Clever styling tricks with an everyday household item

Author: Amanda Pollard

Ceramics add warmth and interest to a room, and there are plenty of clever styling tricks to show off your ceramic pieces to their best advantage. Check out these ideas for creatively working pottery into a scheme.

Create a collection of whites

If you’re thinking your white pottery items aren’t worth showing off, think again. Group them together as they’ve done here to create a beautiful, minimal display. This works best if the backdrop is a different colour. In your own home you could paint the wall the shelf is on, or just the recessed area behind it.

Line up with abundance

A collection of ceramics doesn’t have to be from the same range. It’s more interesting to choose items with similar shapes and colours. Arrange them as a group to create a stunning display.

Add a simple centrepiece

If you’ve got a piece of pottery you love, it makes sense to display it somewhere you can look at it often. The dish and vase on this table look beautiful together and add an attractive feature on the pale wooden surface.

It helps that the patterned dish is offset by a plain vase, so that the two pieces don’t drown each other out.

Layer the tones

Blue and white ceramics look stunning in this bright blue room. If you’ve used a strong colour in your space, embrace it by collecting pieces in the same hue. Similarly, if you love the colour of a ceramic object, use it as a starting point for your interior scheme. Don’t be afraid to make a big statement in your decor – the key to making it work is to do it with confidence.

Use the rule of three
When you’re creating a vignette with your ceramics, it’s a good idea to put them in a group of three. The eye generally finds this configuration more pleasing, particularly if you include a central tall point.

Repeat for full effect

The group of three works here to show off one design. A group of three makes a statement. A separate vase in a different pattern adds a quirky element to the display.

Group similar objects together

Shelving units are home to a wide variety of objects, which can look messy and disjointed. However, you can cleverly group objects by colour and type to give it a more considered look.

Hunt through your ceramics and work out which ones can be grouped together. They don’t need to match exactly – they could have just one thing in common.

Pop up your plates

The best way to display a collection of plates is to hang them on the wall. Don’t worry if they’re not all the same, in fact a surface full of mismatched platters looks more interesting.

Warm up a modern space

Wall-hung plates are the perfect way to add interest to an otherwise plain room. Streamlined kitchen units and white benchtops give a quirky twist to mismatched but colour-themed ceramics.

Add contrasting materials

Show off the texture of a ceramic piece by contrasting it with other objects. Sometimes a white jug can stand out because it has been placed between a shiny copper bowl and a sleek glass jar.

Enhance strong shades

Sometimes less is more when it comes to making a big statement. If you have a feature wall that you’d like to catch the eye, try a jug or vase of a lighter colour. The effect can be simple, yet striking.

Clash colours

Got a collection of brightly coloured dishes? Be bold and display them on a vivid wall. The yellow here is a stunning backdrop for the patterned bowls. The designs of these dishes are similar, but the idea would work equally well with a mix of patterns. For cohesion, try to find a repeating tone that you can pull out and use for the background wall.

Creatives at Home: Clairy Laurence in Her Ceramics Studio