#designalittlemontage

We are SO excited to share with you our new styling series #designalittlemontage

In this series we are going show how you can transform a variety of common areas in your home into conversation starters . You’ll learn tips and tricks on how to effectively master the “shelfie”, create a table-scape, tackle the dreaded fireplace mantle, and much more!

You CAN get a magazine worthy home that will impress impress your friends and family without sacrificing function.

At Nicole Jocelyn we follow three simple design principles.
Classic. Functional. Beautiful

All of our designs start by building a classic foundation that consists of timeless shapes, lines, and pieces that can effortlessly evolve over time to work with a variety of accessories and décor.

Then, we add function to each space by carefully selecting pieces that add storage and usefulness.

Lastly, we incorporate the fun, trendy, colorful accents and décor. These finishing touches are what make your space beautiful. They can all easily and affordably be swapped out to keep your space feeling fresh and new!

First up, the dresser top.

If you’re anything like me, a big, bare surface always seems to become a pile of clothes and clutter. In contrast, a nicely styled dresser looks much better, makes a big impact, and keeps you feeling organized.

In the short video montage below, you’ll see how we worked through the design process from beginning to end.

You want to start by adding height and creating a shape.

We used stacked books, tall wooden vases and candle holders to do this. Books are a great foundation because you can easily vary the height and they provide a flat surface for layering other items on top of them.
Balancing the scale and height of your pieces is much easier to do at the beginning because you won’t have all of the smaller items getting in the way of your focus. It’s ok to move things around, you’ll probably need to take a step back and look things over a few times before it feels right.

The next step is to work in the functional elements.

We added a small storage box for all those little nick nacks you don’t want hanging around in the open (ie. chapstick, note pads, extra jewelry, etc), a clock, and a catch-all tray that’s perfect for loose change, keys, rings, hair ties, etc.

The last piece of the puzzle is to add some personality.

This is where you can fill in the blank spaces with fun accessories! These decorative items can easily and affordably be swapped out whenever you need a change. For this look we kept it fairly simple with just a few candles, faux flowers, and greenery.

Below, you can see how I made a few small swaps by adding a jewelry stand and a small bowl in lieu of having a larger catch-all tray. All I did was move the clock, rearrange a few books,  remove one of the faux greenery, and remove one of the vases.
Notice though, that the overall scale and balance of the pieces remains the same. Have fun moving things around to create the right function for you!

Is there a particular area you’d like to see styled? Sign up below and let us know! We’d love to hear what you’re interested in seeing!

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Thanks for following! Keep an eye out for more of the #designalittlemontage series!

Xo,
Caryn