long as there is something that’s connecting you know one to the next whether it be shade or literally pattern. You can mix colors together as well. Just one thing that’s relative from one thing to the next I think helps a lot.

 

Nicole: Awesome! Well hey, I can’t wait for some of you to try out these tips to make your home look like a designers dream.