Vignettes, those small, lovely scenes we create surfaces around our homes, are what take our homes from merely well put together to private, artistic, and unique. Also called tablescapes, they are where we get to show off family heirlooms, weird collections and attractive things we have collected. They are more or less what artwork books were created for.

However there are rules. A good vignette has balance and forethought. We must consider colour, height, subject, mood and texture. That is not to say a perfect vignette can’t be created with a mishmash of unrelated items. Those are a few of the best. Nonetheless, it isn’t cluttered. In fact, developing a vignette is a good way to avoid clutter. No one wants to mess up a pretty little scene by simply piling the email in addition to it.

Here are 15 lovely little vignettes to inspire and a couple of tips for creating your own ideal arrangements.

Emily Ruddo

Here are the basics:

• Use books as pedestals.
• Fresh flowers or foliage constantly, always seems good.
• Include at least one glowing, weird or unexpected piece (such as the glowing orange box pictured).
• Set things at various heights (such as books as pedestals).

Lauren Liess Interiors

Houseplants are wonderful at a dozen different ways (keeping the atmosphere being a huge one), but there’s no need to have them in a jungly mess. Use sculptural plants like mosses or succulents to make a leafy vignette. Note the book as base.

Ninainvorm

A high shelf in a kid’s room is the best place to make a vignette outside of all the lovely things that are too delicate or unique for Junior to actually play. This one is all about colour and symmetry. Note that it utilizes the multiheight principle.

Dabito

This spectacle benefits from makeup and juxtaposition. The midcentury media things (cameras and phone) and the dreamy, broad, nature-inspired mood are complementary opposites.

This one is modern with a 1940s vibe. Note the books as base and also the repeated cage design on the enthusiast and at the frames behind it.

P.S.. That succulent is going to die unless someone plants it ASAP.

It’s The Little Things…

Candles are like flowers; they work almost anywhere. A good rule: Odd-numbered groups work better than even-numbered ones.

Munger Interiors

Another example of the basics: Publications as pedestals. 1 bright shade. Multiple heights. Along with a loose theme: classic beach.

Integrated

A vignette can be spare, especially when it involves a bit of artwork or sculpture that needs our attention. This scene is all about this float and the branches. Both other bits are there for balance.

To properly show off a collection, allow it to stand. This white-on-white setup (with 2 spots of yellow) highlights the plates and makes everything appear clean and deliberate.

Cary Bernstein Architect

This modern vignette is well balanced by the horizontal books, the perpendicular vases and the natural form of the bamboo. Note the odd number of vases clustered together.

The coordinated jumble. The mood is very feminine. The colours are pink, yellow and turquoise. The remainder of it is just a lovely assemblage of vaguely related matters. Artsy, vintagey and worldly.

Bell jars and cake racks elevate regular items such as shells and plants into the degree of things worthy of screen. To put it differently, they make things seem fancy.

Cecile Lozano Interiors

Balanced. Minimalist. Playful.

Dreamy Whites

A tray keeps things looking neat and brings together apparently unrelated things, similar to this bowl of cubes and the classic seltzer bottle.

Vintage Renewal

This whole corner acts as a vignette since everything is in relation to everything else. Oh, and as it’s really pretty.

More:
Titillating Tablescapes
Creating a Tablescape

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