My thoughts on accessories!

I never write much about accessories on this blog. It’s because I’m not a big believer in messy interiors with things all over the place. I  like a home where I can put my drink on the side table or coffee table without shoving perfectly placed items out of place. Call me crazy, perhaps I should talk about table scapes and finishing touches, but I prefer comfort and life to supersede every little detail of perfection. You can always style your space for parties or gatherings. Having said that I also find that a few perfectly placed accessories is like adding makeup to a woman. But I would have to agree with Dorothy Draper on this quote…

Image Tanya Malott- chair in my “Chanel” hallway (KELLY VINTAGE CHAIR from LiveLikeYou)

“IT IS JUST AS DISASTROUS TO HAVE THE WRONG ACCESSORIES IN YOUR ROOM AS IT IS TO WEAR SPORT SHOES WITH AN EVENING DRESS” – Dorothy Draper

I would rather see a place bare, then filled with things that hide and ruin the room, it makes me feel stressed out.  There’s nothing worse than a room so cluttered with the wrong things that you can’t enjoy it.   A home should have personality and quirky touches that is special to you, but little mismatched trinkets everywhere..NO! A room is better with no accessories than the wrong ones.  Here’s my personal list of what I like.

1.  PLANTS

Number one is unequivocally plants!! There nothing that makes a room feel fresher or more alive than a plant. The RIGHT plant that is again…I like many different kinds of plants…but some of my favorites are, large palms, ferns, orchids…I like tall green branches somewhere in a room, it invites the feel of nature inside.

Image of my living room by Tanya Malott

This is a faux palm…I don’t even mind adding the occasional fake plants as long as it looks better then the real kind. I prefer the real kind, but if you travel a lot a great fake is okay again as long as you mix in with some real plants.  (For those who e-mailed me and asked…it’s a citron colored faux silk fabric with black silk trim sewn on in a Greek Key pattern.)

I also love ferns…any kind of fern…

Image my master bedroom by Tanya Malott  (PAGODA HEADBOARD)

I like to use them everywhere. (This is real!) Indoors and outdoors.  Again any kind, hanging, the stand up kind, asparagus fern…can’t get enough of them. I have way more in my house than I maybe should admit.

The third plant I love is an ORCHID. Again..real or fake, I don’t care as long as it’s a good one.

2. FRESH FLOWERS & BRANCHES

During the summer months pick as many flowers as you can from your garden if you have one. And sometimes for no reason at all expect to feel good, go out and buy yourself some flowers.

No accessory is better than a fresh bouquet of whatever flowers you love!!

Interior design M Interiors.

3. PILLOWS LOTS OF PILLOWS

My other favorite accessory are pillows. I use them in abundance. Not only can they make a room and save a room, they are comfortable!! Be creative when adding pillows. Try different combinations until you feel you’ve got the right mix.  And the best part? When you want to redecorate, move them to another room, mix them up and you’ve got a whole new design scheme!! But be careful not to ruin the colorways in the room, pick something that enhances the space.

Here in my kitchen window seat I used two sheepskin pillows mixed with my own designs in several colors and patterns.   I designed some simple graphic pillows that I like to use when I want some definition in a room. In this room I used the VELVET REGENCY PILLOWS

This is the EMERALD VELVET REGENCY PILLOW and ORANGE GREEK KEY PILLOW.

They can make or save a room with their simple graphics.  I like that I can take a bland room, add two of these pillows and that’s all the pattern you need in a room. 

This is YELLOW MUSTARD REGENCY, THE DARK AQUA and THE BLACK REGENCY PILLOW.

Alright you get the point, I like graphic pillows. But I also I love geometric, floral, suzanis…really rarely have I met a fun colorful pillow I didn’t love.

4. ANIMAL ACCESSORIES

I love animals, and I find them extraordinarily beautiful, so no surprise I love all kinds of animal accessories.  I’ve had sets of greyhounds way before Kelly Wearstler made them cool. Indoors and outdoors. Porcelain or cement lions, horses, dogs,,you name it..

Image of my living room by Tanya Malott

This is my living room coffee table. Now this was styled for a shoot so it has stuff on it! I normally only have books and a plant and one animal on it. But if guests come over it’s fun to play around.  I love the white porcelain greyhounds everywhere…

We’re selling a super chic version on the site….

WHITE PORCELAIN GREYHOUND

These dogs I can’t  get enough of. I want to put them in every room. They’re just so elegant and fun.

And FOO DOGS…

TURQUOISE FOO DOGS. Love a colorful pair somewhere, on an entry table, a console behind a couch, a fireplace, on some books…

SITTING FOO DOGS.

6. BOOKS

Who doesn’t have books in their home? And who doesn’t love to read?  I love using books as accessories. Place a few on top of each other on a coffee table, it looks chic and your guests of you can read them too. ( see picture above of my living room table) Or use them effectively and creatively in a book case.

Interior design M Interiors.

7. GARDEN STOOLS

The last favorite accessory that I love is the garden stool. Not just an item sitting around looking pretty, it’s extremely useful. And extra seat when needed, a table for a drink or a small plate.  And it adds a lot of style and interest to a space as well.

I like a solid color for a color jolt…here are some of my favoriteS that I selected for LiveLikeYou.

ROPE STOOL and ORANGE FORTUNE STOOL

Or a pattern….

ICE RAY GARDEN STOOL and ZEBRA CERAMIC STOOL

Okay I think that would sum up my top seven!

If you have a collection of something I think it’s great to display it.  Bottom line we should all live with what we love. But seeing a ton of mismatched framed photographs of people you love, or unedited collections,  it can quickly ruin the space.  I believe in keeping your home simple, fresh. If a room is so weighed down with every single memory on display how will you ever find the space to create new ones?