The One Simple Trick To Effortlessly Styling A Console Table Like A Pro

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Do you ever watch the reveal at the end of a home design show and think, "where's the TV?" We assume the minute the camera crews leave, that lovely artwork is coming down and the TV is going up. A lot of designers don't really like TVs, but like ceiling fans in Florida, they are a necessary evil. Most homes have a TV in their main living space, and every few years, those TVs get larger and larger. Instead of hiding them in a far-off corner, these homes usually make the TV the room's main focal point. As the great Joey Tribbiani once said to someone who didn't own a television, "What's all your furniture pointed at?!"

With all the advances in technology, not a lot has been done to improve the look of a TV. To flawlessly integrate a TV in your living room, you simply have to make the areas surrounding the TV look as well-designed as possible. Many people choose to hang their TVs over (or stand them on) a console table. These tables are long and low, and offer plenty of space for decorative items. To decorate a console table under a television, designers say to stick with landscape-oriented objects that won't block the screen. Now, some people don't mind a few fronds flirting with the bottom of the screen, or the top of a picture frame poking into the TV frame. However, a lot of people want the full cinematic experience and will find these visual obstructions immensely distracting. 

The main rule of any shelf or table styling is to vary the heights of objects. You can still stick to this rule when decorating the area around your mounted television, just do it on a slightly smaller scale. A stack of books is a great way to add height, and you can use as many or as few books as you need to create the perfect height balance. Place larger books at the bottom of the stack and smaller ones at the top, so the closer you get to the TV, the smaller the distraction. Choose photos and artwork in landscape orientation for under the TV, and move to portrait for the sides (but instead of hanging artwork, lean it on the wall). This Handicrafts decorative box is a good low-lying option that comes in 22 different designs, and its 9-inch interior is the perfect size for storing remote controls. Some negative space should be embraced, so if your TV is too low to place anything underneath, let the area breathe and stick to the sides. 

Look at the console table with the TV turned off and see if it looks too cluttered or too empty. Then, take a break and watch a few TV shows! If your eye keeps getting pulled away from the TV to a certain object, move it elsewhere. Ideally, the console area shouldn't be distracting, whether the TV is turned on or off.