eight tips for creating spring vignettes

Easter Bunny and pastel eggs in my spring vignette. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2022.

This spring season, I decided to take a different approach to decorating the two spaces in my dining room, where I generally create vignettes. I stripped everything decorative out of the room so I could start with a blank slate and a clear mind. I wanted my dining room decor to reflect my tastes and personality. I placed every item slowly and thoughtfully. As an artist and designer, I love intricate details, but I also like things minimal and streamlined. The two sides of my brain sometimes conflict! But this time, the compromise was sheer perfection! The balance is perfect and illustrates my style while showcasing things that are important to me. So, I thought I’d share my process and a few tips I learned along the way…

There are a lot of blogs and vlogs out there demonstrating how to make a vignette. The term is so ubiquitous it’s almost a meme. So, what exactly IS a vignette? According to dictionary.com, a vignette is originally a French word meaning little vine. A vignette has come to mean something like a small design or illustration, sometimes a wood carving. In interior decorating, small areas of thoughtfully placed items create a three-dimensional picture, if you will. Vignettes are a great way to show off your personality…and make your space your own. No matter what trend or style you are following, this is a way to create little spaces that reflect who you are and an opportunity to display sentimental things.

View of my dining room cabinet with spring decor on top. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2022.

View of a second vignette area in my dining room with spring decor. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2022.

Color scheme and continuity in decor

When you create your vignettes, think of them as stand-alone pictures and small parts of the rest of the room. While they have their own story, that story should have a sense of continuity with the rest of your space and decor.

In my case, I started off thinking I would be using yellow and white tulips and lilies but then decided against the tulips. Firstly, sometimes faux florals look good…and sometimes they don’t! The yellow tulips did not look realistic enough, so I chose only the white tulips…and the whole design plan changed! I reassessed my color scheme and realized I wanted to simplify my spring decor. My plan to use a white/yellow color scheme morphed into a palette of simple creams, whites, greenery, and gold…all of which perfectly complement my dark cherry-ish colored furniture pieces. This allowed me to create a better flow in my home, keeping the same color scheme and floral designs throughout all my spaces. It’s a personal preference, but I do love my continuity!

Faux white tulips. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2022.

Faux white flowers for my spring decor. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2022.

This spring's faux floral arrangement on my dining room table. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2022.

Knowing your style

When it comes to personal style, I’m a walking contradiction! I love the traditional style for its ornate details and curvilinear design but dislike clutter. So, I always blend the traditional elements with clean-lined decor to give the space room to breathe. I mix and match curvy ornate pieces with furniture with clean, straight lines. Repetitive colors, textures, shapes, and forms create a sense of balance. This seems to satisfy the two halves of my brain! The resulting space feels comfortable and functional. The moral of the story--take some time to get to know your style so that your vignettes reflect a true sense of personality that fits in well with the rest of your home.

View into my living room from the dining room. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2022.

Using mirrors in a room

Let me tell you, my dining room is the darkest, dingiest room in the house! Very little natural light gets into this space, so I rely heavily on artificial light to create a sense of warmth and light, but sometimes even that is not enough. Placing mirrors on opposite sides of the room creates a way to reflect more light while creating the illusion of a bigger space. (I bought the mirrors with the gold and brown frames from Amazon. The mirror with the white frame with the Celtic knotwork border was a DIY project using a thrifted mirror.) So, if you have a small, dark space, use mirrors and other reflective surfaces to create an illusion of a slightly brighter and larger area.

Stacked mirrors help better illuminate this rather dark area of my dining room. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2022.

Another large mirror in my dining room helps reflect light. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2022.

Using faux florals

My dining room receives very little natural light, so having real plants in this space—as I have in my living room—was not happening. So, out came the spring faux florals! This year’s spring theme for my dining room started with white artificial flowers, faux greenery, and decorative glass jars. The glass jars were purchased on Amazon, and the florals and greenery were all purchased at varying times from Michaels or Factory Direct Craft. The white candlesticks (which hold the green moss balls) were bought from Ross or Marshalls last year. This year, I wanted to create a simple tulip arrangement in a glass vase for my dining room. The glass jar (which I have had for years) was filled with small stones and water to give the illusion that the tulips were real. For the rest of the faux florals, I created visual variety with multiple layers of varying shapes, sizes, coloration, and texture, making sure to make a statement but keep things as simple as possible. (Since I have a clutter issue!)

Faux tulip arrangement for my dining room spring decor. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2022.

Faux florals and greenery on the other side of my dining room. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2022.

Variagated leaves create a nice visual contrast. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2022.

Displaying seasonal holiday decor

As I was decorating, I purposefully carved out a dedicated spot for an Easter statement. Now, I’m not one for cliche holiday decor. Outside of Christmas—and maybe Halloween—it’s not my thing. I prefer instead to mainly create a seasonal statement, with hints of “holiday” thrown in. I bought a lovely cream-colored rabbit, pastel-colored green eggs from Ross, and a ceramic leaf dish. A thrifted gold candleholder finished the grouping. And it works amazingly well with the rest of the decor!

My Easter bunny with pastel green eggs and a gold thrifted candleholder. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2022.

Make it meaningful

One of the things I love about vignettes is that it is an opportunity to display meaningful items. For this season, I chose a book, a gold dragonfly (purchased from Ross or Marshalls last year), and a frame that will eventually hold a photo of a family member (I still need to dig through my photos to find the picture I want). The dragonfly represents transition and transformation, which perfectly describes my current journey. The book is by authors Barbara Purchia and Ashley Rooney called Fairy Homes & Gardens. This book inspired me to create new designs for my fairy houses and indoor fairy gardens.  My current fairy houses will be featured in their next book, which will be out in Spring 2024! But I digress...Vignettes are a fun way to display meaningful items, items you find uplifting and positive.

Meaningful objects include book, dragonfly, and picture frame. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2022.

Decorating with thrifted items

A popular trend this year is thrifting. This is nothing new to me--I've been thrifting for several years! This year’s spring vignettes include thrifted gold candlesticks and two thrifted lamps (the gold lamp and the French Country candlestick lamp with gold highlights). In addition, I did a couple of DIY projects using a frame from a thrifted mirror (the white with gold border design) and a grape-themed DIY candle I made several years ago using a thrifted urn and plate. So, yes, I LOVE thrifting and decorating with thrifted decor! Thrifted items have a history and fascinating stories to tell. And previously owned decor has an element of “wabi-sabi”—perfect imperfection--creating a lived-in feel.

A mirror thrifted from Goodwill. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2021.

Gold lamp thrifted from Goodwill. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2021.

French Country candlestick lamp thrifted from Goodwill. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2021.

Gold metal candlesticks thrifted from Goodwill. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2021.

Personalize with DIY decor

A creative way to personalize your vignettes is to incorporate DIY projects. Not everyone is into DIY decor, but if you are one of those who are, try showcasing your handiwork! One of the things I like doing with thrifted decor is giving them my personality with creative DIY projects. The white picture frame with the gold Celtic knotwork border was originally a wood-framed mirror I got from Goodwill. The ordinary-looking wood frame was painted for a distressed look. Next, I hand-painted a hand-drawn Celtic knot pattern around the border. The white and cherry wood cabinet the mirror sits on is also a DIY project, the cabinet being a hand-built piece of furniture I purchased for $40 from someone trying to get rid of it. It now has a new base, top, and legs, all painted and stained to create this gorgeous piece of furniture displayed in my dining room! On the other side of the room sits a candlestick inside a crate I bought at Michaels and stained a cherry color to match my decor. Alongside it sits a DIY candle I made years ago from a metal plate and urn, some faux grapes, and a homemade candle. So, if DIY is your thing, here’s your chance to show off those skills!

Thrifted mirror frame repainted with a gold Celtic knot border. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2021.

DIY grape themed candleholder. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2019.

View of my dining room and DIY cabinet, all decorated for spring. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2022.

So, I hope you liked my little walk through my process of creating spring vignettes this year. Share your thoughts or additional tips for making spring vignettes in the comments below!




Related blogs you may want to read: 
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A fun DIY project with paint and a thrifted mirror part 1
A fun DIY project with paint and a thrifted mirror part 2
How to rewire thrift buy lamps
Design Trends for 2022
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