With the rise of more personalized interior design, open-concept shelves have become a go-to. America Ferrera is an early adopter of the tasteful, maximalist trend. Photos of the actress’s living room reveal a wall of built-in shelves, artfully lined with framed pictures, shell boxes, books, and vases.
Interior designers are obsessed with America Ferrera’s living room decor. Home expert David Lindley states: ‘Open-concept shelves can add more visual interest to a room by breaking up the large expanses of a wall and allowing curated displays of objects, books, and other bits of decor. The objects inside the shelf are easily accessible, making it easier to change the display or use the objects. These open-concept shelves optimize vertical space, making them a great addition to smaller living rooms where floor space is limited.
Design home expert David Lindley has over 13 years in the property sector. He is a specialist in the marketing and sale of luxury residential property with a keen eye for detail and interior design. With By Design, David has created a network of the UK’s leading, independent estate agents, specialising in curating beautiful premium homes across the nation, helping luxury homes find their perfect buyers.
He continues, ‘The open living room shelves also create an open and airy feel that can make a room seem larger. This style of shelving is easy to personalize by showcasing your interests, style, and personality by what you choose to display.’
Furthermore, according to Ksenya Malina, New York-based interior designer and founder of Time & Place Interiors, built-in shelves are a great way to turn your objects into art when you have limited storage space. She states: ‘If tucking away all your belongings isn’t possible, fear not: you can display belongings in artful tableaux. Books, toys, kitchen utensils, and other mundane household items can be gathered into groups, interspersed with decorative objects, on open shelves, or even stacked neatly on the floor. This is designed for real life.’
Ksenya Malina is the founder of Time & Place Interiors, a New York-based interior design studio focusing on mixing vintage + modern for homeowners seeking to elevate their space.
For those hoping to decorate their shelves, interior designers caution to pay attention to negative space. David says, ‘You don’t want to ruin the elegance of the open shelf by making it crowded and cluttered – you should strive for a calm and balanced appearance. I’d also mix vertically and horizontally stacked books for a bit of visual variety – you can add a similar effect by varying the heights of the books and surrounding decor items. Consider interspersing these stacks with decorative items to break up the uniformity of the books.’
Ksenya Malina adds: ‘ Things tend to look good in pairs or groups. Experiment with ensembles formed with decorative and functional objects, even if they’re unrelated: vases, pitchers, jars, seashells – whatever you have around the house. Put them into clusters that share a color or tone, a shape, or a material.’ She continues, ‘To make the vignette intentional, display objects in a confined space like in a shelf niche or on a tray. A natural boundary is easier on the eye than tchotchkes strewn around the room.’
Shop the edit
This purple amethyst geode has a deep purple color and has formed in the classic cathedral cluster style. Perfect for featuring on a living room shelf.
St. Tropez Soleil Coffee Table Book
This dark orange coffee table book has 260 pages of stories and photos of the legendary French Riviera city. The contemporary style of the book looks fabulous in any room, especially as a bright pop on a shelf.
Nordic Minimalist Glass Vase
Beautiful, textural glass vases offer a touch of sophistication to built-ins. This cut-glass is made from high-quality glass that withstands the test of time: perfect for springs in years to come.
Whether you want to create a mini-museum, figure out how to display your books, or just make your space feel larger and brighter, built-in living room shelves are a great idea.
