today :: coffee tables

i prefer to start my morning watching the today show,

while sipping coffee and eating pastries

while making little one's breakfast and cleaning the house.

i love staying up to date on current events & politics, but even more than that i love their little tidbits...how to decorate for a 4th of july picnic, hot summer styles, perfect party cocktails,

hollywood gossip (don't judge) and best of all home ideas.

yesterday, they had a little blurb on decorating your home for the summer. interior designer Elaine Griffin (from better homes and gardens) gave budget friendly advice. i recorded it and watched it a few times, then came and found their video of the segment online. {it's under the title small home style tips have big impacts}they really had some great ideas, and all were quite budget friendly.

i'll be highlighting some of her great points here for the next week,

but for today we're talking...

::coffee tables::

Elaine gave us 4 items that are necessities for a coffee table, and then she said to choose 3 of the 4. i love that she left room for the viewer to make the appropriate choices for her home! i am not always about decorating rules, but its nice to get advice about those tough spots in a home.

:1: tray 

go with a neutral or switch out patterned trays with the seasons

completely coastal

this green tray is perfect for summer, and i'm loving that shell

the kids probably found it at the beach 

 kaboodle.com

so sneaky, they checked #1 off the list when they bought that table

the entire table is a tray!

completely coastal

love how they're putting that tray to use...

she's got all "must have"4 items displayed perfectly.

that entire room is refreshing.

:2: books

switch out seasonally, bright colors summer and darker colors in the fall

apartment therapy

these are a great example of a neutral selection

here are some seasonal pics:

:winter:

amazon

:spring:

 

:summer:

:fall:

makes me want to browse barnes and noble to pick some seasonal faves, then head to half price books and find them for a real deal!

:3: objects

these can swap seasonally, too,

but here are some great summer selections.

completely coastal

love the seashells and shabby knobish object

pottery barn

those objects look devine.

they're having a lovely wine tasting, it seems.

 ballard designs 

simple greenery in a modern glass vase,

a great way to bring the summer indoors.

 blissfully domestic

love the lemonade, love the bright summery flowers. 

:4: decorative box

once again, go neutral or swap out a pattern with the seasons

pottery barn

look!

they have two decorative boxes.

they coordinated all 4 items quite nicely.

big surprise. it's pb.

completely coastal

what a coastal chic decorative box they have there.

i love all of those ideas!

{1}i knew there needed to be books, but i love the idea of seasonal picks.

{2}why not set your drink, remote, or books on your darling tray while resting on the couch.

{3}objects are the perfect way to spruce up your coffee table for any season.

{4}as for the decorative box, i can just picture little one dropping it on the floor,

so i'm leaving that one out of my coffee table lineup. but hey, it might just work perfectly for you! so which 3 would you choose?

i'll post my own pics once i make some changes to our coffee table's decor.

updated 6/28: done.
love my new accessories


i found these accessories for great prices, too:

tray for $3 on tjmaxx clearance. go ahead, call me a "maxx-inista."

the books were given to me by mom and dad. {read: free}

lantern on clearance at home goods for $10
baskets underneath for around $12/ea @ target

 so what do you have on your coffee table? or what would you like to have?