Storage furniture doubles as decor when it has a strong shape, an interesting surface and proportions that suit the room, and when it stores enough to be genuinely useful. Look for pieces with character in their material or detail, such as fluted doors, rich wood grain, glass fronts, curved edges or woven panels. Then give them a role in the room: a sideboard that anchors a wall, a display cabinet that frames your collection, a blanket box that sits at the end of a bed. When a piece earns its place both ways, a room needs less furniture overall.<\/p>\n
In most UK homes, space is too valuable for furniture that only does one job. Our modern storage furniture UK sale<\/a> collection includes many pieces designed with this in mind. The guide below explains how to judge them and where each works best.<\/p>\n Not every attractive cabinet adds to a room. The pieces that work as decor share a few qualities.<\/p>\n A clear shape.<\/strong> Strong silhouettes are memorable. A sideboard on slim tapered legs, a cabinet with rounded corners or a chest with a gently curved front all read as designed rather than functional.<\/p>\n Surface interest.<\/strong> Fluted or reeded panels, rattan inserts, visible wood grain, marble tops or tinted glass give the eye something to rest on. These details catch light and add texture.<\/p>\n Considered proportions.<\/strong> A piece that suits the scale of the room looks deliberate. A low, long sideboard on a wide wall, or a tall narrow cabinet in an alcove, sits naturally.<\/p>\n Quality of finish.<\/strong> Neat edges, well fitted doors and solid handles make a piece look and feel substantial. Decorative storage is looked at closely, so finish matters.<\/p>\n Longevity.<\/strong> Designs grounded in classic forms, such as mid century or Art Deco shapes, tend to stay appealing for longer than heavily trend led pieces.<\/p>\n Before choosing a single piece, look at the room. Decorative storage works best when it has a clear job in the layout. A sideboard can define the dining end of an open plan room. A display cabinet can balance a fireplace or a window on the opposite wall. A bench with storage beneath can mark an entrance.<\/p>\n It also helps to think about how the piece relates to your other furniture. Our modern living room furniture UK<\/a> collection shows how storage pieces can share materials and lines with sofas, coffee tables and TV units without being an exact match. Repeating one material, such as walnut or black metal, across two or three pieces gives a room coherence.<\/p>\n A sideboard is perhaps the most versatile decorative storage piece. Its long top surface is a natural stage for lamps, artwork, vases and books, while the cupboards and drawers hide everything from crockery to chargers. In a living room, it can sit beneath a mirror or artwork. In a dining room, it holds tableware. In a hallway, a slim design becomes a console with storage.<\/p>\n Look for sideboards with interesting door fronts, such as fluted wood, cane panels or a two tone finish. Legs that lift the body off the floor make the piece look lighter.<\/p>\n Glass fronted cabinets turn your belongings into decor. Glassware, ceramics, books and collections are protected from dust but remain on view. Internal lighting adds atmosphere in the evening. Our range of modern display cabinets UK<\/a> includes tall and low designs in wood, metal and high gloss finishes.<\/p>\n Keep the contents edited. A display cabinet looks best when it is not overfilled and when objects are grouped by colour or material.<\/p>\n A blanket box at the end of a bed, or a storage bench in a hallway, does three things at once: it stores bedding, shoes or seasonal items, it gives you somewhere to sit, and it adds a strong shape to the room. Upholstered tops in velvet or linen bring softness, while wood and rattan bring texture. Our blanket boxes UK sale<\/a> range includes designs that suit both bedrooms and living rooms.<\/p>\n A storage ottoman works as a footstool, an extra seat and a coffee table with a tray on top. It hides throws, games and magazines. A round or curved ottoman softens a room full of straight lines.<\/p>\n Open shelving becomes decor through what you place on it. A well styled bookcase, with books mixed with ceramics, plants and framed pictures, can be a room’s focal point. Choose a design with a distinctive frame, such as a curved top, a ladder shape or a mix of metal and wood.<\/p>\n In bedrooms and hallways, a chest of drawers with interesting handles, a fluted front or a painted finish can serve as both storage and display surface. Top it with a lamp and a mirror for a balanced arrangement.<\/p>\n Living rooms.<\/strong> A sideboard or low display cabinet usually does the most work here. It can hold media equipment, games and throws while offering a surface for lamps and objects. In a room with alcoves, a pair of glass fronted cabinets can frame a chimney breast attractively.<\/p>\n Dining rooms.<\/strong> A sideboard or a tall display cabinet suits a dining room, holding crockery, glassware and table linen. Glass doors let you show off serving pieces you use only occasionally.<\/p>\n Bedrooms.<\/strong> A blanket box at the foot of the bed and a chest of drawers with a distinctive front give storage and character without adding visual weight.<\/p>\n Hallways.<\/strong> A slim sideboard, a storage bench or a narrow chest provides a landing place for keys and post and hides shoes and bags. Because hallways are seen first, a decorative piece here sets the tone for the whole house.<\/p>\n Home offices.<\/strong> A handsome cabinet or bookcase can make a workspace feel more like part of the home and less like an office. Choose closed storage for paperwork and open shelves for books and a few personal objects.<\/p>\n Choosing a piece purely for looks without checking its capacity often leads to clutter elsewhere. Equally, choosing on capacity alone can leave a room full of plain boxes. Aim for the overlap. Avoid placing a decorative piece where it will be hidden by a door or a sofa, and resist the urge to fill every surface. A beautiful sideboard with nothing but a lamp and a single vase can say more than one covered in objects.<\/p>\n Most rooms benefit from a mix. Closed storage keeps everyday clutter out of sight, which lets the decorative qualities of the furniture show. Open or glass fronted storage gives you space to display the things you enjoy.<\/p>\n As a guide, aim for more closed storage than open in busy rooms such as family living rooms and kitchens. In quieter rooms, such as a study or a formal sitting room, open and glass fronted pieces can take a larger share.<\/p>\n Within a single piece, you can achieve the same balance. A sideboard with a glass section and solid doors, or a bookcase with cupboards at the base, combines display and concealment neatly.<\/p>\n A decorative piece still needs thoughtful styling. A few principles help.<\/p>\n Vary heights.<\/strong> On a sideboard top, combine one tall element such as a lamp or artwork, a medium element such as a vase, and a low element such as a stack of books or a bowl.<\/p>\n Leave negative space.<\/strong> Empty space around objects lets the furniture itself be seen.<\/p>\n Repeat colours.<\/strong> Choose two or three accent colours and repeat them across the piece and the room.<\/p>\n Use light.<\/strong> A table lamp on a sideboard or a light inside a display cabinet makes the piece glow in the evening.<\/p>\n Edit seasonally.<\/strong> Changing a few objects with the seasons keeps the display fresh without new furniture.<\/p>\n If you are displaying collectables, ceramics or textiles, consider light exposure. Placing a display cabinet away from direct sun helps preserve colours. Our article on whether display cabinets protect collectables from fading in UK homes<\/a> looks at this in more detail.<\/p>\n In bedrooms, decorative storage often works alongside other pieces. Our guide to styling bedroom furniture with sideboards in UK homes<\/a> has ideas for bringing a sideboard into a bedroom as both storage and display.<\/p>\n Decorative storage is an investment in how a room feels, so it is worth choosing pieces that will stay appealing. Favour classic shapes over passing trends, choose materials that age well, such as solid wood, veneer and natural fibres, and check the quality of doors, drawers and handles. A piece that is well made and well proportioned will adapt to new schemes for years. You can explore our full range of storage and decorative furniture at Furniture in Fashion<\/a>.<\/p>\n A sideboard is usually the most versatile. It works in living rooms, dining rooms, hallways and bedrooms, provides plenty of hidden storage and gives you a surface for display.<\/p>\n Edit the contents, group objects by colour or material, leave space between items and avoid filling every shelf.<\/p>\n Yes. A distinctive sideboard, display cabinet or bookcase can be a focal point, particularly when it is well lit and styled with restraint.<\/p>\n Not necessarily. Pieces that share one element, such as a wood tone or metal finish, look coordinated without feeling like a set.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In most UK homes there is not enough room for furniture that only does one job. The pieces that earn their place are the ones that store well and look good, so they contribute to the character of a room as much as to its…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":83263,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3334],"tags":[8721,217,898,262],"class_list":["post-83262","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-how-to-guide-for-your-home","tag-decorative-storage","tag-display-cabinets","tag-interior-styling","tag-storage-furniture"],"acf":[],"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.furnitureinfashion.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83262","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.furnitureinfashion.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.furnitureinfashion.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.furnitureinfashion.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.furnitureinfashion.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=83262"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.furnitureinfashion.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83262\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":83341,"href":"https:\/\/www.furnitureinfashion.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83262\/revisions\/83341"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.furnitureinfashion.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/83263"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.furnitureinfashion.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=83262"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.furnitureinfashion.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=83262"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.furnitureinfashion.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=83262"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}What makes storage decorative<\/h3>\n
Thinking about the room as a whole<\/h3>\n
The most useful decorative storage pieces<\/h3>\n
Sideboards<\/h3>\n
Display cabinets<\/h3>\n
Blanket boxes and storage benches<\/h3>\n
Ottomans<\/h3>\n
Bookcases and open shelving<\/h3>\n
Chests of drawers<\/h3>\n
Matching pieces to rooms<\/h3>\n
Common mistakes to avoid<\/h3>\n
Balancing open and closed storage<\/h3>\n
Styling decorative storage<\/h3>\n
Protecting what you display<\/h3>\n
Choosing pieces that will last<\/h3>\n
Frequently asked questions<\/h3>\n
What is the most versatile decorative storage piece?<\/h3>\n
How do I stop a display cabinet looking cluttered?<\/h3>\n
Can storage furniture be the focal point of a room?<\/h3>\n
Should all my storage furniture match?<\/h3>\n