Accent pillows can be incorporated into many rooms in your home to bring a warm and opulent feel, and your living room is no exception. New throw pillows can bring some pizazz to a neutral covered sectional, sofa or other seating arrangement. New throw pillows can also help you refresh your room for the seasons or just for a new look anytime of the year, at relatively little cost.

There’s an art to choosing and styling accent pillows on your sofa, loveseat, bench or other chair. By following a few simple guidelines, choosing the right mix of throw pillows in the right sizes, colors and textures can be easy. So, if you’re looking to achieve the luxe, aesthetically pleasing look in your home but are not quite sure where to achieve this, the information below will help guide you through mastering the art of decorating with throw pillows.

How to Select Throw Pillows

Before you can begin styling your couch, you will need to consider size, number of pillows, and colors/textures that will work best with your space.

Consider the Size

Size is the single most important aspect to keep in mind when you begin your hunt for throw pillows. Knowing the dimensions of your sofa will help ensure you are purchasing pillows that complement your couch, not overtake it. Pillows that are excessively large might make your space look cluttered. They will, however, look out of place if they are too little.

Odd Numbers are Optimal

When grouping pillows on a couch, interior designers agree that an odd number usually looks best. If your sofa is a loveseat, consider adding three pillows, whereas a standard six-foot sofa works best with five to seven.

Color Craze

One strategy is to use your living room's existing color scheme as your palette guide, choosing one hue from that palette as your base color and filling out the rest with similar shades or neutrals. If you are going for a more eclectic look, opt for bold patterns that use your base color. For a more minimalistic look, opt for a solid color accent pillow. Throw pillows can also be a great option for bringing in a fresh color to your room for a bold update. Complementary colors, such as orange throw pillows in a room with lots of blues, can brighten up your space and bring in some nice contrast.

Thoughtful Textures

In addition to color, you will want to incorporate texture, which adds depth and interest to your space. Consider various materials for accent pillows, such as faux fur, chunky knit fabrics, velvet or velvet-like fabrics, linen and more. Consider how each of these textiles feels when you touch them: some are smooth, some are fuzzy, and some are rough. The number of textures you bring in can depend on the number of colors and patterns you choose. If you are mixing and matching bold motifs, stick with subtler textures. If you opt for a more monochromatic color palette, you can really play with different textures—which become the star of the show.

Mix and Match Prints

The key to successfully working with prints is making sure they feature a similar color palette. Once you’ve chosen your palette, you can choose textures and prints in the same hues. This will give your living room space a cohesive look, even when the textures and prints are completely different.

Mix Shapes

Another way to add visual interest to your space is by styling with different shaped throw pillows. Traditional square and rectangular pillows are indeed a safe decision, but introducing round, oval or lumbar variations will elevate the look. You'll be experimenting with proportion and introducing new shapes to your living room decor in this way. This is a terrific technique to add interest to a monochrome color scheme and create a more unique look.

Coordinate by Style

To effortlessly give your room an upgrade, consider adding throw pillows for the couch that match your room's existing aesthetic. Basic neutrals and rich textiles, such as leather, appear to be more modern. For vintage style decor, argyle and gingham prints are ideal. Florals and tropical designs will bring the outdoors in, while traditional geometric prints like chevron and plaid can be used in a variety of ways.

Consider the Season

As the seasons change, so can the aesthetic of your space with minimal effort and cost. In the fall, switch out your throw pillows for those in the shades or warm reds, oranges and browns. In the summertime, incorporate shades of blue and botanical or nautical prints. It is no surprise that spring calls for bright and floral prints. Wrap up the year with pillows that incorporate chunky knits and heavier fabrics.

Gather and Group

As stated earlier, odd number pillow groupings tend to look the best. In the corner of a loveseat, two pillows, one larger and one smaller, can look fantastic. Put two pillows in one corner and the third in the opposite corner. On a couch, five is the magic number, giving you a lot more decorating options. Two pairs can be placed in each corner, with a lumbar pillow in the middle.

Throw pillows for the couch aside from being fun to style, can easily transform your space. If you are feeling overwhelmed, make sure to dial in to the vision you have for your space and go from there. These are general guidelines on how to style throw pillows, no hard rules. A great thing about pillows is it allows you to experiment and easily switch up the look of your space.