Forget playing it safe, and shake things up in your living room by mixing and matching patterns! Create an inviting and exciting living room using accent pillows, upholstery, area rugs, artwork, and window treatments in different designs. We researched what experts suggested to do with patterns to give your living room a refreshing and cohesive look.
If you think you couldn't mix patterns in the living room, it is perfectly fine to do so. Putting together an eclectic mix of patterns takes some effort to create a polished look. So, you will want to check out our suggested decor ideas.
- Embrace stripes
- Anchor with black
- Show your wild side using animal prints
- Focus on the ceiling
- Display textured upholstery
- Create a foundation color
Transform any boring living room into a sassy, vibrant space to gather, lounge, and muse using patterns. Are you curious about how to make a bold home decor statement? Read on to learn more!
Creating A Chic Living Room Space With Patterns
Designing a living room with uniform furniture may make the space appear grander and more expensive. However, consider embracing a mix of patterns on furniture, accessories, and other decor accents for a sophisticated look. Combine a monochromatic scheme with chevron, stripes, or polka dot patterns in a bold or neutral color.
When mixing patterns, there are a few things to keep in mind to help you achieve your desired look:
- Keep it simple when using patterns. Stick to mixing a minimum of two patterns and add a solid color for contrast.
- Decide the patterns you want to use based on their color to share a relationship and look visually appealing.
- The simpler the graphic for a pattern, the easier it is to mix with another pattern. When in doubt, opt for stripes or something in a monochromatic black and white.
- Adding solid pieces to the furniture's upholstery, an area rug, throw cushions, wall art, etc., will help break up visual monotony and create movement and energy flow.
Play around with different textured upholstery and designs on chairs, sofas, linens, and window coverings. If you were feeling stumped about achieving specific looks with different patterns, check out our list of visual examples.
Embrace Stripes
If you use stripes heavily in your living room, try to stick with one main color in the pattern. Afterward, choose accents like throw pillows, area rugs, wall treatments, and other furnishings to repeat and accent your foundation color. Mix things up with geometric or organic abstract patterns on textiles. Add a few solid color pieces to contrast against the strength of the stripes. When you add stripes to a signature piece of furniture like a couch, it creates an even more polished look that makes everything pop.
Do Stripes And Florals Go Together?
At first glance, it might seem like floral patterns and stripes would compete for your visual attention. But, if you are careful with your color choices and have a set palette, striped and floral patterns work nicely together. You can see that both the striped and floral patterns are within the same color scheme of magenta, purple, and chocolate brown in this elegant living room.
Although the patterns are different because they are using the same colors, they fit seamlessly. Additionally, the vase of cut flowers and the decor pieces on the coffee table help tie-together the patterns and complete the look.
Do Plaids And Stripes Go Together?
It might seem hard to mix plaid and stripes together, but these two patterns can work when the colors and proportions are thought out. You will get the best visual results if you stick to using navy blue, gray, or white and black. Enjoy a traditional, comfortable space when you have a solid navy or black couch, accompanied by accent cushions in a mix of solid neutrals, plaid, and some stripes.
Make sure that you either choose to go more heavily on the stripes or plaids, but not an equal amount of both. Either the stripes or plaid will have to play second fiddle as an accent pattern.
Anchor With Black
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Take a cue from the Rolling Stones and have nearly everything painted black. Doing this makes it easier to mix patterns that would be otherwise more challenging to piece together. Notice how the black couch stands out against the white walls, but it can host a mix of throw pillows in black-and-white chevrons, polka dots, graphic prints, and stripes. Also, the shelf and the wall art above the sofa provide a welcome and clean contrast.
Go Neutral
When in doubt, choose the safe route of a neutral color palette for the living room. You can still enjoy playing around with different textures and colors for the upholstery of sofas, accent chairs, and window coverings for visual interest. Give a living room a luxurious feeling, with velvety beige and tan-colored throw pillows mixed with solid cream pillows in a rougher material. Don't forget to throw in a matching ottoman, a shaggy throw blanket, and a plush rug to tie everything together.
Show your wild side using animal prints
Embrace your inner animal instinct with a big ottoman in a wild zebra pattern. Add a welcome contrast of texture with a black leather couch with a glossy sheen. The accent chair is modern, black, and sleek, but the patterned accent pillow with a vintage-inspired polka dot pattern in yellow and green adds a nice pop of color.
Focus Above, On the Ceiling
Move away from focusing on the floor and furniture and instead take your sights overhead. Enjoy selecting furnishings and accents to contrast with and emphasize a visually stunning ceiling. Whether the ceiling has rustic exposed wooden beams, coffered, or heavily textured with paint, this should be the foundation for mixing patterns that will be a good fit. Throw pillows in pastel aquamarine, wheat, and sand are fairly neutral and add a softer touch to wood.
Display Touchable Textures on Upholstery
A traditional living room is an excellent place to mix a host of patterns. Note how this luxury living room's white sofa has embossed embellishments with similar natural designs as the more colorful area rug. The opposing accent chairs are in a chestnut brown that works with the neutral couch but have their own busy patterns that stand independently.
Build On A Foundation Color
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If you will mix more than two patterns, embrace an eclectic living room with vintage details for drama and a unique look. The mustard color sofas are soft and touchable, but the area rug and throw pillows display strong, graphic, and structured patterns. Most of the patterns stick to a black and white color scheme, whether triangles in the area rug or the polka dot or leaf patterns on the accent cushions. There are also some solid pillows, striped accents, and wall art in magenta for a pop of color and contrast.
What Patterns Go Well Together?
A good rule to follow in design is that stripes go with everything, and you can mix pretty much anything with black-and-white or a simple graphic design. Many living rooms choose a mix of two to three different patterns for the best visual results. If you are feeling stuck, opt for two patterns that work well with one another and add a solid color for contrast.
How Do You Mix Patterns?
Anchor your living room with a solid color or patterned sofa. Next, add a mix of accent pieces from upholstered chairs, wall art, area rugs, and throw cushions using two different patterns that work well together. It never hurts to add a solid color accent to help break up the space yet unite the patterns. Stick with one neutral color that works with any pattern to tie everything together.
In Closing
We hope that you feel confident to explore mixing and matching different patterns in your living room. You can transform your couch, walls, and how large or small your space feels using patterns. Solids and neutral colors are here to help complete your look and unite opposing or slightly similar patterns together for a fun and inviting look.
Before you go, check out the following articles about living room decor:
How To Decorate A Living Room With No Entryway
23 Light Blue Living Room Ideas
15 Gorgeous Living Rooms With Round Rugs That You Need To See