How to Mix Pillows Like a Pro - The Only 3 Tips You Need to Know
Pillows are the perfect home accessory to add personality and style to any sofa, chair, or bed. They are a relatively affordable and low commitment decor element that can go a long way in adding color and pattern and accentuating a room’s design style.
Mixing and pairing pillows for an effortless but pulled together look can be tricky! There are lots of rules and guidelines that are out there, but I’m narrowing it down to the only 3 tips you need to know to get that designer look every time -- complementary but not matchy-matchy pillows.
Design: Eggshell Home / Photography: Sen Creative Co
Tip 1: Pick 1 small pattern, 1 large pattern, and 1 solid. For 2 pillows, pick 2 of the 3.
When working with multiple patterns paying attention to scale is helpful for ensuring the patterns don’t compete. Picking a small scale pattern and a large scale pattern ensures they are different enough to stand on their own. The solid color pillow is an easy way to break up the patterns and give the eye a spot to rest.
Here the yellow pillow (similar) is the small pattern and the black and white pillow is the large pattern. The dark blue pillow (similar) is the solid. Each pillow on its own is very different, but they all work together.
large pattern pillows
Solid pillows
small pattern pillows
Tip 2: Vary the sizes and shapes of the pillows.
Mix large (23"-26"), medium (20"-22"), and small (16"-18") sized pillows. Also, mix square and rectangular or lumbar shaped pillows. You can even throw in a round pillow on occasion. Square decorative pillows typically come in 18”, 20” and 22”. Lumbars or rectangular pillows come in a variety of sizes. Common ones are 12x16, 14x20, 16x24, 12x21, and 14x36. Mixing sizes and shapes of pillows make them more interesting. When you have 3-5 pillows on a sofa or bed, it will feel more collected and artful rather than flat and one note.
Here we have the rectangular sleeping pillows paired with 20" square pillows and a 36" extra long lumbar pillow. Yellow square patterned pillow (similar), extra long dark lumbar pillow (similar), patterned pillow cases (similar). Below: White Fringe Pillow (similar), extra long patterned lumbar pillow (similar).
Design: Eggshell Home / Photography: Mari Ohara
Design: Eggshell Home / Photography: Sen Creative Co
lumbar pillows
Tip 3: Incorporate one unifying factor like color, texture, or style.
To ensure all the pillows complement, have at least one unifying element between the pillows. For example, they can all be within a color palette of shades of gray or a tight palette of two colors like blue and white. Texture can refer to the type of material such as linen, velvet, cotton, and how smooth or rough or nubby it is. Style refers to the aesthetic of the pillow such as modern, traditional, boho, and so on.
Here the colors blue and white unify the pillows. Even though the white pillow has a pattern it reads as a solid.
Design: Eggshell Home / Photography: Lauren Andersen
textured pillows
See if you can spot the 3 tips in these pillow combinations below!
(Designs by Katie Davis Design, Emily Henderson, Jean Stoffer Design, Studio McGee, House of Jade Interiors)
You can certainly nix all these tips, go wild, and do what feels right to you. These tips are just meant to simplify and provide suggestions for how to get a great pillow combo every time. Pillows are the perfect place to experiment and dabble. I think every designer has a hoarding problem when it comes to pillows and I’m no exception! Try it out and let me know if it worked for you!
Another great home accessory? Try candle wall sconces! For fall decorating tips read this post.
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Happy Decorating!
Rosanna
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