DIY Home Decorating: How To Create Beautiful Vignettes

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A “vignette” in terms of home decorating is a group of objects or a curated style statement, that is displayed to “tell a story” & create a pleasing focal point in your home. Creating a vignette is probably the easiest home decor idea & an affordable way to bring charm, character, and life to any space and can easily be reinvented to suit your whims — a change of season, a special occasion, festivals, or even a change of your mood. A good vignette will add to the room’s decor and make a space seem beautifully styled, sophisticated, and lively. 

There’s a way to creating small scenes that look effortlessly composed and eye-catching. You can learn how to build delightful vignettes with these easy steps:

Select A Spot

This step is pretty obvious, yet sometimes a great vignette in a corner of a room that no one can see is almost a waste. Pick a spot with visibility, on a surface of a furniture piece you want to enhance. End tables, nightstands, entry tables, mantels & coffee tables are good surfaces to put together your vignette but remember that not every surface in your space needs a vignette because you don’t want your space to look cluttered.

Plan The Vignette According To A Theme

The selected objects should be somehow tied together with some common element or idea and should feel like parts of a larger story. This theme or idea could be based on colour, material, seasons, etc. You may also choose an item as the center of interest, the “hero” of your vignette. It will be the first point on which the viewer’s eye rests. The rest of the vignette will be built around it.

Think About Varying Heights & Layering

You should use objects of varying heights and different shapes. Common objects that go in vignettes like books, lamps, art, candles, and collectibles should be at different heights, and you want to layer your arrangement & let it spread out. One good way of doing this is to imagine the grouping as a triangle, with objects of lower heights being outwards & the tallest objects being in the middle & backward. However, this isn’t an absolute must, linear vignettes work well too.

Incorporate A Light Source

Having a light source like a lamp, candle or tea-lights will help bring warmth & coziness as well as call attention to the vignette when the ambiance lighting is low. Besides the traditional light sources, feel free to get creative and use a string of lights if you’d like.

Add Flowers or Plants

Plants or flowers are not a necessary element for every tabletop vignette, but you can certainly add some zest with them. Leafy plants in a beautiful planter, flowers in a vase, a small succulent, an air plant, or even a dried arrangement can add life to a vignette.

Add Meaningful Objects To Your Vignette

Sometimes a vignette may just look like a collection of pretty objects that does not evoke an emotion or a feeling. To avoid that, fill your vignettes with things you love & give a thought before doing so. The best vignettes grow with time as you add on little things you find and stumble across. They also avoid being overly matching.

Pay Attention To Spacing

You don’t want a vignette that’s too cluttered and you don’t want a vignette that’s too spread out. Pay attention to the spacing of your items when you arrange your vignette. Items spaced too far apart may not seem a part of a larger whole, whereas when too close together, they could appear too busy.

Vignettes should feel like a natural extension of the existing decor of your space. Keep editing them to keep them fresh or change them completely whenever you feel like it. Have fun exploring your inner designer & enjoy a fresh new look, without making a huge effort or having to buy new furniture or furnishings, every now & then.

If you are looking for tips to style your coffee table, you may read this article: How To Style A Coffee Table Like A Pro. Read this article to see digitally created vignette inspirations and buy the objects that are a part of the vignettes.