Colors & Patterns & Textures, Oh My!

Interior decorators love the juxtaposition of color, pattern, and texture when it comes to styling a home. In coastal home decor, these three elements play a major role in determining whether the home is a sophisticated nod to the seashore, or literal, kitchy, and provisional. Neither is right or wrong, but if you’re going to invest in high quality furnishings and accessories, it’s important to take the time to research how colors, patterns, and textures work together to create a professional aesthetic. 


Color

A big mistake people make when designing their homes is matching colors too precisely. A balance between warm and cool tones is imperative in creating a dynamically designed space, but can be a little scary if you’ve never done it before. Since coastal decor is set to mimic life on the shore, think about the colors you see as you stroll down the beach. The warm, beige sand gradietes deeper as it’s met by the pearlescent colored foam of crashing waves. The crystal blue water that reflects off of the sky tilts towards green on the color wheel when mixed with the yellow toned sun. A coral colored crab scurries on by, and you notice the similarly colored shells he so carelessly topples over. Blue, green, and yellow sea glass appear near the rocky boardwalk, and the deep brown tones of the boardwalk wood peek through the toupe barnacles ever so slightly. If you can picture this moment, it’s exactly what you’ll want to think about when choosing the main and accent colors in your home. 


Pattern

Patterns are the most fun way to bring interest and a personal touch to your space. Mixing and matching patterns, however, can be a little tricky to balance properly. There are five main types of patterns or prints to choose from:


Conversational Prints: Think tossed starfish, anchors, or stamped seashells.

Floral or Botanical Prints: Your classic palm print, hibiscus, or hydrangea.

Stripes & Plaids: Sailor stripes, Omar plaids… you get the idea.

Abstract Prints: Think watercolor washes, clouds and abstract scenery.

Geometric Prints: logarithmic spirals, scallops, and lattice patterns.


The most important aspect when it comes to mixing patterns is the scale of each one. You’ll want to pick a “hero” print and then style the rest of the patterns around it. If the hero print is a conversational seashell duvet with large shells tossed throughout, the decorative pillow prints should vary significantly in scale as to not compete with the hero. A dainty stripe, subtle palm, or tone on tone scallop would compliment the hero conversational perfectly, while also adding a ton of interest to the top of the bed.


Texture

The seashore boasts gorgeous textures that should be considered when designing your coastal home. Distressed furniture, mixed pile rugs, and linen upholstery are already best friends, so you’ll definitely want to invite them over for cake and coffee. If you’re a minimalist that really can’t get behind a multicolored or multi-patterned home, then adding numerous textures to the space will successfully bring your home to an elevated level of sophistication. The same color can be used on a boucle fabric, linen fabric, or cotton fabric, and look completely unique because of the yarn density or woven structure. This subtle art of designing with texture should be used in conjunction with additional colors and patterns, but also stands strong on its own.


The home stylists at DanaTyler Home are experts when it comes to making color, pattern, and texture work within an existing space. Our home styling program is a free service and allows for a stylist to visit your home and help you determine what’s needed to achieve that professionally designed look. For more information about our home styling services and to see some of our impressive inventory, visit us in store or email us at hello@danatyler.com

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