The Collected Look-How to Get It-and why it Makes a Home Feel Like You

ByCindy Hattersley Hours Posted on Hours Updated on
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I originally wrote the bones of this post back in 2014, and it has become one of my signature pieces because the collected look is something I genuinely believe in. It isn’t a trend. It’s a philosophy. A home that feels collected has personality, history, and a point of view. It tells you something real about the people who live there. And if you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time, you already know this is how I design my home, my wardrobe and my life!

Gathered from travels, flea markets, antique shops, art galleries, and the occasional lucky inheritance, a collected interior reflects where you’ve been and where you’re going. I love the curated mix of old and new, different furniture styles, periods, finishes, and textures layered together over time. This is one of the most accessible ways to make a room feel genuinely lived in rather than just decorated. Here are my seven tips for achieving the collected look in your own home. Let’s chat about the collected look and how to get it-and why it makes a home feel like you.

Antique Tavern Table with florals & antique accessories

#1 Skip the Matching Sets (This Is Rule Number One)

Anyone can walk into a furniture store and buy a set. Please don’t. Nothing flattens a room faster than perfectly matched pieces, and nothing makes it feel more interesting than breaking that rule intentionally. Mix natural wood finishes with painted. Let your bedside tables be different (different heights, different shapes, different origins). The same goes for your lamps. I’ll admit there are exceptions: in my primary bedroom, a tricky layout forced my hand and I went symmetrical. That was a design problem to solve, not a preference.

great room built in cabinet and vintage objects

In our current great room we have a mix of the old, new, collected and thrifted. The vase on the coffee table is new. The coffee table is modern. The wicker traveler’s trunk was thrifted. The windsor chairs were purchased at auction many years ago. The (newly built by the former owners) built in cabinet houses our gigantic tv ( that I abhor but my husband loves) and a mixture of collected items we have gathered over the years.

#2 Layer Textures and Finishes for Depth and Warmth

Texture is what keeps a neutral room from feeling cold or sterile—and my friend designer Sherry Hart is the undisputed master of this. Sherry tends toward neutral palettes, but she goes big on texture every single time. In her kitchen designs, you’ll often find a mix of black and chrome fixtures alongside woven barstools, natural fiber rugs, and baskets that warm up harder surfaces. There’s almost always something vintage in the mix too, grounding the newer elements.

Look for the contrast between matte and shiny, rough and smooth, natural and industrial. A stone vessel next to a lacquered box. A linen sofa with a velvet pillow. That variation is what the eye loves to travel across.

sherry hart designed kitchen

In this kitchen Sherry has mixed polish chrome, black iron, shiny ceramic tiles with woven barstools. White cabinetry with a dark painted island. The mix creates warmth and interest.

sherry-hart-designed-space

Note the mixture of finishes on the curated gallery wall in this Sherry Hart-designed space. Sherry is a master at creating gallery walls with vintage art. She has an incredible eye. The modern chairs and lamp create interest.If you are in the Atlanta metro area Sherry is your girl. You can also follow Sherry on Instagram here.

#3 Mix Furniture Styles and Eras Without Apology

This is where the magic really happens. In a modern space, let the clean architectural lines do their job, and then drop in an antique piece that feels worn and well-traveled and loved. In a traditional room, a splash of modern art or a contemporary furniture piece breaks the predictability .

Alfredo Paredes Shelter Island Sitting Room

Alfredo Paredes living room
photos via Rizzoli

Alfredo Paredes (former design director at Ralph Lauren)has this incredible knack for creating spaces that feel like they have a thousand stories to tell. He is a master at creating that perfectly imperfect mix of antiques and accessories that tells his story. Alfredo Paredes has a wonderful book here.

#4 Combine the Old and the New-Your Home isn’t a Museum

I’ll be honest: I prefer old to new, almost always. But, we don’t want our houses to look like museums either. There is a fine line between a beautiully collected interior and a room that is frozen in time. It has taken me years to get my “purest” husband to understand this.

family room cindy hattersley design

Our son and daughter-in-law’s family room. They rescued my daughter’s sofas from her former condo and bleached the slip cover. The slim metal table is modern. We found the drop leaf for them at a former haunt. The console table came from our lake house.

Practically speaking, I like a modern coffee table or drinks table. They are more functional. I prefer newer dining chairs because they’re sturdier and usually more comfortable. I appreciate some fresh art and artifacts alongside the antiques. In our great room right now, the coffee table is relatively new (several years old), the chairs were cast-offs from a former decorating job, and the sofa was custom-built. The art on the wall is newer, and most of the accessories in the built-in cupboard have been collected over years. I swap them out seasonally. That kind of living room doesn’t happen all at once—it evolves.

#5 Add Treasures and Artifacts from your Travels

This should be the most fun part. Steve and I can remember almost every single item in our home where we found it, what we were doing, who we were with. There is real pleasure in that. A room full of objects with stories is a room worth sitting in.

Cindy Hattersley Designed Console with Breadboards

I source pieces for my son and daughter-in-law’s home whenever I find something I think they’ll love. (They work constantly, so the arrangement is: if I like it, I call; if they trust me, I buy.) The console in their home is newly made, but every accessory on it was found at a junk shop or antique market. The effect is completely collected. If you have a designer you trust, that’s exactly the kind of partnership to cultivate. Give them your vision and let them run with it.

beth webb collected sitting room

Beth Webb’s interiors have always been a favorite of mine. Beth’s designs are always punctuated by treasures of the owners, arranged artfully by Beth. You can see more of Beth’s wonderful work in her latest book here.

#6  Vary Your Furniture Shapes (It Matters More Than You Think)

This one gets overlooked, but it shouldn’t. A room full of squares and rectangles is visually static. All curves can feel fussy. What you want is a mix, a round side table next to a rectangular sofa, a curved arm chair across from a boxy ottoman.

MARY ANN'S COLLECTED SAN FRANCISCO APARTMENT

My pal Mary Ann of Classic Casual Home does this so well in her San Francisco apartment. Her living room combines a rolled-arm sofa, modern leather chairs, a round side table, and textural ottomans with a view of the Bay as a backdrop. It’s an ideal example of a collected room: different eras, different shapes, different textures—all of it working together because each piece was chosen with intention.

#7  Mix High and Low. Some of the Best Pairings Are the Most Unexpected

Don’t let price tags dictate what belongs in a room together.the collected look how to get it

My friend Annie from Most Lovely Things is a master at this. She has mixed inexpensive industrial IKEA shelves with a vintage coffee table and leather chairs in a way that looks completely intentional, because it is. The disparate elements work because Annie trusted her own eye.

ccindy hattersley family room

In the family room of our former Chualar home, there was a mix of the high and low. Our sofas were custom made, our coffee table mid-priced  (modern that we still own). The chairs (which we still own) were cast-off’s from a design client, the table in the corner thrifted. The lamp base was thrifted, but the rawhide shade at the time a bit of  a splurge but we have owned it for 30 years.

The most important thing to understand about the collected look is that it doesn’t happen all at once, and it shouldn’t. A truly collected home evolves over years and decades, accumulating meaning alongside beauty. It reflects who you are, where you’ve been, and what you genuinely love. That’s so much more interesting than a room that was decorated on a single Saturday at a single store.

You can Shop all of my Collected Home Decor Here

I hope you enjoyed the collected look and how to get it-and why it makes a home feel like you. I’d love to hear about your own collections, where they came from, how you display them, and the stories behind them. Please share in the comments below.

If you would like more collected style inspiration check out my posts:

How to Achieve a Collected Look on Your Porch or Patio

2020 Design Trends Why a Collected Look is Here to Stay

Instagrammers Who Rock the Collected Look in Their Gardens

Ten Instagrammers Who Rock the Collected Look in Color

THE COLLECTED LOOK-LA TUILE A’ LOUP

THE COLLECTED LOOK IN MY GARDEN

THE COLLECTED LOOK IN JONI WEBBS APARTMENT

THE COLLECTED LOOK IN MARY ANN’S SAN FRANCISCO APARTMENT

Thank you so much for reading The Collected Look How to Get It-and why it Makes a Home Feel Like You. Do you favor a collected look in your own home? I would love to hear how about your special treasures, where they came from, and how you display them.

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87 Comments

  1. I enjoyed this blog very much and all of the pictures, old and new. Your blog is new to me as I wasn’t reading any blogs in 2014. Walking through our home I can see our collected taste, old and newer. Everything works and is functional like our modern darker wood dining room table that I’m sitting at a lot of the day, reading my iPad, listening to a book on Audible and coloring or actually eating our meals. It is large, rectangular medium dark stain and made by the Amish. We both love their furniture. They made our twin beds to my drawing and measurements. We bought very traditional bureau, dresser and nightstands from them as well. I lean transitional and Brent is definitely traditional. They marry nicely in our home.

    1. Hi Sydney

      It all works doesn’t it? Steve is very much a purest but has become more flexible over the years.

  2. Thank you Cindy! I love libraries ,museums and antique stores..sidewalk sales and flea markets to help with decorating. My favorite pieces are part of the family almost. My grandmother gave me her set of Furnival Blue. I didn’t think anything of it but took it until much later when I realized what it actually was. I also discovered a big box of Haviland in a junk shop in 1992 but by then knew what I had found. This is an ongoing concept for me. Now there is little I need and have edited a lot lately. There is always something out there, though to think about. In the old days there was a favorite shop in Cayucos another grandmother went to for a replacement teapot or cup. I think you and Scouty were at the pier there in a picture lately? Thank you again, Donnie

    1. Hi Donnie

      Oh my aren’t you lucky! Love furnival blue. Steve’s mother had some as well. We go to Cayucos quite often. I need to explore the antique shops more. Steve is such a purest I can’t get him interested in junk shops!

  4. I so agree on the collected look. When I got married we bought new from furniture store and my mom said you will regret you didn’t take some of these old pieces from here. No, I don’t want that old stuff…..well she was right!! I sold new pieces I had bought and bought old pieces later plus I inherited some pieces. Matchy decor is boring to me now.

    1. Hi Nancy

      I am so happy that many of the younger generation are now interested in mixing the old and new. My kids always have, but they were raised that way. Steve and I started collecting antiques before we were out of college.

  5. Cindy! So many lovely collected rooms and spaces! I barely recognized my room! The stone fireplace is painted black, and the coffee table is now in the attic! But thank you for including me!
    xx

    1. Hi Annie

      That is so funny. I had both Mary Ann’s apartement and your “original” living room in my original post. I left them in but changed out most of the other photos!!

  6. I really enjoyed this post! I love mixing styles of old, new, collectibles….it’s such a special thing to remember exactly where I either bought a great item for my home or who gave it to me. Every time I look at it or touch it, my memories of that time, place or person are brought back to life. All of your pictures are of spaces that are both inviting and so comfortable looking. No sterile, white spaces for me!

    1. Hi Kelli
      It is such a treat when every item holds some special meaning, isn’t it? I love neutral spaces as well as colorful ones!

  7. I have never really thought of my home as having a collected look, but after reading this blog I realize that is indeed what it is and what I have always been drawn to. As I walk through my house, everything in it has a special meaning, memories of where it came from and or people associated with it. I change my treasures on a quarterly basis, including the wall hangings. Each time unpack them, I get a new thrill of seeing them again. I find I enjoy them more when they stand out instead of being lost in too much clutter.

    Many of our things were made by people we knew and loved, who are no longer with us, including some furniture. They hold special meaning. Other things, such as pillows, table runners and quilted wall hangings, I have made myself. When we travel, we try to bring back something we’ll enjoy displaying instead of a souvenir like a t-shirt or mug.

    Each piece of furniture we’ve bought has been chosen because we were drawn to it, not because it matched anything else. Every end table in our living room is unique and different.

    I love when a home reflects the owners’ personality. I think this is what makes a house a home. A home feels much more welcoming when one gets a sense of who lives there – their interests and style. Photos you share of your home always make me feel like I know you personally. This was another great post. I enjoyed it just as much this time as when I first read it in 2014.

    1. Hi Susan

      You said it all so well. We are certainly on the same page. I like to redo this post every couple of years because it is such a big part of my philosophy and theire are always so many newcomers who have never read it.

  8. I love this post. My home is a lovely(I think) mixture of old and new. When you walk through my house, you can see where I came from, where I’ve been, and how I choose to live.

  9. Wonderful, valuable ideas! I just adore the mixture of new, antiques, thrifted items, a morsel of quirk. Doesn’t require a ton of money to make your home lovely and welcoming.

  10. One of the best posts ever! I love collected style and this gave me many ideas about refining my precious items collected all over the world . Thanks so much!

  11. I just read this post. My home is collected items from many places. Most Of my art work in the living room is from Africa. My daughter has been there several times and each time has brought me interesting wall art. I also have hand made wooden and other items from there. My furniture is a mix of new and repurposed pieces. I have some Duncan Phyfe in my LR and some prim in my office. I thought I was the only one who liked and eclectic look.

    1. Hi Linda

      I love African art. That is wonderful that your daughter has brought you something special from each trip. Something tells me you have a wonderful daughter.

  13. Wow—Cindy—you can tell by all the comments that this post was a hit! So full of great design info and gorgeous examples of a collected look. I can’t imagine “decorating” my house any other way! Great post!

  14. Doesn’t it hurt to see the picture of your gorgeous roses that you had in your former yard? Maybe you have plans to plant at the new house. It’s nice to put the term “collected” to my pieces of which I have a lot that I would call hand-me-downs. Many things I have were in my house growing up and have great sentimental value. I have some old blueprints made by my paternal grandfather of cars that he designed dated 1912 and 1915 which I have framed in my living room. There are two big arm chairs from my childhood home that have such good bones, I have recovered them a couple of times and still use. My mom had some beautiful pieces that I have kept and cherish. They are probably worth a lot of money but to me, are priceless. This post was singing my song!

  15. Cindy — What a great post. I love your style and how it reflects you and your husband. Our home has always been somewhat collected, perhaps because we couldn’t always buy new, but now it has evolved into a style all our own with lots of artwork from travels, a lot of antiques we’ve acquired along the way, and a few pieces my dad made. Right now I have a Chippendale settee and a wicker table on a sisal rug in the sunroom and they just seem to work together. I pared my ironstone and transfer ware collections down when we moved last year — keeping the best and getting rid of the rest. If anything I’m enjoying them more.

  16. Another post that you knocked out of the park, Cindy! So many beautiful ideas, thank you for all the inspirations, have a wonderful week.

  17. What a great post! I get my inspiration from you! And May Ann @ classiccasuallhome.com. And Kelley @ thepolishedpebble.com. And Kim @ northerncaliforniastyle.com And Elizabeth @ edbdesigns. All California Women! All with the good taste to come to the most beautiful state in the union. Hail Hail California! 💙💛💙

    1. You inspire us as well Holly! I so enjoy following you on Instagram. You make me smile everyday!

  18. I’m crazy for every image! You’re definitely addressing my aspirational design sense. I’ve wondered how I’d describe the way I like to decorate and now I have the words: a collected look.

  19. Cindy!
    I love this post and a big fan of the layered look and mix of styles. I’m so honored that you included me!! What a lovely surprise! Thank you!

    1. Are you kidding? You are the master at mixing the high and low, knowing when to edit, and the collected look in general.

  20. I agree with you Kelley. The older I get the simpler and cleaner look appeals more to me. You have such an amazing sense of style and you take the most beautiful photographs. I need a lesson!

  21. Interesting how people mix and match not only with clothes but also with their furnishing. I like that style and have brought some interesting old furniture and accessories from my travel around the world which I combined with some modern ones. It makes me happy every time I step into the
    rooms and remember those wonderful moments I purchased it.

    1. You said it well. Why buy something meaningless that you don’t care if you keep or heave. I too would much rather collect and reflect on where I purchased it or who originally owned it.

    2. Are you kidding? You are the master at mixing the high and low, knowing when to edit, and the collected look in general.

    3. Hi Mumbai
      I love the way our collections tell our own stories. I am sure you have many from your travels. I am sure your home is lovely!

  22. Cindy–this was such a fun post to read, but even more so, informative. I’ve scrolled through a few times. Sometimes I feel that the rooms in my home(s) are always in some sort of limbo, like when you find the time to scour your bathrooms but the other rooms are a mess! We all want the whole darn house to be clean at once (hence a great cleaning girl!). I do feel I tend to put together a room over time because I select pieces I love rather than what ‘works’. Opposing textures, materials, and style make a room so interesting and pleases our taste in many varied styles.

    I am certainly going to check out your Pinterest pages.

    Jane x

  23. As an Image Consultant, I focus mostly on the art of my outfits. I haven’t spent time on my home decor for quite a while, other than changing accessories and art spring and fall in simple arrangements, 3’s or 5’s, symmetrical or offset. With this post and your ethnic chic posts, I am being drawn to playing with more complex arrangements of accessories and art. I have so much to play with. I have been on a busman’s holiday having Image Consultant Brenda Kinsel over to create new outfits out of what I already own, so now I can focus on enriching my home design. I love your guest room arrangement. There is color! I love color! You have inspired me. Mille grazie!! I loved meeting you in San Francisco. I hope we meet again.

  24. ditto, ditto, ditto!! Absolutely agree with every word Cindy. Such a lovely post and great seeing your beautiful home again. I was enthralled admiring your collections, the stories…..always love the stories, your relaxed way everything was stylized and, well I could go on forever. you are a very talented designer whom I admire.
    from another bride of 1975!
    xo
    Debra

  25. Hi Cindy! I had to read this post a couple of times to make sure I got all the tips! Thanks so much for including me in this wonderful group of designers. I have been guilty of the “one of everthing” trend and now have a more pared back look that I like so much better. Pairs and groupings of similar items seems to work best for me now. Also more washed out colors and less furniture in a room. Always love stopping by your blog ;))

    xxoo Kel

    1. I agree with you Kelley. The older I get the simpler and cleaner look appeals more to me. You have such an amazing sense of style and you take the most beautiful photographs. I need a lesson!

  26. I agree with you so much about not having it all matching! Mixing wood with painted finishes…and I like how you added a metal based coffee table in your living room. (Your living room is perfection).
    You do a great job of explaining how to achieve this beautiful look.
    Mary Ann

    1. Thanks for the comment on my living room. It still needs a few tweaks! You do the layered look so well Mary Ann. I always learn from you!

  27. Hi Cindy — Always love your posts! Your tips here are great. I too am a fan of the collected — as opposed to cluttered — look. It’s such a fine line between museum and personal, but done right I think our homes evolve. To me a room is never “finished.” (I’m not even sure what that means!)
    Thanks for always challenging my thinking!

    1. I am so glad to hear that Janet. Always pleased to read your comments!

  28. Cindy and Steve,

    Love your room and taste!
    We have always loved that Braothwaite room!
    Do we have any collections in our home? None — and if you believe that!! Ha.

    Love,
    J & B

    1. Hi Judy & Bill
      She really has it doesn’t she? I love her spotted bedroom with the heavy linen drapes too. She is a master at less is more…I am working on that!

  29. My best tip for a layered look: live longer! My decorating has evolved with time. As a bride in 1975, I was influenced by the bicentennial focus on Americana. My beloved MIL died at the horribly young age of 59 and then many of her treasured antiques came to us. She had inherited from her very wealthy uncle who loved European antiques. We have some of those pieces, too. For me it’s not so much about being eclectic, it’s making a space to honor things that family have loved, that have stories to tell. Everyone seem to have loved to collect mirrors…mirrors are us around here. I have always loved fabrics and textiles. I have always loved leopard, red, big jolts of industrial, books, blue and white porcelain, ethnic art, framed floral prints and open kitchens that celebrate tools. When we moved into our house over 30 years ago, I painted every wall white…now I am in the process of painting most walls black. Most of the black walls are either walls of books or walls of art, so the black isn’t depressing. At night it is glorious. I’m afraid my house would be on many people’s hideous “Before” shots. It’s not that I am trapped in time, it’s just that I often prefer some other time that today’s overly the same look often jammed with too many “artifacts” from places like Target, Home Goods that have no meaning except for a brief trendy moment. Sorry about the soap box!!! Apparently, I’m working on my last nerve on this subject! Love your living room and that Steve is loosing up after over 40 years. That’s a good sign! Evolution not revolution usually wears better.

    1. Oh my we have so much in common it is scary! I too was a bride in 1975. My house was all white, then that awful glazed look, now white. I wouldn’t be afraid to do a dark room either! Your comments are always so inspiring. We collect because we love things with history and provenance. Most of my furniture I have had for at least 30 years. Have a great weekend!

    2. Yes it does Shelley. That is why I love the look so much. It says so much about ourselves!

  31. Cindy,
    This is the look I’ve always preferred over all brand new things. Especially accessories, I believe they are the scrapbook of your home. Treasures you’ve collected and obtained over time.
    Great post.
    xo,
    Karen

    1. Your home has always appealed to me Karen. I miss seeing it. We are on the same page! Thanks for stopping by!

  36. Pretty room!

    If you wanted to change the feel, I'd add shine. The beautiful old patinas on the table are all light-absorbing, so go the other way with a smooth glass vase (colored? clear?) or a mirror leaned on the table that overlaps the bottom of the art slightly (maybe make it a contrasting upright rectangle or something, not a shape that echoes the art).

    I thought the idea of contemporary fabric headboards was great.

    karin

    1. Karin your suggestions are wonderful! I love the clear vase idea. What you couldn't see in the photograph is that the two beds have mirrors above them. There is always room for change however. Keep those great suggestions coming!!

  37. I love to walk in any room that has a collected over time look. MIxing a few contemporary pieces in gives an instant update. Some abstract artwork or contemporary fabrics for new pillows would be great for your guest bedroom; although it looks super right now!

    xoxo
    Karena
    The Arts by Karena

  41. Hi Cindy, I agree with your husband, with having only things of old and collected through time, nothing hurried over here.
    Love a room with mixed pieces, never a room with matching pieces. One has to feel the life of a room with the history that it has gathered along the way, keeping it in its era, clean and organized.
    Your guest room is perfect, not sure how you could improve on perfection.
    I just added a little side table to my daughters room after I had posted it, it's a family piece that just had to be, and I adore the sweetness it brought with it to her room. A perfect piece next to her French iron bed.

    Thank you for this beautiful share.

    Xx
    Dore

  42. Hi Cindy, love this topic. I just read another interview with Nate Berkus who is a big believer in decorating with items that have meaning and tell a story. A collected room looks so much more interesting too, although it takes patience. Your guest room is absolutely gorgeous and I don't think it looks like a museum at all but if you did want an easy change you could switch out your pillows for a bold animal print….just a thought. Hope you're having a relaxing weekend. We're finally coming up for air after our last trip to the storage unit. It's definitely time for a garage sale. 🙂
    xo
    Leslie

    1. Oh Leslie you know I love a great animal print! I have been thinking about adding the Peter Dunham gattopardo on the chairs in that room! I love that Nate Berkus book…well I just love him in general…loved the post on your house!

  46. Cindy,
    I love this post! The collections, no matter what they are, seem to bring a home to life. I have to cycle my various collections throughout the year in different spots. It gives me such pleasure to remember where I got this or that. I love your guest room display and don't think it looks too museum like at all.
    Karen

  47. I agree with Loi, I think that room looks great and I love all your treasures. This is a great post and some super ideas here about being more eclectic and not so matched. Some fabulous rooms!

  48. Wow, love your guest room…it could easily stay as is in my book. The only thing I would consider doing is fabric headboards in a modern fabric.

    1. Great suggestion…I have thought about that…I have two large mirrors that cannot be seen in the picture there at present! I have the most talented readers!!

  50. what a great post and such great eye candy! your guest room looks divine…i wouldnt change a thing but i cant wait to see what you have in mind. terrific tease…i'm staying tuned. please post more pics.

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