One of something won’t do for me and I admit it’s a bit of problem. The thing is, once a nice bit of design catches my eye, be it a print by a particular artist, a ceramic from a certain period or just an object that makes me smile, I can’t fail to be attracted to more examples of that ‘thing’. Which means I have a number of collections.
I’ve found the best way to manage my little obsessions is to group some of the similarly sized objects together to create little mini still lives. They are a really effective way to make your pieces look more coherent, emphasise the qualities and idiosyncrasies of those objects and get people talking about them. I first did this with thrift shop buys, teaming them with classic pieces I already had that I was displaying in my hallway.
I fell for last year’s neon trend rather hard so I’ve placed my brightly coloured candle sticks on top of the piano in the dining room (well it’s my modern day take on the candelabra). They look great set against my teal-coloured wall (Lido from Mini Moderns if you’re interested). I made sure to buy clashing candles to sit in them for the ultimate vibrant colour pop. These orange ones really pack a punch.
When me and Dr B moved into our Wivenhoe house, my sister Lucy bought us some cute vintage cups and saucers as a house-warming present. A couple of weeks later I was in a local antiques shop and saw a teapot and jug to match – it was destiny, so I needed them to be reunited. Then I spotted another two teapots of a similar ilk and I thought “in for a penny”.
At first Dr B rolled his eyes at my purchase but once artfully arranged on our white shiny sideboard in our dining room, it gave what can be quite a clinical surface a quirky homespun finish that we were both impressed with.
So if you’ve got some pieces that are dotted around the place why not bring them together and see how they look.