Hello, friends!  Look, there are a ton of blog posts on this topic, I know.  We’ve all seen them - these posts range from your basic how-to’s to complete breakdowns of mixing and matching pillows where they do it for you.  In my opinion, having someone else provide you with the “perfect” pillow combination takes all the fun out of it!  Well, you can forget the “three simple steps” and the rest when it comes to combining throw pillows, because I think – I think – I may have cracked the code. 

Essentially, finding the right pillow combination comes down to two things:  the concepts of cohesion and contrast, and how they work together.

Caveat:  take your time to find the right pillow mix.  I have a vast collection of pillow covers – I collect vintage textiles – and I’ve definitely made some purchases that I regret.  I regret them mostly because I felt like I was missing either cohesion or contrast in my current pillow situation, and I rushed it by buying something I didn’t love, just to be done with it.  Like anything else in interior design and decorating, you can’t rush a good thing and buy something you don’t love or know won’t work.

So, let’s have some pillow talk, shall we?

Cohesion tells a story, contrast provides the interest

Look, if you care about interior design and décor (which, frankly, if you don’t then I don’t know what you’re doing here), then you care about pillows.  It’s a real thing (for me, anyway).  A good throw pillow combination flows from one end of the sofa to the other, with each side complementing the other while also providing the necessary interest in their differences.  It tells a story, but an engaging one.  It just makes sense - almost as if you know it when you see it. 

To get that effortless but collected look, mixing and matching pillows requires both cohesion and contrast to work.  With cohesion but no contrast, the pillow combination would be boring.  And having contrast without cohesion looks messy and confusing.

So, how do you get cohesion and contrast, all in one go?

Cohesive pillow grouping using color + symmetry

You can achieve cohesion among your pillow grouping in the following ways: color + tonal consistency or symmetry.

When selecting pillows for my clients, I generally use similar color or tonal schemes when looking to find some harmony amongst the grouping. I’ll pair tans, beiges, and whites together to create a neutral color story, and then find the contrast through a mixture of patterns. If you’re more colorful, look to color theory for complementary and tertiary color schemes that’ll work well for your pillow game.

Another way to get a unified look is to use symmetry – i.e., place identical or similarly patterned pillows on either side of your sofa.  Now, I don’t mean you place the exact number of pillows on each side (three on the left, three on the right and so on – although you certainly could).  Rather, pick a pillow cover in either a solid or pattern, and carry the same exact print to the other end of the couch.  The rest of the pillows in the grouping can be different, but, by maintaining pattern consistency through at least one pillow, you’ll achieve the symmetry you’re looking for.

Add contrast through pattern, size + texture

Now for the fun part – mixing it up!  A great pillow combination will of course have contrast to it.  After finding a unifying theme, you can juxtapose pillows by playing with their patterns, sizes, and textures.

Pattern play with pillow combinations is my absolute favorite way to add contrast – the more patterns, the better!  I usually combine a stripe or plaid with a floral block print, but depending on your pattern preferences, the possibilities are truly endless.  And, if you really love a particular pattern and want it to repeat – go for it!  Just make sure the scale of your patterns is different between the pillows.  A good example is repeating stripes:  you could easily combine a vintage grain sack pillow with a horizontal stripe alongside a vertical-striped one.

As to size – this one’s pretty easy.  Your pillow set will vary if you change up the sizing of each pillow.  For the sofa, I like to layer pillows on each side, starting with either a 22” x 22” or 24” x 24” pillow to anchor everything.  Then I add contrast by adding in smaller square-shaped pillows or maybe a lumbar.  As long as you anchor the sofa with properly scaled pillows, you really can’t go wrong with this one.

Lastly – and I use this one a lot too – is to change things up by way of different textures.  Want to pair a hemp pillow cover with bouclé?  Go for it.  How about an Indian wool pillow next to a linen?  Sure thing, whatever.  The point is to vary the textures among your pillow combination to get the effect of contrast.

Pillow combinations can be hard, believe me.  What makes it harder is that there are just so many cute pillow covers out there; it’s hard to narrow it down to the select few you want to display.  But, if you factor in the concepts of cohesion and contrast when grouping pillows, you’ll stand a great chance of nailing a mixture that both pleases you and everyone else.