How To Use Thrift Store Decor To Create Charming Vintage Vignettes

How To Create Visual Interest and Dimension To A Vignette

When thrifting, I look for trays, risers, old books, and more to use in my vignettes. These inexpensive thrift store finds are the secret weapons that transform a collection of pretty objects into a cohesive, eye-catching story. Imagine a beautiful collection of antique keys, a vintage bowl, and a worn book just sitting on a flat surface. Nice, but perhaps a bit lost. Now, picture them nestled within the confines of a vintage wooden tray. Instantly, that tray acts as a visual boundary, defining the vignette’s “home” and giving it a sense of purpose. Here’s my list of must-haves.

• Trays – From woven to wood to silver or brass, I collect them all.
• Risers – From a simple slice of wood to vintage breadboards to cake stands.
• Table Runners or place mats will define a space for collected objects to rest.
• Stacks of old books. Start collecting similar-colored jacket covers and old coffee table books.
• Collect stacks of bowls and dishes.
• Mirrors – used as trays or as a backdrop on shelves.

Spring Coffee Tables

For spring vignettes, I enjoy using elements of Easter and a garden feel. Here are three of my favorite Spring coffee tables.

The small vintage dough bowl, dried hydrangeas in milk glass, and sweet Easter decor give the screen porch table a fresh springlike feel.

To bring the garden indoors, I used a vintage concrete swan filled with ivy and added a column riser to create the focal point of the vignette. Thrifted candlestick holders, a fun bird, coffee table books, and a hurricane lantern filled with decoupaged Easter eggs complete the vignette.

Another Easter-inspired spring vignette features a pewter bunny, preserved boxwoods, and a cloche that covers a decoupage bunny. A vintage cake stand, a wood slice riser, and books help to balance the display.

Summer Coffee Table Displays

These two vintage coffee table porch displays have a strong summer vibe. One is more neutral with greenery and DIY lanterns as the focal point. A vintage yellow planter adds a dash of sunshine to the large metal lantern that draws the eye inside the vignette.

For a more patriotic summer feel, a vintage scoop basket serves as an anchor piece on the table.. It features a vintage sap bucket filled with red anemones, surrounded by a couple of woodland ducks, for a rustic, country-style look.

Fall Coffee Tables

I love the colors of fall, from the neutral earthy tones, mixed with vintage milk glass and glass cloches on the screen porch table, to the vibrant oranges and rust colors of pumpkins and mums on the front porch coffee table.

Christmas Coffee Table Vignettes

And you know Christmas styling is my favorite. Last year, I created the pinecone tree log as the focal point for a neutral rustic vignette. Mixing rustic trees with antique brass candlesticks and other shiny vintage finds is a perfect example of combining different materials. For a more traditional style, I love using reds and greens for holiday vignettes. The large French bowl is stunning, filled with a green lantern containing old, shiny, bright ornaments, a set of mini vintage red books, and wooden Christmas trees.

Vintage bottle brush trees under a glass cloche and vintage shiny brites fill the bowl for another Christmas vignette.

Winter Coffee Tables

From winter blues to rustic neutrals, the living room coffee table shines even during the blah winter months. This past year, a vintage brass candlestick holder with battery-operated tapers created an airy vignette when combined with paper whites in a glass hurricane container. In contrast, several pillar flicker candles mixed with snowy pinecones are nestled in the large vintage bowl for a cozy winter vignette. Want to learn how to add fake snow to pinecones and other decor? Read – How to Add Fake Snow That Will Not Flake and Will Last for Years.

Entry Table

Another favorite place to create stunning vintage vignettes is the entry table. Regardless of the season, the entry table provides a perfect spot for creative table styling.

The spring table has two focal points. The DIY Earthenware Lamp and the eucalyptus-filled sap bucket. Notice the large wooden tray helps to balance the two ends of the table.

The same is true of the Christmas entry table. See how I utilized the vintage ornament boxes as risers for the trio of metal reindeer on one end, and a large vintage shifter holds mini trees and a snowman to balance the other end of the table.

Notice the varying heights of this entry table vignette. Books help to provide a tiered effect for the variety of objects.

Open Shelf Vignettes

Open shelving provides a wonderful opportunity to create vignettes. Whether you have a single shelf, a bookcase, or an open cabinet, you can pull together stunning vignettes that dazzle the senses.

Below is a bathroom shelf filled with vintage and thrift store finds. Although the living room shelf has been rearranged several times, this remains one of my favorite vignettes.

I adore my open kitchen shelving and sometimes wish I had more. These DIY shelves are chock-full of all my vintage and thrift store kitchenware. From warm copper to natural woods to summer dishes, they all shine brightly on the open shelf vignettes. You can learn more about creating and decorating open shelving at DIY Open Kitchen Shelf Ideas.

Garden Vignettes

I’m a huge fan of concrete garden statuaries and love to incorporate them into my vignettes both indoors and out. The greenhouse and potting bench are favorite areas to use statuaries and other vintage garden implements to create interesting vignettes.

Gathering several flower pots around this sweet angel creates a welcoming vibe at the greenhouse door.

Several old windows, aged clay pots filled with plants, and a scrap wood rustic village create a cheerful potting bench vignette.

In Conclusion

Let’s be honest, sometimes getting a vignette “just right” can feel like a puzzle. However, with the right tools, you’ll be a pro in no time. Here are my top five tips that are sure to lead to success.

1. Scour the thrift store for second-hand objects that will add a curated feel to your vignettes. Small bowls, unique dishes, and decorative objects such as artificial fruit, berries, and nuts make great bowl fillers.
2. Use trays, risers, and old books to adjust the height and add visual interest to mundane items. To add even more sparkle, cover simple items with a glass cloche.
3. Most importantly, move your decor around. If you paid close attention, you may have noticed that many items were reused in the vignettes I shared. You may see a tray on my kitchen island one season and then find it on my porch the next. I have several collections, but use them in new and interesting ways to make them feel fresh and brand new.
4. Look for items that are inexpensive but can be repurposed into decor that works with your style.
5. Invest in a few eye-catching vintage pieces that will immediately draw attention to your vignettes. Some of my best and most expensive purchases have been worth their price tag. They include the French wooden bowl you saw on my coffee table, French cheese boards, dough bowls, and breadboards. The authentic character is impossible to duplicate and will ensure that your vignettes look amazing.