V is for Vignette

we're just going to ignore the dust on top of my armoire, m'kay?

Snippets from around the house today and a dirty little secret.  Vignettes are my visual jam but I am no good at creating my own.  This is due in part to the reality of sharing space with a very inquisitive 4 year old.  She simply cannot resist fiddling with things, especially shiny ones.  And who can blame her?  So when I land on a little display that is visually appealing to me, it is usually dismantled as I am walking away.  Can’t tell you how many times I have found one of my brass animals in P’s laundry bin.  But the other very real part is that I have yet to master the wizardry behind vignettes.  And by wizardry, I mean the nebulous mix of mathematics, scale, and visual instinct.  I use the rule of 3s often as a starting point, but I am never any good at following rules.  So I usually fiddle and piddle until my eye tells me something looks good – which works for me about 75% of the time.  But I’d like to be a yo vinny pro.   Someone who can walk up to a bookshelf and in a handful of minutes, rearrange it into a thing of beauty.  So I am setting out to train my eye and perhaps I will do a regular feature where I dissect a vignette for its successful elements.  For today, I will leave you with this lovely little vinny.

via

What do you think works here?  For me, I like the contrast of textures.  The counterpoint of the wood against the rough architectural finial things.  And that modern piece in that gilt frame?!  Yep.  Oh and hey, rule of 3s in action.  Do you follow a vignette formula or do you arrange by instinct?  Or combination of both?

All photos and layouts by mrs. V unless otherwise noted

kisses,  mrs. V