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Email Answer: In A Pillow Pinch?

Posted by
March 3, 2010

Q: Hey youngsters. First, congrats on the bun! Very exciting. Having two of my own I can assure you that you’ll never go a day without laughing so hard your stomach hurts. So that’s something to look forward to. Okay, the real reason for my email. My conundrum is with pillows for the sofa. I wondered if you guys might some day do a quick and dirty rundown on things like:

I don’t want to use the ones that came with the sofa, so I might consider recovering them… but I’m completely lost when it comes to figuring out the number, sizes, colors, etc. – Renae

A: Well, we have good news. There’s really no “right” answer to your question, which might sound annoyingly non-committal of us but let us explain a bit further. We’ve seen so many sofas and sectionals that look amazing with one pillow, no pillows, bright pillows that complement the couch color, subtle pillows that blend with the upholstery, symmetrical pillow arrangements, asymmetrical pillow arrangements, prints a plenty, simple and clean-lined solid colored pillows, etc. In this case there are about 500 different ways to skin a cat (sorry for the gross expression but you know what we mean). So we decided to share just a few “formulas” thanks to a quick browse over at potterybarn.com. They were the perfect place to find a ton of sofas with a variety of pillow pairings, so we hope that breaking down a few of those arrangement options for you will help to demystify the pillow-hunting process.

Here’s pillow arrangement numero uno:

We love that it involves just three pillows (two sqaure ones and one lumbar version) and that it’s asymmetrical (since we always gravitate towards that look because it feels a bit more cozy and less formal than symmetrical displays tend to). Here you can see that there’s no pattern involved, but two of the pillows are the same color. Of course you can use artistic license and purchase two matching square pillows and a lumbar guy that’s printed or different in tone, so there’s no need to follow any of these examples to the letter. In fact one of our favorite pillow hunting techniques is to hit up a place like TJ Maxx and buy a whole bunch of options (then we have a little pillow fashion show on the couch at home and return any and all that didn’t make the cut).

Next we’ll move on to a slightly larger sofa with more pillows in the mix (don’t mind the writing on these pics, PB branded some of them with sofa info):

Here we can see that the formula is basically the last one done on a larger scale, so instead of two square pillows with one lumbar one there are four square pillows with a smaller lumbar accent pillow. This arrangement is also asymmetrical, which is nice because again it feels offset just enough to evoke a more casual and less planned/perfectly balanced look. And the super simple thing to note about this pillow pairing is that it just calls for two sets of matching square pillows (one that’s printed and one that’s not in this case, but feel free to switch that up if you’d like) and one smaller lumbar pillow that’s also printed (and that contains all of the colors that have already been established in the larger square pillows so it’s sure to tie in).

Renae also mentioned that she’d love advice about mixing and matching prints and patterns. Here’s a post all about that but basically we think that it’s easier to mix prints when one is the dominant one and the other is more subtle, meaning that if you squint at two prints from across the room, one should be a lot busier and more noticeable than the other. Sure enough, if you squint at the sofa above, the little dotted lumbar pillow almost looks solid yellow while the larger square patterned pillows “read” as the more dominant pattern. Easy, right?

Next we have another subtle variation on the first sofa’s pillow theme. Instead of two square pillows and one bolster we have three square pillows (none of which match) and a contrasting bolster:

Although this is another asymmetrical arrangement there’s still some nice balance due to the fact that there’s one more colorful and saturated pillow on each side of the sofa (while two of the square pillows are a bit more subdued). We also love the addition of the cozy blue throw, which also adds more eye-pleasing balance since its tone relates to the pillows on the other side of the couch.

This next arrangement is a nice change of pace when it comes to placement. Here we have one slightly larger square pillow paired with two subtly smaller ones, but instead of being propped up against each side of the sofa they’re clustered more towards the center of the couch:

This can look particularly nice if you have an armless settee or anything with low-profile arms like the sofa above (since pillows can’t really lean in the corners of these types of couches as much). And this arrangement is actually closer to symmetrical since there’s one large pillow in the center of the sofa that’s flanked by two smaller ones (but the casual placement and the mixed-and-matched feeling keep it from reading as super formal or stiff).

Also, if you look closely you’ll actually notice that all three pillows have a pattern/print on them, but two of them feel almost like a matched set when you squint at them (the two on the outside). This is because even though they’re not identical, their patterns balance each other out extremely well and make them feel like they’re pretty much the same “scale” (in terms of pattern size and dominance). Meanwhile the pillow in the middle has a much more subtle and small scale pattern which is nice because it adds texture without competing with the balanced larger scale pillows that rest on either side.

Next we have two sofas that face each other. The pillows all feel like they’re in the same family, and they’re generally all the same size, but they all have subtly varied prints and patterns on them that can still easily be tied together thanks to the similar tones and burlap-y texture.

Again we like the casual and welcoming asymmetry of this arrangement (three pillows and a throw on one side with two pillows and a throw on the other) and we also love that one corner of the sofa on the right is pillow-less… just to keep things from getting two matchy-matchy on both sides of the room (especially with those perfectly balanced bookcases and the use of the same sofa twice).

Next we have a simple tone on tone look that really can do no wrong. It certainly doesn’t pop like a brightly patterned or boldly hued accent pillow might, but there’s something undeniably peaceful and soft about one square pillow balanced by one tactile throw on the other side of this settee.

And you don’t have to have a cream sofa to emulate this look. It should work with any colored couch, so even if you have a dark leather sofa, you might want to consider a rich brown velvet pillow and a chocolate faux fur throw to recreate this tone on tone effect.

We also thought we’d toss in some images of sectionals just to err on the side of being thorough (we’re nothing if not consistently wordy, right?). Here’s a super simple pillow arrangement for a smaller scale sectional (note: if you have a monster sectional you’ll probably want more pillows to break up all that fabric). Again we have the same two square pillows with one lumbar pillow arrangement that we saw in the very first photo, and even the coloring is very similar to that first room (with one square pillow remaining neutral while the other two are a more saturated red tone).

The thing we appreciate most about this set up is that instead of stuffing pillows in every corner (which is usually the M.O. when it comes to sectionals) it feels fresh and simple to see them on the straighter expanses of the sofa.

Below we have a more traditional pillows-in-the-corners-of-the-sectional approach. We definitely really like how this looks so there’s nothing wrong with it at all, it’s just a bit more tried and true (which is never a bad thing). Here we notice that all the pillows and the throw are the same general tone (although three of them have a bold stenciled number on them for some visual interest) and there are three in the middle corner, two in the left corner and one paired with a throw in the right corner. So as balanced as it feels (when you squint it looks like there’s about the same amount of cream in each corner) it’s still not too formulaic (like two in each corner would be, for example).

And although all the pillows are that creamy neutral tone above, replacing the three stenciled pillows with anything a bit more patterned, punchy or bright would still definitely work because instead of a big graphic number in each corner you’d just have a different eye-catching detail in each spot (be it a brighter color, a bold pattern, etc).

And again in the interest of being thorough we thought we’d share two examples of chair pillows that we love. The version on the left shows how a subtle tone on tone pillow can look great when it’s tossed in one corner of a chair (the un-centered placement again feels less formal and planned so it reads as more casual). And the image on the right demonstrates how a bolder color can also look great when it’s tossed to the side of a handsome leather armchair (although this approach would also work just as well with something that’s lighter or covered with upholstery instead).

The other family room chair scenario is the slipper chair. And although PB didn’t have any images of these with pillows on them, we’ve found that we like a long and skinny bolster or lumbar pillow on a slipper chair a lot more than a squarely shaped one for some reason. Probably for one because it’s super comfortable and you can sink back into it (while a square pillow just makes you sit more upright and forward in the chair) and also because the proportion just looks nice. Note: you can check out two slipper chairs with bolsters at our casa by clicking through our House Tour.

And while we were on the ol’ pillow subject we thought we’d quickly tackle a few bedroom arrangements as well. Again, as we said up front there’s definitely no “right answer” and pillow arrangements are just as subjective as any other area of decorating, but we thought a few visuals might get you started if you’re stuck. First we have this tried and true set-up with two large square pillows, two standard sized rectangular ones, and one smaller square accent one:

Right off the bat, we should recognize that this bed is a bit more matchy-matchy than we would typically go for (probably for the simple fact that Pottery Barn is trying to sell a bedding “set” so they have to snap all the pieces in one photo). That being said, the idea of two big (and possibly colorful and/or patterned square pillows with two more subdued standard sized rectangular pillows in front of them is always a pretty fool-proof “base” for any bed. Then you can add anything from a boldly patterned or brightly colored accent pillow up front or even a long and lovely bolster that’s upholstered in a contrasting yet complementary tone (for example, a coral, sky blue or even a sage green pillow would look great in the place of the small matchy-matchy one above).

Next we have an arrangement that feels totally casual and soft of sweetly tossed together:

But if we look closely we see that it follows the exact same formula as the first bedroom pillow placement photo- except that the two back pillows on the left side have been placed on the mattress instead of being leaned against the headboard and the smaller accent pillow in the front has been shifted over a bit to the left- just for additional oh-I-just-threw-this-together interest. This pillow color palette is nice and simple, and we love how the large blue shams tie in with the blue blanket that’s draped across the bed (while the white pillows relate to the duvet and the small tan guy in the front introduces a nice third tone to the mix.

And finally we have this super simple bedroom pillow arrangement which basically involves a slew of fluffy white shams with one punchy accent pillow up front:

In this case the patterned pillow is offset for interest, but it can also look sweet and simple when it’s centered in front of all those airy white-on-white pillows that create a nice crisp and clean feeling to showcase any graphic or bright accent pillow that tickles your fancy (again, it doesn’t have to match your bedding- a bright emerald velvet pillow would have worked just as well- or even a red and white zig-zag chevron pillow would add fun layered interest).

Oh and since Renae asked us to spill some of our favorite pillow sources, here we go: Target, Home Goods, Pier 1, TJ Maxx, Marshall’s, Crate & Barrel, Pottery Barn, CB2, Overstock, Kohl’s, Bed Bath & Beyond, Z Gallerie, Urban Outfitters, West Elm, and a bunch of local places (don’t forget to support the smaller businesses in your community, which often have unique pieces at great prices). And to see a bunch of other where-we-like-to-get-what lists, click here for our where-to-shop guide which covers everything from rugs and curtains to sofa and table sources.

So that ends our little pillow pairing roundup. Thanks again to potterybarn.com for all the pillow-riffic images. Oh and we’d love to know what you guys have to say on the subject. Do you have any favorite pillow arrangement equations of your own, or any great pillow sources to share? Let’s talk about those fluffy little squares of down or batting that can really make or break a room.

Psst- Not ready to stop analyzing Pottery Barn images? Check out this awesome post our friend Katie put together where she breaks down how the stylists over at PB tend to decorate console tables. That girls is one mathy genius…

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