How do you add visual interest to a living room easily and affordably? Well-styled shelves are the answer. Inspiration can be found in Justin and Hailey Bieber’s striking minimalist living room.
The couple’s living room shelving features built-ins on either side of their fireplace. They are styled with a collection of books, large and small, vases, and glass sculptures. Open space is just as important as the objects themselves. It creates an elevated, minimalist yet personalized feel.
Luckily, recreating the Biebers’ shelf styling is exceedingly simple with the right guidance. Acclaimed interior designer Laura Hammett explains: ‘My approach to crafting visually interesting, well-balanced shelf displays is to treat them like a gallery space, where a skilful use of negative space is just as important as what you’re putting on display. The trick to perfectly harmonious bookshelves is not to overcrowd them.’
Shop the Look
Match Justin and Hailey’s excellent taste in coffee table books with this classic artistic tome. The neutral spine will go well in any built-in book stack.
Justin and Hailey keep one of these infinity knot sculptures on top of their books, so we recommend you do too. This version from Amazon comes at an incredibly reasonable price.
Transform your living room shelves with a true statement piece. This gold-plated porcelain vase embraces ultimate luxury and style.
To get started building your bookshelf wealth look inspired by Justin and Hailey’s, start at the top.
‘Look at the shelving area you’re working with like a pyramid, with one large statement piece in the top-centre position to draw the eye up, before moving down to create width with smaller items like photo frames and candles at eye level,’ advises Laura on decorating shelves.
‘At the lower levels, spread across the whole width of the bottom shelves with bold, anchoring items like books, storage boxes or sculptural pieces,’ she continues. ‘This pyramid method creates visual harmony and prevents the display from feeling top-heavy or cluttered.’
As seen in the differing designs on either side of Justin and Hailey Bieber’s fireplace, contrast is your best friend when creating a styled shelf. This is great for keeping your shelves from looking cluttered.
‘A composition doesn’t need to be symmetrical or the mirror image on both sides,’ suggests Laura. ‘Creating similar proportions and height levels on both sides achieves a balanced, but not ‘over-styled’ look.’
To make your living room shelves look more expensive, a classic merchandizing trick works well to keep it polished.
Laura states: ‘Styling in pairs is a great way to help build up the display, I love pairing glass vases and photo frames in two sizes side by side. Glass is a wonderful reflector of light and captures a sense of fluidity. Photo frames also work well in pairs, giving a layered look and a sense of depth when staggered. Photographs naturally bring a personal touch to your styling and make the display uniquely yours.’
Finally, don’t be afraid to mix it up.
Laura explains: ‘Variety is key when it comes to shelf styling. Mix different materials and textures to add depth and interest to your display. Sculptural items like bookends work well as ornamental pieces atop a stack of books or when used practically to envelope a row of vertically stacked books. Combine contrasting forms and shapes, such as organic-shaped glass vases alongside a bronze-trimmed media box for a striking contrast.’
Styling shelves is a difficult task, but looking at inspiring images like Justin and Hailey Bieber’s living room demystifies it.
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