The way in which something is intentionally positioned within a space for visual interest.

Further Reading

Frida Ramstedt, The Interior Design Handbook Furnish, Decorate, and Style Your Space (Clarkson Potter, 2020).

Emily Henderson, Styled Secrets for Arranging Rooms, from Tabletops to Bookshelves (Potter Style, 2015).

Styling is the use of objects—books, artwork, sculpture, or plants—to achieve compositional balance and add detail to what is otherwise a blank moment in a design. The positioning of furniture, placement of accessories, and the addition of wall and flooring choices all contribute to the successful documentation of a project.

Styling within a space can also have a functional component, and is accomplished through the intentional placement of a mixture of accessories, smaller decorative elements, artwork, and the furniture on which items are displayed.

Accessories used for styling are smaller than furniture and contribute to the visual field of an interior. These functional accessories include vases or planters, a magazine stand, wall clocks, or sentimental items like framed photographs or souvenirs. These elements are deemed worthy of display rather than stored away unseen.

In addition, the introduction of smaller-scale elements within an overall design provides insight into the person, family, or company who use the space daily.