
Combining patterns in interior design is a great way to make spaces less boring and more appealing.
Patterns add colour and energy to a room. Moreover, they create a dynamic space that highlights a texture that visitors won’t fail to notice.
However, mixing patterns effectively is not the easiest thing to do. When you choose the wrong design, you’ll end up having a room that looks busy and cluttered. You also won’t be able to maximise the concept of texture in the space if you fail to pick the right fabrics.
The hundreds of patterns, colours, and scales to choose from and the numerous possibilities of using them can also cause you to feel overwhelmed.
The Best Tips and Tricks for Combining Patterns for Interior Design Use
If you want to learn how to mix patterns correctly to create a gorgeous look for any space, follow these tips and tricks shared by trusted fabrics suppliers from Dubai:
Think about the mood you want the room to have.
The best way to ensure you will mix and match patterns correctly is to consider the current colour palette of the room and how your chosen designs will tie into the overall look and ambience of the space.
Your pattern combinations can affect how the room feels, so start by thinking about the kind of mood you want it to convey.
If you want the room to be warm and bright, focus on getting fabrics with floral patterns in summery shades. If you want the space to be a bit more intimate and dramatic, opt for textiles with dark floral designs and leaf motifs.
Stripes, geometrics, and other ordered patterns in cool shades of blue and grey can give a room a smart and professional look. Keep this in mind if you are choosing fabrics for your home office.
Create or choose a focal point.
Another tip you can follow to have a great starting point for combining patterns is to pick one item you can use as your focal point.
This focal point can be the area rug, your draperies, or a customised sofa, which will create the main visual centrepiece in the room.
Once you choose your centre point or main pattern, complement it with other smaller furniture and fixtures with more intricate designs.
For instance, if your sofa has oversized prints, throw pillows with small polka dots or a scatter rug with repeating geometric patterns will look fantastic alongside it.
Another option is to put your favourite colour front and centre. By varying its intensity, you ensure there is unity in design and harmony across the room, even if they have different patterns.
Follow a colour scheme.
Another way to ensure there is consistency and unity in your patterns is to work with a colour palette.
Various patterns with different colours can make a room look and feel chaotic and overwhelming.
You can avoid this by establishing a colour scheme within the same family of hues or colour palette to create an eye-pleasing space with a variety in design.
When choosing your colour palette, make sure to keep it simple. Also, only use two or three shades within a scheme.
If you want to incorporate bolder colours, follow the 60-30-10 rule. It means decorating 60 per cent of your room with the dominant colour, 30 per cent of it in your secondary colour, and the last 10 per cent as your accent.
Incorporate different sizes of patterns and fabrics.
When mixing patterns, avoid getting features with similar sizes. Doing so will limit your creativity in playing with them to create beautiful designs.
Start by choosing large-scale pattern styles as a dominant pattern and combine them with medium or smaller-scale designs for accents.
Also, when choosing patterns, take into account scale. This vital element helps pull a design idea together. By focusing on one large-scale pattern and building smaller patterns around it, the focal point of the room becomes clearer and more pronounced.
For instance, if you have a sofa with large striped prints, opt for chevron or herringbone patterns for the throw pillows or small rug since they work well together.
Integrate contrast
Staying within your chosen colour palette and varying the degrees of light and dark can help create balance as you mix patterns in a room.
Combining lighter and darker shades of colours can also help certain patterns stand out. This draws the eye to certain areas of the room and allows you to control the narrative.
Also, blend simple and complex patterns together.
Match a fabric or feature with intricate patterns with another one with simple patterns. This combination provides contrast and variation without reducing the overall appeal of the room.
Add texture
Another key step of mixing and matching patterns in interior design is adding fabrics and other features with texture.
Doing so allows you to add a three-dimensional interest to the space.
Fabrics that add texture are those that you can tell from a distance that they are not flat. Examples of these are velvet, chenille, faux fur, and mohair.
Trims, such as the fringes on curtains and throw pillows, also count as texture.
Keep in mind that even if the patterns are different, they can still look flat and boring when placed side by side. As such, be creative and mix things up.
Try combining weaves, prints, and embroideries. Adding a shaggy rug, textured lampshade, or draperies with interesting trimmings also allows you to add texture effortlessly in a room.
Experiment.
Most of the time, you won't realise two patterns work together until they are side by side.
Because of this, keep experimenting with designs to discover what works for the room.
When trying a design, leave it for a day. Look at it frequently to see if you like how it looks and if it goes with the room and other features and décor inside.
Make sure you look at and try mixing and matching with your pieces at various times of the day so that you can see how they look together under different lighting.
Finding which patterns blend best with others is usually a matter of trial and error, so don’t be afraid to experiment.
With these tips and tricks, you can combine patterns and prints like an interior designer and create fancy, beautiful rooms that capture the eye.