As I mentioned in my post, “How to Refresh Your Home for Spring,” I think spring and summer can be the most challenging seasons for which to decorate. Flowers are great, but when it’s March it can be difficult to feel like bringing a bunch of flowers into your house while there is still snow on the ground! This brings home the point of how important it is to have a strong base of staple decor. You may put your go-to’s away for a season or two, but you know they will be there when you need them! If you haven’t yet read my post, “Capsule Decor”, I suggest you read that post too as these two subjects go hand-in-hand!
Identify Your Style
First, you need to identify your personal decor style. What do you want your home to look and feel like? What do you already use and love using in your decor? These are the items that will be with you for the long haul. For example, I have a small dough bowl that my uncle made when he was young; it was my grandparents’ and was eventually passed down to me. I love it! Lately I have been really enjoying it on my entry table, but I could also use it on my kitchen counter or dining room table! I love this little bowl and I know I will use it regardless of what home I’m living in.
Your staple decor is not trendy. It will go where you go—in whatever home you live in! Your staple decor are the best friends out of your decor pieces—the ones that will be with you for the long haul! So you may be asking . . .
What Items Make Good Decor Staples?
Timeless Pieces
I think of staple pieces as the most timeless pieces you own. You don’t have these because they are trendy or because they are a specific style that you are trying to infuse into your home. Instead, these are pieces you love—that you will make sure if you move they will come too! It may be an antique mirror, a family heirloom, or a favorite piece of art. Regardless of what it is, it will be something you love!
Things Every Home Needs:
I want to be careful in saying what “every home needs,” because every home is different and styles differ from person-to-person, but on the whole these are the items that will help you add flair to your home. These items will help a collection of things to look styled rather than just bunched together and they may be items that you want just for practicality!
· Books: use as risers, as filler in vignettes, and on your coffee table.
· Plants: every house needs a little plant or two. Go faux if you really can’t keep plants alive.
· Trays: a good tray works magic! I’m always on the lookout for a good tray because it seems every time I turn around I’m wishing I had *just* one more.
· Candles: again, fill out vignettes, place on a book, or add a little glow to your kitchen.
· Candle sticks and pillars: these help add finishing touches to your home.
· A good piece of art or family picture: this is probably the easiest way to express your style in one fell swoop. Nothing says you like one statement piece of your choosing. While family pictures are a great way to add personality to a room, if not done well, it can feel a bit dated. If you want to go bold with a statement piece that isn’t a family picture, go for a painting, botanical prints, an old map, or a vintage poster.
· Pinecones, moss balls, or twine balls: these will help fill out a vignette or table center piece.
· A few different size cutting boards or charcuterie trays: use them behind your faucet as they are easier to wash than your backsplash. You can set your kitchen soaps on a small cutting board to make them look more like an intentional gathering. And, have a cutting board or two handy so when you get the whim to cut carrot sticks, you can act before the moment passes!
Where to Use Staple Items
Ok, you have the staple items but now what? Why do you have all these things??? You have them so you can use them of course! A tray, a few books, and a candle, picture frame, or plant make a lovely vignette for your end table. A tray can add some class to that mess of bottles on your bathroom counter. Having a variety of staple items in your home helps to give your decorating flexibility and not get stale. You can switch things up when you start to get bored, or you can keep things the same all year if you would rather not be bothered. Which leads to the next thing to consider when purchasing staple items . . .
A Few Rules for Staple Decor
Buy neutrals or only the colors that you absolutely, positively, know that you will love forever! Buying neutrals, or colors that you love and use all over your home allows you to be able to move items from room-to-room, and will still work as your style evolves. Check out my post, “How to Create a Cohesive Color Palette” here. If you are debating between a really modern, trendy piece and one that is clean-lined and classic, I would go with the classic one and save the trends for a piece you know you will tire of before too long.
Refreshing Staple Pieces
You may have pieces that you bought and loved but now the color or the finish isn’t to your taste—or perhaps you are just bored with it—don’t forget what simple things like a coat of paint, switching out hardware or knobs, or reupholstering or recovering can do!
I hope this helps you to think through your decor and overcome any decorating obstacles you may have been having. Remember, a good base is the foundation of great style. Happy decorating!