Our Hopeful Home: How To Style Floating Shelves With Thrift Store and Estate Sale Finds

Today I'm sharing how I styled my floating farmhouse shelves with thrift store and estate sale finds.

floating farmhouse shelf with faux topiary

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Have you ever been at a loss when it comes to styling shelves? I'm here to tell you there's no need to spend a lot of money or go to a lot of trouble. Just take your time buying what you love at thrift stores and estate sales and eventually it'll all come together.

A few years ago I purchased matching farmhouse shelves at Kirklands, on sale of course. They no longer sell my exact shelves but this one is fairly similar. I also like these farmhouse style edge shelves. (In the event you can't find similar items at your local thrift stores and estate sales, I've provided links to similar items for you.)

The shelves sat in our basement until recently because: 1) we're pretty hesitant to put holes in the walls around here and 2) I couldn't decide where or how to hang them.

Once I decided, they were finally hung on a big bare wall in the living room. My plan was to place a large French country style wall clock between the two. Unfortunately, that hasn't happened yet since the clock stopped working and I'm in the process of fixing it.

two floating shelves in living room with clock face table

But I still went ahead and styled the shelves, using mostly estate sale and thrift store finds. While the empty wall space between them is driving me crazy, I am dedicated to waiting until either the clock gets fixed or I figure out what else to hang there.

For now I have my DIY French farmhouse clock table between them.

How To Style Shelves With Thrift Store Finds

Never underestimate the awesomeness of thrift stores and estate sales. I've been decorating my home with their wares for many years, and still love the thrill of the hunt. Every single time.

floating shelf topiary bead garland vintage books

One thing in particular I've had great luck with finding is faux plants and topiaries, which are quite expensive at full retail prices.

laurel leaf topiary blue white porcelain ball shelf decor

One of my favorites is this laurel leaf topiary that sits in a vintage-inspired stone urn. This was a find from my favorite seasonal pop-up estate sale. It cost $2.00.

vintage white candleholder wood bead garland

One of my favorite candle holders is this vintage pillar candle holder I picked up at Goodwill for $1.99. While I didn't like its dark color, I loved its gorgeous details. So I painted it white and distressed it. It's been a go-to for me for years.

Mark Twain by Tom Sawyer vintage edition book

Vintage hardcover books are another example of great thrift store finds. I can't remember where I found the vintage Tom Sawyer book by Mark Twain, but I do recall that I purchased the two blue books beneath it from Goodwill for $1.29 each. Their title is Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society.

vintage urn blue white ball wood beads white pillar candleholder

While the blue and white porcelain decorative ball is not from a thrift store, I did get it at a thrift store price. I had eyed them at Michael's for some time but didn't want to pay $10.00 each for them. Lucky for me I found two of them on clearance for $3.00 each.

While the faux plant in the paper pot came from Target's Bullseye Playground, the Grecian head planter was another sale item from Michael's at 40% off. It had a smooth white exterior that I upgraded to a faux concrete Grecian head planter.

pastoral painting on shelf with plants and books

I used the same essential elements on this shelf as I did on the first one: faux greens, topiary, vintage books and matching porcelain chinoiserie cachepot and decorative porcelain ball. The only difference is the pastoral painting I got for 75% off at Michael's.

boxwood topiary chinoiserie cachepot floating shelf

While I got this preserved boxwood topiary for a song at Goodwill many years ago, I got the chinoiserie cachepot at a vintage emporium for about $7.00.

vintage books Modern English Usage terra cotta faux plants

Along the same lines is another Goodwill faux plant in a terra cotta pot and more vintage books.

You can collect vintage books for their titles or their jackets or the color of the leather. I collect for all three! Green ones and red ones are particularly nice to display around Christmas.

So while I still have some decorating to do with regard to hanging the large wall clock between the shelves, I'm very happy that the shelves are up and can't wait to decorate them for Christmas!

If you don't find what you're looking for right away, be patient! Good things come to those who wait.

Well, that's it for today, friends.

I hope you've enjoyed reading about

How To Style Floating Shelves

With Thrift Store And Estate Sale Finds

and that I've inspired you in some way.

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