Room Color Schemes
Love Mixing Patterns

Room color schemes without any pattern can sometimes be boring. But many times people feel intimidated about mixing patterns that they avoid it all together.

It is really nothing to worry about. Just think of a traditional patchwork quilt and you can see how a myriad of decorative shapes can work well together and what they can bring to the home.

It's best to observe what is available and experiment by gathering all the samples you like together.

Think of the many colors in paintings.

• Go to fabric stores that sell decorator fabrics and look at how they are displayed. They will often have bolts of fabric displayed together in color ranges with coordinates. This will give you a sense of how different designs work together and how they could work in room color schemes.
• Also you can visit furniture stores with design services and take note of the upholstery samples on the floor and what they are shown with.
• Some manufacturer's will provide coordinating fabrics and wall coverings as collections. These collections are great for getting ideas on how different designs work together.

Find one basic fabric that you love and draw your inspiration around it. Use a variety of prints including floral, stripes and geometric shapes.

You are going to want to unite the patterns of all your fabrics and the best way to do that is with a similar color present in each fabric you’re using and in a similar level of intensity.

• Gather all the samples that you are considering for your room, and thinking in terms of proportion, lay them out on the floor or a sample board.

  A sofa fabric for example will be a larger swatch than a chair.

• Put them in relationship to how they will be in the room then step back to view them together. Try not to cluster all the patterns you are using in one area of the room. Make sure they are evenly distributed throughout so you room color schemes are balanced. You don't want the room to appear “heavy” in one end.

If you have all the decorative forms and patterns in one end of the room and the solid colors on the other side, you know you need to readjust.

Some designs will become dated faster than solid colors, so it may be best to use them on items like pillows, rugs, and accents which can be rotated to other rooms or updated, and use the busier shapes judiciously amid blocks of plain color.

Doing so focuses the attention and eliminates any confusion to the eye.

Uniform designs on fabric and wallpapers are good for calmer spaces that need a sense of order, while free flowing asymmetrical shapes are best reserved for rooms where you want to feel energized.

The trick is to not necessarily always match but to blend.

Return from Room Color Schemes to Home Decorating Fabrics

Return from Room Color Schemes to Interior Home Decorating Ideas home page