Living Room Decorating- Shelves

I am not an interior decorator. Making things, I love. It comes pretty easily to me. But arranging them? Not so much. I have the hardest time getting things to look the way I like them in a room. I arrange. And re-arrange. Multiple times. Takes me weeks sometimes just to get a shelf finished. Aaarg, it is frustrating!

I am starting to realize something though. I like symmetry. It might be boring, but danggit all, I like it. With five kids, I can't always maintain order throughout the house. But at least I can have order in my bookcases and on my shelves.

I've been attempting to finish the shelf in my living room for eons. I started with my Ribbon Wrapped Barn Star.  I hung it to the side of the shelf, then added everything else to the shelf. After several attempts, I came up with this arrangement:
I was never really in love with it. After a couple of weeks, it really started to bug me. I tried adding and taking away different items, but nothing worked. I finally came to the realization that the star had to go. I just couldn't balance it out. So I took it down and started over.

I came up with the idea for my quote board, and I put it in the middle of the shelf. After lots of tweaking, I came up with this:
I kept the photo, the coffee filter roses, and the greenery. But the blue candles made everything too matchy matchy, so they had to go. I took some white ones and covered them. I am much happier with this arrangement. It is balanced. It is organized. When I get sick of looking at legos on the counter, matchbox cars on the stairs, dishes in the sink, and shoes on the rug, I can go in my living room and look at my orderly and symmetrical shelf. And it makes me smile.

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