Styling is often the last layer of decorating your home and it can be one of the most challenging to get right! It has a huge impact on the overall look and feel of your home though, so putting some effort into making those surfaces look good is well worth it.

In this post, I want to share some tips on styling one a piece that almost everyone has in at least one spot in their homes - a console table. To help show you those tips in action, I’ve got three “styling capsules” you can either use as examples when you go to style yours or you can even purchase the whole grouping to put right into your own home without any extra effort!

These hardworking pieces are a great place sharpen your styling skills especially if this idea is new to you. The fact that you really only need to focus on decorating one surface keeps things pretty simple, and you can apply these same principles to sideboards, dresser tops, and other “single surface” pieces.

I styled these consoles as if they were going to be used in an entryway or living room, but you’re definitely not limited to using these ideas in those two spaces.

General tips for styling a console table:

Think about function to start. What do you need this table to do? Do you need light? Do you want it to be functional storage? Is it purely decorative? That will point you to any key objects you need to include like a table lamp or baskets.
Choose your main wall piece. Generally, this means either a wall mirror or art depending on your personal preference. You want your mirror or art to be half to two-thirds the length of your console table.
Create a sense of balance and visual interest with groupings and varying the heights. This one is a little more art than science, but when you place different objects on a console table, you want your eye to land at three-ish different heights. You’ll be able to see what I mean below, but your objects shouldn’t form a horizontal line across the table with everything at the same height - it’ll fall flat visually. Instead, create a “zig zag” across the table that offers some high and low points to focus on!
Include one “wow” item that’s unique and eye-catching. Keep an eye out for examples below, but what I’m getting at here is that you want one special piece to go the extra mile to make it feel uniquely “you.”

Now onto the Capsules!

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The Cozy Minimalist Capsule keeps things pretty simple with a more monochromatic color palette, but it’s not boring at all! Here I chose a classic combo of pairing a round mirror with the console table - it’s one of my favorite looks for sure. On the surface, we’ve got a table lamp to add height and visual weight, as well as functional lighting. That sits next to a trailing potted plant (a silver pothos in this case) to draw your eye down, and then a unique candle holder on top of a stack of books to draw your eye back up. See the progression there?

You want to create balance, but you don’t want it to be perfectly symmetrical. By having one grouping with varied heights on one side and then another grouping on the right that sits in the middle height-wise, each side has similar weight, but it isn’t perfectly matched!

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I had way too much fun with this whimsical capsule! I dubbed it “Beachy Mod” and it definitely pushed me out of my normal comfort zone. The curved shape of the console table lent itself well to something a little different, so I rolled with it!

This time, I went the art route above the console table with an oversized modern abstract beach scene. Given the table’s open base, it was a perfect spot to place a couple of round ottomans - I pulled the blush pinks out of the painting for their color. These do come in a few other fabrics as well, so if you like the shape, definitely check them out even if pink isn’t your thing.

Then on the surface of the table, I again started with a lamp, but looked for something much simpler and lighter this time so that the art could really shine behind it. Then your eye heads down to a wooden bowl with some beads in it for texture and warmth, and back up to a pair of bronze standing loops. That little hit of bronze grounds this setup and adds a little bit of depth as well. Each of these pieces has some sort of nod to a curve as well, which plays well with the shape of the console table!

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Standing loop sculptures

Blush pink ottomans

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The final Console Capsule has a Fresh Traditional Style. I’ll admit that it also has a modern farmhouse look to it, but I didn’t want to throw in too many adjectives to describe it, so Fresh Traditional it is! 😉

This simple wood console brings in a ton of warmth and it has a little more storage capacity than the other pieces with the two drawers and two shelves. Above it, an abstract landscape becomes the focal point and adds some great saturated colors.

On the table itself, you’ll see a pair of white ceramic vases and I gave the taller one some additional height and color with some faux branches. You can’t go wrong with branches or greenery in a vase to add height and texture on a table, trust me! As your eye goes down to catch a glimpse of that cute little donut vase, it’ll shift over to the right side of the table to a couple of picture frames. These are subtle, but the material makes them interesting. I’d put some black and white photos in these like you see here!