What do you have on top of your chest of drawers?

[Makemineacosmo]

I know this may the dullest question ever asked on MN, but there you go. 😂

I have two side my side chest of drawers in a little bedroom that need 'something'. I have a mirror and trinket pot on one and a lamp on the other. I don't like clutter but it looks like something is missing. They're quite small so don't want too much on there but any suggestions please?

Photo in a nice frame.

A disco ball mushroom, two plants, a singing bowl and a captain America shield (that is in need of repair)

Currently a large tabby cat snoring his head off

Dust, mostly.

Which probably isn’t very aspirational.

Also piles of books I mean to read.

An interesting book. A lamp. My earplugs because my DH snores. In the spare room, 5 nail varnishes, scissors, handcream, tissues, light.

Self-help and philosophy books, some small stuffed animals* that belonged to DM and a hairdryer.

Not real animals, obvs, toys.

One of those wooden mirrors/jewellery boxes that swing. It’s definitely hand made and probably from the 1940s.
My one “good” leather handbag filled with the usual clutter you would find on a chest of drawers, so chargers, spare glasses, pens, perfume (not buying a diary next year) etc etc. I just close the bag and it looks chic on display.

A towering pile of books.

3 pairs sparkly evening sandals, travel vanity case, small jewellery box, hair accessories in ‘toolbox’. Photo of each DC. Occasional clutter.

I have a lot of surface space so it doesn’t look too bad.

Dust, old receipts, perfume bottles, framed photos, books, small china dishes full of safety pins and broken jewellery, meds, a lamp, reading glasses, kitchen sink.

We have three chests of drawers in our bedroom. One has a Hamley's teddy bear 🧸 on it. One has a Lego bonsai tree and a clock and the other has a box of tissues and an electric wax melt thingy.

Family photo, pretty lamp, painting propped against the wall, jewellery box.

Mt wedding bouquet (we used artificial) in a vase. And some framed pictures from our wedding. X

It could feel like it's lacking something because of the relative proportions. Is there are large blank expanse of wall behind them? Are the lamp and mirror similar in height? Maybe they need something tall with them or a picture above them?

"Things" usually look best in odd numbered groupings with variation in height, even better if the heights are approximately in thirds. You don't have to apply that to everything but, for example, if the tallest item (or the thing that draws your eye) is 2 thirds of the height between the top of the drawers and the ceiling (or picture rail if you have one).

Maybe play around with things you already have to see what I mean. Anything will do, it could be a saucepan and a bottle of wine, just to see what works 😂

Currently all the bits of stuff I want to use up, plus a pot of hair ties & a pot of perfume samples.

by the weekend that will have driven me nuts & it'll all go into a bag/box for a while until I decide if it's not in view it won't get used up.

I really should just chuck it all out (after seeing if one of the charities can't use it. Trouble is 98% has been opened.

when that not there, there's just the hair ties, brush, perfume, deodorant.

renovating so no space to just have 'decorative surfaces'

yours sounds like a nice photo or pot plant would complete it. Do you not have an item you'd like on display??

Massive tv!! Have never in all my many years had a tv in the bedroom until recently and I bloody love it! It's ugly as hell but snuggling in bed with a big old tv is the absolute best luxury ever.

Dragons!

A small bookcase. Although that doesn’t sound practical for you.

You can never have too many bookcases though.

Me and DH wedding photo and a tiny wooden chest of drawers. On top of the normal size chest of drawers this is.

Three boxes with lids. One holds hairbrushes and products as the mirror and hairdryer are beside the Chest of Drawers. Another holds make up and night cream and and stuff like that. The last one is the box of doom, everyone needs one in every room. So hairclips, nail scissors, emery boards, tissues, baby wipes, spare earbuds, paracetemol, and loads more bits that I add to a lot, but don't take away from much!

I can close the lids and hide it all, but mostly they are open and overflowing.

Big piles of clothes and a rolled up belt that appeared one day and neither of us knows where it came from.

Our wedding flowers in a nice vase.

Picture frames, a vase, a jewelry box.

Do you mean Chester draws?

Sorry, couldn't resist

Pics of the kids and our wedding photo in nice frames

Perfume

Jewellery box

Boxes of cuff links

Currently there are Christmas presents for my sisters, dd9’s uniform which needs to be ironed, a mirror, some clean washing to be put away, my deodorant and body lotion, some stacking cups (no idea why they’re there) and dh’s electric razor.

Could do with cleaning it really…