Decorating a coffee table the proper way can be tricky – while tremendously effective design-wise, it can cause severe damage to the look of your house if done wrong. Because of that, it’s crucial that you understand what to do, and what to avoid, when decorating a coffee table.

A beautifully decorated coffee table can easily become a real eye-candy of your living room, and the focal point of the room. After all, when you’ll be receiving your guests, it is what they will have in front of their eyes for the majority of the time. That’s why, if you decorate it the proper way, every single one of your guests will be leaving your house with the best of memories about your style and chic.

Modern coffee table with a bowl and two books | Photo by: Phillips Collection

However, if you approach the subject of decorating your coffee table unprepared and clueless, chances are you’ll achieve the exact opposite – and we don’t want to happen. That’s why, without further ado, let’s go over things you should be going for, and things that you should avoid when decorating your coffee table.

Don’t clutter it

Eclectic coffee table made of reclaimed wood. | Photo by: Geremia Design

Pretty self-explanatory, yet still worthy of mentioning, just in case any of you got an idea that more is…more. No, that’s not how the saying goes, and that’s not how you should be doing it.

When decorating the coffee table you need to remember that too many decoration elements create a feeling of chaos and mess, and we surely don’t want your coffee table to feel that way. That’s why, when decorating it, remember that the optimal number of objects is three.

Why is it always three?

I’m quite sure you’ve heard it before, but in case you didn’t let me say it again – in interior design, the most appreciated number is three. Three objects keep it interesting, while less would be empty and without a character. More means chaotic and headache-inducing, in most cases.

If you’re familiar with cooking, then most chefs will tell you the same – three ingredients keep the dish interesting, and more is a bit overwhelming for the taste.

Coffee table with a gigantic white shell and white flowers. | Photo by: Tobi Fairley

So, going with three decoration pieces, you can’t really go wrong – of course, you could theoretically use more or fewer objects, but it’s a bit more tricky and harder to do, as well as requires more knowledge about design. If you’re new to interior design and want to achieve success without risking a failure, then stick with three items on your coffee table.

Underline the character of your house with your coffee table

Okay, so to the actual decoration – it’s always good if the coffee table makes the character of your house explicit and transparent. Not only the character of your house, actually, but also your very own character – along with your hobbies, interests, and lifestyle.

What can we gather from that? Well, you can use items that you value, or at least a sample of them, as the base of your coffee table decoration. It’s very effective, and if you choose the elements of decoration properly, can create a really nice atmosphere in your living room – giving a taste of yourself to the guests. Okay, that was a bit gross, but I was just trying to be poetic here.

For example, people who like to read a lot of books ( or pretend to do so, actually), often like to keep books on the coffee table as an element of decoration. While some people find that appealing, it may also come across as pretentious, so I wouldn’t recommend it – I’m just trying to give you an idea about what do I mean by showing your interests through the decoration on your coffee table.

Glass coffee tables with books in the traditional living room. | Photo by: Cynthia Lynn

It can be anything, really – as long as it’s cohesive with the rest of the design of your living room, that is. The hues of color and the texture should be on the same page with the rest of your interior, not to create a chaotic feeling, however, some diversity is allowed to keep it interesting. Just use common sense here – you’ve got three elements in your coffee table, so some of them can be similar to the walls or furniture, texture, and color-wise, while other can be a bit different.

Flowers – can’t have enough of them

Flowers are the bread and butter of every design and are always welcome – as long as they are fresh and natural, and not artificial.

Keep in mind, however, that these flowers will be right in front of your guests, roughly on the same level as their faces, if they decide to lay back on your sofa or armchair. You don’t want the plants to cover the view range of your guests, thus making the conversation awkward and weird. Keep the flowers subtle, and it’s better if they are short and thin.

Bamboos on the large ebony coffee table. | Photo by: Heydt Designs

Less is more, so use flowers that are subtle and minimal, while being effective and fresh – we’re not at a funeral here, no need for big bouquets.

Tip: plants work especially well when your coffee table is of an unusual shape, in which case it might be hard to decide what structure of decoration would be appropriate. Plants come in plenty of shapes, so you can always find some hanging flowers to make it work.

Geometry – how does it work?

The structure of your decoration is important when you think about it. It creates the depth and character of your coffee table, so don’t use objects of similar structure all the time – three rectangular, for example, items, would be a bit shallow and weird. You have to balance it out.

DIY coffee table made of a rustic block. | Photo by: Scott Gilbride

For example, if you did decide to use books, try to break the monotony at your rectangular coffee table with a circular flower vase or a bowl.

Distribute the items of different structure evenly – two rectangular ones on the sides, and a circular one in the middle, for example.

Height plays an important role

As I’ve already mentioned when talking about flowers, it’s important how high are the decoration elements on the coffee table. We don’t want them to cover the view of your guests, but they also should be diverse and interesting.

Decor elements of varying height and a coffee table. | Photo by: Pottery Barn

Because of that, don’t use decoration elements of the same height – it will be bland and boring this way, and will potentially harm the overall design of your coffee table. Instead, have a bit of fun with it – all three of them could be of a different height, but some other combinations are also welcome. Just use common sense here, I’m sure you can notice the difference between odd and appealing.

While symmetry is appealing for some, which makes putting the highest element in the middle appropriate for them, some of us appreciate the interesting twist and drama of asymmetry – in which case, you can go absolutely crazy with the heights and how you distribute them on the table.

Candles – a timeless addition

For some of you, they may be a bit boring, but I assure you that these days, you can find candles crafted in a way of which you wouldn’t even think to be possible. Whether it’s the classic, old-fashioned candles that you find appealing, or some fancy, modern alternatives, they are a very welcome element of every coffee table.

Aroma candles on an oval, dark chocolate wood coffee table. | Photo by: Twisted Spaces

It’s not only the design of your candles that matters, but also the options which they give you – there is nothing better for enhancing the atmosphere in your house, than a lit candle on a glossy or sheeny coffee table – especially if you turn off the lights in your house.

Considering the previous advice about diversifying the height of your elements of decoration, it might be a good idea to consider candles of different height, if you want to use only them for decorating your table.

If your coffee table is a bit weird – go weird

It’s all fine and dandy when you have a standard coffee table, which is easy to fill with decoration, but what when you’ve got yourself a fancy, custom-made coffee table?

Such a table can be a tricky one to decorate, whether is it because it’s longer or wider than a standard coffee table – in which case, we have to try a different approach.

Some people prepare to go for the weird asymmetry, and surprisingly, this is not totally unjustified – it actually works, in most cases.

If your coffee table is really big, then you can try grouping your decoration in one spot, usually to the far end of the table, in an asymmetrical way on one side of the table. It created an interesting focal point of the table, which is out of reach of your guests, so they will instantly know that’s an element of deliberate design.

Assymetrical Coffee table with the rustic style decoration. | Photo by: Bliss Design Firm

Actually, you can try such a solution on any coffee table, if you’re bold enough to do it – even on rectangular ones, in which case your guests won’t be able to tell whether you just placed the decoration a bit odd, missing the center of your table, or was it intentional.

Not only it adds a dramatic, interesting twist to the decoration of your living room, but it’s also a great way to show off a fancy coffee table, if you happen to have something made from a luxurious material – your guests will pay a lot of attention to the table itself.

Them books again…

I did tell you that placing books on your coffee table is often perceived as pretentious, but there is an exception to this rule – I’m talking about these coffee tables with shelves below the top.

Usually, these are glass-top coffee tables, but not always. In any case, unless you want to leave the lower shelf empty, which is a real waste of space and storage, you could keep your books there.

Wooden coffee table in the all-white family room. | Photo by: Planning Pretty

If that seems appealing to you, then I’d advise you to keep something popular and easy down there, and not some majestic works of long forgotten poets – make it feel as if the magazines or books were left there for your guests, in case they wanted to kill some time while you’re preparing a treat for them in the kitchen.

Alternatively, you can use this space entirely for storage – put some fancy baskets or little chests there, and keep your living room utensils there, such as pens or remote controls for the TV.

Nothing wrong with being old-fashioned about it

Yeah, now you can say I’m old-fashioned and I don’t know anything about modern interior design, but I really think that the classic solutions are the best – the modern idea for decorating a coffee table would be putting your feet on it, I suppose, but I don’t agree.

Fresh apples on the upholstered coffee table. | Photo by: Robert Brown Interiors

That’s why, I think a fruit bowl with fresh fruits can make a glorious addition to any coffee table, regardless of its shape and style. If you want it to be a double duty item, carefully select the kind of fruits you’ll be keeping in it – fruits come in plenty of colors and shapes, so you could keep ones cohesive with the color and design of your living room.

Alternatively, you could keep a cookie jar on the coffee table – either as a real treat to your guests or just as a goof. In both cases, I’m quite sure your guests will appreciate it.

The ultimate advice, which never fails

Okay, as this article is about to end, I’ll reveal the ultimate secret of interior design to you – something you can put on your coffee table which will impress all of your guests while staying true to the soul of your coffee table.

Here it goes – it’s coffee. No, really – plenty of people get so caught up with the details of decorating a coffee table in the most fashionable way, they forget that the true purpose of this table is to serve coffee on it – so make sure you have some awesomely tasty coffee ready to be served for your guests. I’m sure a cup of aromatic coffee will cover all the potential shortcomings in the department of decoration on your coffee table.

That’s it for today – I hope you enjoyed reading my article about decorating a coffee table – whether that’s true or not, please let me know in the comments!