House by Hoff

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Mixing Throw Pillows

Decorating Ideas

Throw pillows are the best way to add color and texture to a room and here I will show you how to mix and match the pillows.

Throw pillows are the butter to my toast.
They are the cream to my coffee.
They are my FAVORITE way to add bold color, fun, and texture to my home.
Perhaps it’s their relatively low cost.
Perhaps it’s how easy they are to switch out when I’m bored with them.
For whatever reason, I LOVE throw pillows!
Now that I’ve professed my undying love, I want to share with you a few tips for mixing and matching throw pillows. It’s an art that I’m still perfecting.
A little lingo for you to know before I begin:
Solid – A throw pillow that is a solid color and has no pattern
Semi Patterned– A throw pillow with 2 colors and a simple pattern
Highly Patterned– A throw pillow with 3 or more colors and a complex pattern (the pillow(s) that pull it all together). This is also known as the “lead pattern”.
3 tips how to mix throw pillows graphic.
Tip # 1:
Use At Least 3 Colors in Your Throw Pillow Palette
In the example above, I’m sticking with three basic colors: yellow, gray, and turquoise. It is a tried and true palette that I’m currently using all over my house. I recommend using at least three colors because it gives visual balance, it is interesting to look at, and it gives you more options when it comes to looking for fabrics. I would not recommend using more than 5 colors. *Important Note*  The yellows, blues, and grays, do not match exactly from pillow to pillow, but that’s ok! As long as they are close, it is still visually appealing.
Floral, polka dot and zig zag patterned throw pillows.
Tip #2:
Balance Your Solids & Patterns
Keeping a nice balance between solids, semi-patterned, and highly patterned pillows is important. (Well as important as throw pillow issues can be.)  Your pillows will look “too busy” if you try to do too many patterns, but they will look boring if you only choose solids. I’m going with a yellow solid and a gray and white polka dot (semi-pattern). The highly patterned zig zag and floral pillows in the center serve the important purpose of pulling all of the colors together and adding lots of visual interest. *Helpful Tip*  If possible, choose your highly patterned pillow fabrics first. It is easier to choose the busier fabrics that have all of your colors first. It can be very difficult to try and find a highly patterned fabric that pulls together pillows you already have.
A coffee table in front of a couch with the pillows on the couch.
Tip #3:
 Consider Other Colors That Are Already in the Room
Consider your curtain color(s), wall color, and any other pops of color in the room when determining the color palette that you will use for your throw pillows. When I chose my throw pillows, I had to consider my wall color (gray), my curtains (gray and white striped), and my turquoise and yellow pops of color throughout the house. If you have at least one item in the room that matches a throw pillow color, then your pillows should be a nice cohesive fit for the room.
~
Does this subject fascinate you as much as me? If so, here is some light throw pillow reading for you:
* Check out House of Smith’s post on Mixing and Matching Patterns in Your Home.
* Centsational Girl recently did a roundup of her favorite places to find affordable throw pillows.
I hope you found this helpful!
Have a great day!

About April Hoff

Hello, there! Thanks for stopping by! I'm April. I am a mom, wife, blogger, and photographer from Indiana. I love to decorate and redecorate my house by the day and share it all with you!

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Comments

  4. Jessica says

    Totally helpful! And thanks for showing me that you can do it with a colored couch! I am intimidated by mixing throw pillows. I love the look but haven’t made the purchases yet. I think what stumps me is the fact that I have a brown couch and a red couch right next to each other. We bought them for separate rooms but then we moved. And here they are. Together.

    Reply

  5. Kim says

    I saw this over at Give Me the Goods Monday – thanks for sharing! Your pillows are to die for – and I needed all your tips, LOL!

    Reply

  7. creatingabeautifullife.net says

    Thank you for the great advice. We recently replaced our living room furniture and went totally neutral. Now I’m on the hunt for great accessories and pillows. I’m visiting from It’s Overflowing.

    Christy @ Creating a Beautiful Life

    Reply

  9. Krista thehappyhousie says

    Very pretty! I have that same floral but in the slightly brighter color scheme. I LOVE throw pillows, am working on new ones for spring right now. Your tips are right on! Great job, and thanks for sharing.
    Krista @thehappyhousie

    Reply

  13. Tawni Miller says

    Hi April–I’m curious as to where you got your pillows. That is the exact color palate we are looking for!

    Reply

    • April Hoff says

      Hi Tawni! The floral print is a Waverly print from JoAnn. The polka dot and cheveron print pillow covers are from Etsy. If you shoot me an email, I can give you the exact shops. 😉

      Reply

  14. Kirsten Jacobson says

    I would love to know the sizes of your pillows! I am trying to figure out how big to order my pillows. I don’t want them to be too big and over powering, but I don’t want them to look tiny compared to my couch.

    Reply

    • April Hoff says

      I don’t know the sizes of all of the pillows, but I do know that the polka dot pillows are 18″ x 18″, so that at least gives you a point of reference. 😉

      Reply

  16. April McCormick says

    Hi, I’m April too! So, I’m working on throw pillows…I have two matching sofas that sit facing one another…I’m trying not to be too matchy matchy…do you have any suggestions for a two sofa look??
    The same? totally different? same but different (which is what I want but seems too hard!)??

    Reply

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