5 Tips to Mix Patterns and Textures Like a Designer
by Jolene WismerDesign Consultant,
Custom Blinds & Design
Mixing patterns and textures is a great way to personalize your space and add interest to any room, making your home feel more established and inviting. Use your upholstery, rugs, pillows, draperies, ottomans, wall papers, and accessories to apply different textures and patterns in a space.
1. Follow the basic design rule of thumb for adding pattern: a neutral palette and adding color/pattern as an accent. To achieve an eclectic look for your space, find 3 patterns to use in one room. Consider using the 60/30/10 approach; 60% of your favorite selection, 30% with your second choice, and 10% being an accent (i.e. pillow, side chair). You’re not limited to these guidelines, they’re just good formulas to follow if you need direction.
2. Start with the basics: Use a black and white pattern first. A black and white accent will sharpen up the look of any room, adding that WOW factor your space might be missing. The smaller the pattern scale, the less bold. But it’s OK to go bold! You don’t have to upholster an entire chair with this concept, just try a couple of pillows or a throw for now.
3. Pattern and texture will also compliment a ‘cleaner’ more contemporary space. You can maintain a preferred minimalist look if you add your patterns to different parts of the room, i.e. by limiting the patterns to a small chair or pillow in one corner…an ottoman or bench in another part of the room…or by applying very subtle neutral tone-on-tone patterns for your fabrics and rugs. For a more muted space, try using textures instead of patterns.
4. For an effortlessly stylish look, mix the old with the new. Mix a classic French scenic toile (Google it, it’s a real fabric!), with a bold, contemporary geometric pattern, or a traditional plaid with some fun polka dots! Trust yourself; if you like it, it works! If you’re unsure, you might always feel that way and so, it doesn’t work! If you love a particular fabric or pattern, you will find its compliment…it’s out there, so keep looking!
5. If you’re using different colors, consider sticking with the same saturation for each hue. Just keep those deeper saturated colors consistent from one pattern to the next. If you like a lot of contrast, mix different colors with different saturation levels (i.e. mixing jewel tones with pastels), but repeat some colors from one fabric to the next. If you do a dark green striped pillow, pull that green from those stripes and select a fabric with that same green somewhere in that pattern.
Experiment with trial and error…have fun, and you’ll achieve a look you love!
Contact a Custom Blinds and Design professional for more tips to help you design your dream room!
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