If you’re anything like us, you’ve got a stack of magazines somewhere, or a beautifully curated Pinterest board full of interior design inspiration. But despite our best efforts, it can seem really difficult to actually bring those visions to life in our home. How are we supposed to create a catalogue-ready living room set with our mismatched decor and far-from-unlimited budget? Thankfully, it turns out that you don’t need a perfectly matched living room set to create a stylish escape!
Mixing your living room furniture is a great way to incorporate pieces you already own and love into a new design scheme, and to make a truly personalised and unique room that is worthy of the magazines. And while it might seem daunting, by mixing and matching both new and old furniture pieces, you can create a cohesive feel that expresses your individuality.
Here are our top three tips for creating an effortless mix -and-matched living room style:
Create cohesion with scale
Chances are, you probably have a few beloved chairs or a treasured sofa that you really want to keep in your living room. We say, do it! A great way of matching new pieces with old favourites is to keep the scale of the furniture the same.
This means choosing pieces with a similar seat height and depth; you wouldn’t want to be trying to have a conversation looking down on someone while they’re sinking into a low chair! The back height of your furniture matters too. It helps to balance the look of the space.
Pop with colour and patterns
Embrace the art of mixing and matching by incorporating pieces that really pop and stand out amongst your other furniture. The simplest way to do this? Bring in an unexpected colour or pattern!
Don’t be intimidated by making a bold choice when it comes to accent pieces. Chances are, you probably have some clues in your living room right now that will make picking a colourful sofa or patterned armchair easy.
An easy way to pick a winning pattern is to look at the dominant piece of decor in your living room, whether that’s a sofa, a piece of art you love, your cushions, or even the rug! What is the main colour of that item? Use this as a jumping-off point when selecting a pattern. For example, if you have a lovely photo of the sea above your sofa, look for patterns with hints of blue, like our Brighton accent chair in Sea Spray fabric.
When adding a colour pop, look and see if there are any main shades in your room, and decide if you want to complement that, or create a pop of contrast. It’s all about your personal style here!
Link pieces with soft furnishings
Original Rustic coffee table | Grayson sofa | Original Rustic side table | Original Rustic bookcase
Original Rustic coffee table | Grayson sofa
If you’re looking to create some unity between different pieces you already own, the secret could be in the soft furnishings. Try swapping the cushions on your sofa and armchair, it’s a surprisingly simple way to unify mismatched pieces!
Think about bringing in other colours or patterns with throws and pillows too. Say you had a rug with purple in it, try using some tones of purple in the cushions to pull the room together. Or if you have a patterned sofa like our Bramble, try putting a coordinating throw or cushions across your armchair to create a visual flow.
By keeping those three tips in mind, perfectly mixing and matching your living room furniture really is that easy! Show us how you’ve created your own eclectic living room look, using #OakFurnitureland on Instagram.
