Perfectly Paired: The Art of Pattern Mixing

Over my 20+ years as an interior designer, I have had clients express a belief that patterns cannot be mixed. I have also had clients say they know patterns can be mixed but are mystified as to how to accomplish such a visual feat. I will say that pattern mixing is one of those magical interior design tools that can turn a pleasant room into an unforgettable one. When done well, it feels collected, layered, and effortless, as though the room simply evolved over time. But behind that seemingly casual charm is a bit of strategy, especially when you’re combining patterns across upholstery, rugs, pillows, and wallcoverings. The key is to create harmony, not chaos, and understanding how patterns speak to one another is where it all really begins.

While pattern mixing is more of an art than a science, there are a few guiding principles to acknowledge. I feel the secret to successful pattern mixing starts with scale. Think of your patterns the way you’d think of an orchestra: you need a strong, anchoring “soloist,” a medium-scale design to support it, and a smaller-scale pattern to fill in the details. For example, if your sofa fabric features a bold, oversized botanical or geometric, pair it with a rug that has a medium, more rhythmic pattern, and then bring in pillows with smaller-scale prints or textures that add depth without competing. This variation in scale creates a composition that feels dynamic but cohesive, allowing each pattern to breathe.

For this beautiful bedroom in an historic home, designer Corey Damen Jenkins combined three different patterns to great effect. There is a tight, botanical pattern over the bed, flanked by drapery panels in a medium-scaled trellis design (also used on a valance and pillows at the nearby window seat), but the scheme is punctuated with a large-scale blue and white zig zag seen on bed pillows and chair upholstery. Using three different scaled patterns works and they are unified with an analogous color scheme. Topping the room is a ticking striped wallcovering that actually ends up reading as a neutral--the rigid, consistent design complements the more active patterns below.

The example below uses up to five patterns and still manages to create a classic, traditional, tailored feeling. The wide stripes on the sofa harmonize with the much narrower stripes on the ottoman coffee tables. The ikat pattern on the adjacent chair works because of the scale and more random nature. The throw pillow on the sofa features a very tight, small-patterned Arabesque design. And finally, the drapes sport what looks to be a tone-on-tone damask which picks up the neutral carpet and end table cloth. The unifying factor is certainly the color scheme.

Color is the next guiding force, because it’s the thread that ties everything together. You don’t need to match perfectly—in fact, it’s often better if you don’t—but repeating certain hues across elements helps the eye connect the dots. A wallpaper with muted blues can echo in a woven rug, a stripe on an armchair, or a floral pillow. Even just a single shared tone—like a warm caramel, a soft blush, or a deep green—can make the whole room feel intentional. The trick is to rely on color families rather than identical shades, which keeps things feeling sophisticated instead of overly coordinated.

The warm hues in the image below make this library corner seem inviting and cozy. Three different patterns (are you seeing a "pattern" emerging?) engage the eye: a bold large patterned geometric pillow does not compete with an ikat chair that is nearly the same scale because of the movement in the pattern as well as the color. The beautiful background to these harmonized voices is a tight warm-toned paisley on the drapery.

When mixing patterns across various elements, it’s also helpful to vary pattern type. It's ok to blend geometrics with florals, stripes with abstract prints, or organic motifs with something more structured. This interplay keeps the look from feeling too themed or matchy. Wallcovering, especially, offers a beautiful opportunity to introduce a bold pattern that sets the stage. From there, upholstered pieces and pillows can echo motifs or colors without creating visual overload. And don’t forget texture—nubby linen, velvet, boucle, and embroidery all count as “patterns” in their own right and help soften the mix.

In the sitting arrangement below, we can see three prominent patterns. A large scale floral with plenty of background space looks great with a pair of striped square pillows and a single lumbar pillow in an ikat pattern, all in the same tones. But take a look at the ottomans in a blue color and how the subtle woven texture comes through. The rug is a woven sisal, another texture that can add a "pattern" to the room, and finally, the matchstick woven blinds add yet another organic texture.

In a sitting rom by designer Charlotte Lucas, our eye goes first to the blue velvet sofa so the room has a large neutral space for all the other patterns to play off of. A large scale botanical wallcovering sidles up to a pair of chairs in a smaller floral design in a neutral color. But look what she does with animal prints to enliven the scheme: leopard pillows and a zebra rug are the final zingy touches! This is some advanced pattern mixing, do not attempt this at home without the help of a professional...or you could hurt yourself, lol.

As I mentioned earlier, pattern mixing is more of an art than a science—it requires patience and curiosity, a willingness to experiment. We can start with a pattern you absolutely love and build from there, adjusting scale, color, and type as we go. There are many combinations that will fall into place and when it clicks, you will feel it.  That’s the beauty of great design: it’s personal, playful, and always evolving. So if you'd like to explore the art of pattern mixing, I have access to a literal world of fabrics and materials...give me a call!

Happy designing!

History of Furniture: Charles Eastlake

For this installment of The History of Furniture, we are going to look at a specific sub-genre of the  larger Victorian style category. We have previously looked at what is known as a Victorian style sofa here, as part of the Know Your Sofas series. Strictly speaking, the term "Victorian" really only applies to a style in architecture, art, clothing, and interiors in Great Britain and not the United States, since Victoria's reign, from 1837 to 1901, only covered that realm. People use the term for a certain style of architecture here in the United States for homes that are actually more aptly termed "Italianate" but that is for another post.

During Victoria's reign--which was quite long (a record broken by the current Queen Elizabeth II)--several styles came and went. Interestingly, nearly all were revivals of some sort. The decades of her rule saw a Rococo Revival, a Gothic Revival, a Renaissance Revival, a Jacobean Revival, and digressions into styles known as Orientalism (look for a future post about Olana, one of the most famous Orientalist homes in the United States, coming soon) and an Egyptian Revival.

The Victorian style's hallmark is massive, heavy, phenomenally complex and ornately carved pieces of furniture but the sub-genre we are going to look at today deliberately eschewed this heavy ornamentation for a sense that was more aligned with the cleaner lines of William Morris and the Arts and Crafts movement.

Originally a proponent of Jacobean and Gothic Revival, Charles Locke Eastlake was an English architect and furniture designer (1836 - 1906) who believed that furniture and decor in people's homes should be made by hand or by machine-workers who took personal pride in their work.

The Eastlake style is derived from a book he published in 1868 called HINTS ON HOUSEHOLD TASTE IN FURNITURE, UPHOLSTERY, AND OTHER DETAILS. In it, he outlined his ideas for the reformation of the typical heavy, detail-laden tastes of the Victorians in favor of a lighter, more organic approach. He used incised wood, and geometric shapes as detail.

You can see how he avoided the scrolls and curlicues of Victorian Rococo in favor of straighter lines. There is a much more rectilinear sense to the pieces themselves in addition to the details they sport. Orbs, bobbin shapes, and bead shapes rest alongside minimally incised designs of leaves, vines, and simple rosettes. In this way, the Eastlake Style can certainly be seen as an important stepping stone toward Arts and Crafts, or American Craftsman in the United States along with its distant cousin, Mission Style.

Many years ago, I had the honor of refurbishing and reupholstering an heirloom Eastlake-style chair for a client. I think the traditional Victorian crimson makes the chair look like it must have in 1898.

Happy designing!