Designing beautiful industrial-inspired shelving solutions made from reclaimed wood is an art we have perfected through 15 years of experience working with and around heavy-duty and aesthetically fascinating materials.

Because we have been around these materials for so long and understand the importance of their character, we naturally gravitate towards interior design philosophies that celebrate and make the most of these materials.

In particular, it is perhaps not surprising that we champion industrial aesthetics and designs; not only do they fit our range of shelves, cladding and furniture best, but they similarly celebrate designs and materials that are perfect not only in function but in form.

This elegant simplicity works best when following relatively simple rules of design, and it is because of this that the 3-5-7 rule has become particularly fascinating.

It is a rule of beauty through imperfection, a loose stylistic archetype that provides the freedom and flexibility to create design styles that feel authentic and a springboard to your creativity. 

What is it? How can it be applied to industrial design specifically? Where should you apply each rule? And how can our range of industrial chic fixtures and furniture help you implement the 3-5-7 rule?

Also known as the rule of odd numbers, but not to be confused with the “rule of thirds”, the 3-5-7 rule is a loose principle that everything in your room should be collected into groups of three, five, or seven objects.

Why three, five or seven? Simply put, all three are odd numbers, and this forces a designer to create asymmetry, which is more engaging, more dynamic and more organic. 

Whilst symmetry is something we are drawn to in nature, the secret to the universe lies in imperfection.

It attracts the eye for longer because our brains do not find focal points or patterns that we can easily fill through cognitive reasoning. We create visual hierarchies, look up, down and around the arrangement and strive to figure out why these objects belong together.

Even numbers convey structure, but odd numbers convey nature and life. The 3-5-7 rule takes advantage of this principle by creating a type of ordered disorder, with each successive step of complexity accentuating this style.

As it is such a simple rule with so many different permutations, the 3-5-7 rule can be applied practically anywhere; it could be the arrangement of three chairs around a rustic reclaimed coffee table, the grouping of paintings hung on a wall or how furnishings are laid out.

Incidentally, the main picture we use actually takes full advantage of the rule of three in multiple ways; the three rattan chairs, the three books stacked on top of each other and the stack, plant and teacup themselves forming a third group of three.

What makes the 3-5-7 rule so perfect for us is that it is designed around shelves, tabletops and work surfaces. These open shelving spaces are perfectly suited for making the most of asymmetry and adding textures to surfaces that are designed to be full of texture.

With industrial design, which often takes advantage of existing vestigial features, raw materials and a focus on functional design, the 3-5-7 rule is not only accentuated but maximises the look of your room.

The rule of three is such a major component of modern interior design that it is often used by itself, but in the context of the 3-5-7 rule, it is primarily used as the basic building blocks of interior design.

It is the smallest number necessary to create a pattern and establish a visual flow. Because of this, most of your arranging on our wide range of chunky shelving kits will consist of groups of three related but distinct objects.

Incidentally, the main image we use for our shelving kits actually showcases the effect well and why it works; if you look at any of the range, your eye will not only be drawn to the three bottle vases but will draw a triangular shape to create a focal point. 

Alongside shelves, coffee tables, bedside cabinets, mantlepieces and other small spaces perfectly suit three items.

The longer your surface, the more groupings you will use and the more items will feature in these groups.

Five items tend to be the sweet spot, allowing for multiple triangular peaks on longer shelving surfaces.

Having just three items restricts the length of your grouping, but adding a couple of extra items to the group can help.

The rule of seven is often the most difficult to pull off, and is typically best reserved for display units that take up the majority of a back wall.

In a living room, the items grouped around the television can work within a rule of seven, and it can work for particularly long shelves that take up the majority of the back wall.

Whilst it is possible to have a single defining focal point, or conversely have a hypothetical “rule of nine”, in general anything less than three is not really a pattern that will stick with onlookers, whilst any group of more than seven can feel cluttered.

• Lining up objects and items - If they are in an ordered line, they will often lose their depth and minimise how much space they have on the shelf.
• Overly uniform groupings - Whilst the objects you group together should have some type of connection, they should vary in size, shape or colour to add visual interest.
• Leaving too much or too little space - If you have three small objects on a huge shelf, it will create a huge gulf of negative space that detracts from the overall effect.

Ready to try the 3-5-7 rule for yourself using authentic industrial scaffold boards in your space? Explore our collection of reclaimed and new wooden shelves and integrate their character into your home today.