Decorating a Sofa Table

*Decorating a sofa table doesn’t have to be complicated. Stacks of books are a simple way to fill in the space and if you find them at a secondhand store you won’t have to bust your budget*

“Mom, where did the horse go?”

My daughter stopped in her tracks as she walked past the family room and I was reminded, once again, how my children are paying attention to WAY more than I give them credit for.

After several years of having this wooden horse in the middle of our sofa table, I had decided that it was time to give this space a new look. I assured my daughter that I was just going to move it to a new spot in the living room.

What I wanted was something with a slightly lower profile…literally. I felt that it would soften things to have a more unobstructed view straight into the family room.

So, I decided that the simplest route to go was to use stacks of books and minimal accessories.

But, there was one problem.

Hardbound books on art/decorating/landscaping/etc. are EXPENSIVE! The cheapest one I found was at Home Goods and it was $40. For one book. I refused to let this be a budget busting project, so I went to my local secondhand bookstore with the goal of finding books that, once the cover jacket was removed, would be in a neutral color.

It took some digging, but I finally found the perfect assortment of books in just the right color palette. One of them, a book about France, was perfect ‘as is’ and didn’t even have a cover to remove.

Simple accessories were added to the top of each stack.

And the addition of a decorative box in the middle completed the look.

Aside from a few large renovation projects that we still need to complete (upstairs bathrooms I’m looking at you!), most of our home has found it’s groove when it comes to furnishings and decor. This is a really wonderful feeling on the one hand because I’m past the point of trying constantly being on the lookout for the right pieces to complete each room.

But, I’m finding that it can be easy to slip into the mode of getting ‘too’ comfortable with things the way they are. I need to remember to regularly look over these spaces with a fresh eye and be open to tweaking them now and then.

Now, I wonder how long the wooden horse will stay in it’s new spot and whether my daughter will notice it!

Thanks for meeting me here today,