How to Mix Patterns

Hello & happy Monday! Welcome to Week 2 of our September “Back to Basics“! Today I am going to break down my formula for How to Mix Patterns in order to achieve the ultimate “pattern play” with you all. It doesn’t have to be hard – Really!I mean…

Does this go with this?

Can I put these together?!

How can I tell if this actually works??!

I’m going to simplify things for you with just a few quick tips!

HOW TO MIX PATTERNS

I may not venture too far into the color spectrum when it comes to decorating, but I do love to mix and match patterns. I tend to gravitate more towards a neutral color palette – varying shades of black, white, gray, tan – you know, neutrals. I

am totally gaga over gray right now, but black and white will always have my heart. In order to keep things interesting with such basic colors, I’ve had to get bold with the prints & patterns I use throughout our home.

Bold geometrics, subtle floral prints and classic animal print or polka dots are some of my favorites.

If you know me well, then you know pillows are like the window to my soul – I love them so! They are also one of the best styling accessories to introduce pattern into your own space. Once you’ve experimented mixing patterns with a few throw pillows, it’ll be easier to start working pattern into other areas – rugs, furniture, art or even wallpaper.

These tend to be pricier purchases, so starting with pillows is the way to go! Once you’ve become comfortable with what types of prints you like together, get creative, go bold and then move on to bigger, more expensive things!

I’m going to break down the process behind choosing these 3 patterns to work together with 4 simple tips for mixing prints!

This is one of my favorite shots of how I used pattern on our guestroom bed. The back print is the headboard, but we can just pretend it is another pillow! This image is a popular one, so I thought it would work well here today as an example. Why reinvent the wheel, right?!

Here we go!

Tip 1 | Match colors, not prints.

I started with the floral print and built from there. It was the fabric I reupholstered my cane chair with and wanted a splash of it on the bed, too.

Here is the formula I used: 1 multi-color + 2 accent colors from the multi-color

The floral print acts as the “multi-color” and then I selected my accent color 1 as golden yellow and accent color 2 as black.

Next, I’ll tell you how I came up with the pattern choices.

Tip 2 | Vary the size & scale 

Sticking with the guest bed example… The floral print is a medium print, so I knew I needed to add in a large print (yellow hexagon) and a small print (black & ivory Dalmatian) in order to create some variation.

Tip 3 | Similar & Opposite Prints

2 similar prints + 1 opposite

Use two prints from the same pattern family and then one that is from another. For example, 2 geometric prints (hexagon & circular) and 1 opposite (floral), make up a nice combination. The hexagon and animal print have a very symmetric, predictable pattern, where as the floral pattern is free-flowing and multi-dimensional.

Tip 4 | Be brave & go bold (aka don’t follow too many rules!)

People typically notice and compliment more often when I mix & match to the extreme versus play it safe. If I’m drawn to a print, I will pair it with another print I am drawn to, while still trying to apply any one of my trusty tips.

Again, if you are playing around with pillows, you hopefully don’t have too much invested in the game, so just go for it! If you try something out and don’t like it, return the pillows or stash them away until you find a new home for it 😉 I’m become a professional at pillow hoarding collecting.

My…ahem…collection is quite extensive, but I like to switch them around and even try mixing different patterns and colors as the seasons change or as a holiday approaches.

For fun, here is another example!:
Again, the multi color has both blue & black, so I chose those colors. Then I decided to go with a large, classic stripe in the blue and then use a small polka dot print as the small. As before, there are 2 geometric prints and one floral.

Easy enough, right?!

There are literally a gazillion different pattern combinations one could come up with, so I believe there are definitely lots of right ways to do it! I hope this made sense and was a helpful guide for you!

Try it for yourself and don’t forget tip #4, have fun with it! It doesn’t have to be a permanent decision 😉

Do you feel comfortable attempting to mix patterns now?

You can go here for my Back to Basics week 1 post where I share my Nightstand styling tips!

Don’t forget to swing by the other fabulous Back to Basics stops and pick up a few more tips today!

11 Magnolia Lane
Being Bianca
House by Hoff
The Heathered Nest
Southern State of Mind
This is our Bliss

Pin this for later!