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Styling Open Shelves - Retro/Vintage Style
Hey ya'll (I defiantly felt the need to say that now that I officially live in Texas lol)! It has been such a great journey so far & we are just getting started. We are in love with our new apartment & are doing our part to make it feel like home. One of our favorite parts? These built in shelves!!
As we walked into our new apartment we both FREAKED OUT over how adorable these shelves are & started pouring out ideas of what to do with them. We wanted them to look absolutely perfect & I was honestly starting to become obsessed with organizing them over & over again.
It took me an insanely long time to figure out what I was doing & feel like they were exactly where I wanted them so I am writing this article now in hopes to save you some time when you style your own! Here are a few tips I learned to make yours look perfect!
If you can't tell by the photo Bryan & I are lovers of vintage finds - specifically, cameras! We knew immediately we wanted to display our collection & these shelves gave us the perfect opportunity. My first piece of advice for you is this:
Figure out what you want to show off! Find your style!
We love vintage/retro, but you might be more modern/boho - that is totally fine! Find your style & stick to it! Find some type of consistency, ours was cameras. They are all so different, but totally complement one another!
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Remember - there really are no rules! This is your project! We even added some pieces to the side of our shelves to tie in colors & really make it all pop! Which is exactly what I wanted to talk about next -
Pick an Accent Color(s)!
For your shelves to look flawless it is important that you do not have too much going on color wise. Pick a color you want to highlight, or a set of colors. As you can see we stuck to blue highlights through the use of old books. I HIGHLY encourage using books to fill some space. You can stack them up to add hight or lay them next to one another for a pop of color. You can find them super cheap at your local thrift store - WIN!
We found the little touches of blue/green to go great with our cameras & the rest of our place!
I think the thing I love the most about our set up is how much there is to look at!
Have Focal Points!
We had so much fun looking through items we already had, along with picking out new ones that fit our theme! While there may be items that stand out, I love having multiple pieces that make your eye wander. Each piece has so much history & are is unique! Sure, you could have one super amazing piece that you highlight, but why do that when there are so many cool things you could display all at once?!
This leads me to my last point (& my absolute favorite of them all)!
Make it Personal - Tell a Story!
Bryan & I are both very sentimental & like having little Keypsakes - pun intended ;) - to hold onto for memories. Thankfully, he too has an eye for unique pieces & loves showing them off. We both made sure to gather some truly unique pieces that mean a lot to us to add to this unit. It really helps give it a feeling of home - especially being so far from our families.
People always compliment these shelves & they are such a great conversation starter, which is one of the reasons the items you display on them are so incredibly important!
I could tell you where we found every single item on this shelf, but instead I will highlight a few truly special ones! Feel free to read through - or just look at the photos thats cool too!
This book is adorable & yes it has a super cute/inspiring quote on the outside, but it's what is on the inside that is so special! My parents gave me this little notebook when I went to college, and inside is a love note that brought me to tears! It reminds me of my parents constant love & support in all I do & makes me smile <3
Right next to it is our penny jar. Bryan & I were both very close to my grandfather & when he passed away we were told whenever we find a penny it is him saying hello. You bet on every bad/rough/exciting/special day we have we find pennies & keep them in this little glass jar. This jar is only reserved for found pennies & lets us know we are being watched over.
This camera was given to Bryan by his Grandmother & is so special to him. It is a super nice camera & is worth some money, yes, but Bryan has so so many cousins that him getting this gift was extra special. It is a tie to his family & makes him think of them every morning. He has always displayed this camera with pride.
These little portraits are actually stamps used for old newspapers. Photographed are my Great Grandfather & Great Uncle both of which passed away long before I was born. I think it is so cool to have a little bit of the past/my family tree on these shelves. There is so much history & I love that it also incorporates the photography back into it!
In the back of the photo there is also a little metal tin Bryan's mom bought us that was used to store Kodak film. We thought this piece was so cool & love that it added to our overall aesthetic.
These little portraits are actually stamps used for old newspapers. Photographed are my Great Grandfather & Great Uncle both of which passed away long before I was born. I think it is so cool to have a little bit of the past/my family tree on these shelves. There is so much history & I love that it also incorporates the photography back into it!
In the back of the photo there is also a little metal tin Bryan's mom bought us that was used to store Kodak film. We thought this piece was so cool & love that it added to our overall aesthetic.
& of course - last but not least - we had to have a little touch of our love for each other. We are going on this crazy journey together, just the two of us, and we really wanted to highlight that. So, we got these awesome letters just to make us smile & remember that we are in this together!
I would LOVE to see you shelves no matter how big or small & the personal touch you added to them! Tag me on instagram @keypsake_treasures & share a story about your favorite item/find on them!
I hope this post made your life easier & helped make your shelves truly unique & personal!
Until next time,
Hailey
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