Avoid Straight Lines
Similar to the broken planes rule, try to avoid styling your pieces in a straight line, too. This can feel too linear and monotonous which is tedious to the eye. Push some pieces to the back and bring others into focus at the front so you create that depth and contrast. Nothing is flat or one dimensional in life, so why should your mantel be any different?
Play Around With Your Groupings
Even the most decorated and experienced designer or stylist will improvise and play around with their pieces before landing on their final arrangement. Even with careful planning, it’s not until you move, arrange, and rearrange your pieces that you can finally see how they co-exist. Curate different textures, colors, heights, and shapes in various groupings and then solo to see what works and what doesn’t visually. Together, in the overall composition, you’ll see how they come to life.
Add Greenery
As you know, we love a branch at EyeSwoon HQ so go outside, clippers in hand, and cut some greenery to add that living element to your mantel styling. Don’t be precious about symmetry here, either. Cut them all at varying heights and embrace imperfection. It will also help to add that sculptural quality and verticality your arrangement yearns for. Also, remember that branches can look equally as beautiful once the leaves have dried out, too.
Don’t Overfill It
Remember, less is always more. You’ll see on Athena’s mantel that there are only ever four to five pieces curated in various arrangements. The key is to source objects and décor that feel really special on their own or are elevated when paired together. If it’s starting to look too busy, remove a piece and stand back, then remove another and take a photo, see how it makes you feel at every stage of the process. You’ll know instinctually when the arrangement is “right.”