Thursday, July 3, 2014

Coffee Table Decor

Recently, I gave my coffee table a fresh new update to reflect the summer season.  I like to make small changes in my decor to embrace the changing of the seasons, but do so in a way without breaking the bank :)

Read on for more deets.


Our living room is a pretty tranquil space, and believe it or not, we don't really watch a lot of tv.  For that reason, I like to outfit this space with comfortable furniture + decorative accents that create a welcoming environment to both entertain and relax.  Since we live on the beach, I wanted to bring those elements in and create an endless summer/beachy vibe; something you might experience on a chic island getaway.


Decorating with trays is an easy + cost effective decorative accent.  After your initial investment of the tray, you only need to make small tweaks & changes in the decor to reflect the current season.


I love the natural woven rattan look of this tray, and the metal handles gives it character.  I usually try to decorate with natural elements; in this case the faux coral, sea stars, the beachy driftwood, and sand.  Using candles, small photo frames, and summer vacation mementos & souvenirs also make for great decorative accents.

The small small lantern is a great buy from Pottery Barn {under $25}, and all that I needed to do was walk down to the beach and collect some sand in order to transform it to my beach theme.  Lanterns really can be used all throughout the year; in autumn you could switch out the sand for some pretty red & orange faux leaves.  It would also look beautiful glowing on a front porch with some festive clipped cedar branches or pine cones during the holidays.  


I always decorate our home with coffee table books.  They really have the ability to make a wide variety of spaces look chic.  I have so many of them, and place them all throughout our home, often rotating with the seasons when I make small changes around the casa.  Grouping them together by color makes for a much "cleaner" look.



Another great aspect about using coffee table books is that they make a great platform for displaying smaller trinkets & objects of curiosity.  Here I've displayed a pretty candle with this interesting hand carved bowl that we picked up while in Africa.  I always bring back something for our home whenever we travel to other countries as I prefer authentic decorative accents vs. mass produced box store versions.  I've also picked up the habit of bringing home pretty books of matches from our travels and display them in bowls around the home.




I'm so pleased with how everything came together, and think that this really embodies the beach chic look that I was going for.

I've linked below to most of the items that I used and also included a few budget friendly picks that I found from good old Target.  I can often find extremely similar decorative accents at places like Target or Home Goods :)

Additionally, Restoration Hardware is currently having a sale on coffee table books and two of my books {Vogue Living & In The Spirit Of Capri} are both on sale.  Since they can sometimes be a bit pricey, sales are a great time to start or add to your book collection.  You can view the sale by clicking here.










How do you decorate your coffee table?

11 comments:

  1. I love the beachy feel you have going on!! I just got a mirrored tray for our table and I'm so excited to style it with flowers and books!! Hope you have a great holiday weekend!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, girl!! I love decorating with trays - can't wait to see what you do with yours!

      Delete
  2. Love your decor! Definitely chic and timeless!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Love it all! I love getting living room decorative pieces from West Elm in Midtown - They have great white & cream vases, bowls & trays for great prices!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. YES!!! I love West Elm! They have the best vases :)

      Delete
  4. I really like the Pottery Barn tray. Hope it goes on sale soon!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sara, did you see that I linked to a similar version from Target? It's a dead ringer for the PB tray and I think it's around $20! :)

      Delete
  5. Where did you get that little glass vase that you have the matches from? It's so cute

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Laura! I actually purchased it on Etsy a while back, but I found the same exact one online for you. The bottom of the jar is lined with match strike :) Here it is:

      http://atomicgardenoakland.com/collections/home/products/ag-matches

      Delete

 

design + development by kelly christine studio