Hope everyone had a great spring break! I did, and I'm back with a bang!

Styling a room in your home can be daunting, but oh will it make a difference. Styling, the art of arranging accessories in particular, can really pull a room together.

When photos are taken of interiors for design magazines, there's usually a stylist on site to make it all look perfect. You don't think they look like that before the stylist walks in do you? Here are a few simple things that you can easily do yourself at home.


 
This happens to be a photo shoot of an e-design office that I designed and styled for the camera shoot a few weeks ago (featured today in Dwell Magazine online).


 
Keep your surfaces clean but add a few things at each end that you have collected over the years. 


 
It's good to vary the height of your objects. If you need some extra height, stack a few books up (keep the colors of the books interesting) and put one of your objects on top of the stack. HINT: Vary the sizes of your objects as well. Have one large statement item and a few smaller items.


 
Use plants (not too many) that don't need much pampering, like succulents or tillandsias.


 
Use unusual containers for storage. For this office we used a vintage silver champagne bucket to hold papers, a silver goblet for writing utensils, and a carved wood olive bowl for the paperclips.


 

 
Bookshelves are another story. Alternate books standing vertically and also laying down horizontally.


 
Intersperse framed photos, collected objects, and even vases. It's a great place to store vases when they're not in use.
 
Here are the "before" shots of the office. Way before! The family needed space in this tiny room for 2 adults and 2 children to work.


 
 

 
Here is the office after being re-designed and styled.

 

 
If you're short on office space but need something to call a desk, or if your kids need a desk in your home office as well, try doing the same thing we did in this office. Use the closet in your room. Just take the doors off, paint the interior one of your favorite colors, use a piece of clear stained plywood spanning the space as the desk, and another couple half sheets above for some shelves.

 


 
 OK! Time to get to work...Lori