What Goes With Floral Upholstery?
How to decorate around floral-print furniture so that everything comes up roses
Laura Gaskill
May 31, 2014
Houzz Contributor. I cover decorating ideas, Houzz tours & the monthly home maintenance checklist. My favorite pieces to write center around the emotional aspects of home and savoring life's simple pleasures. Decluttering course + discount for Houzzers: https://www.lauragaskill.com/welcome-houzzers
Houzz Contributor. I cover decorating ideas, Houzz tours & the monthly home maintenance... More
It happened — you fell in love. And the object of your affection (while utterly charming at first) now seems too loud, too wild, too … something. What to do? If you’re thinking of your love life, we can’t help you. But if your troubles are caused by hard-to-match floral upholstery, these options for decorating around it should make life a little easier.
1. Simple graphic prints. A simple, large-scale graphic-print rug in a color pulled from the floral upholstery can go a long way toward “settling” the floral piece into the room. Aim for a mix of large-, medium- and small-scale prints in the room. In the room shown here, a medium-scale floral-print armchair is balanced by the small-scale graphic curtains and large-scale graphic rug. Other upholstered pieces in solid hues keeps things simple.
2. White it out. Fell in love with a bold sofa? Don’t rip your hair out trying to figure out what goes with it — just keep everything else white and call it a day. White walls and white or pale neutral (beige, cream, wood) furniture and accessories will give even the wildest piece the breathing room it needs.
3. Pull a color scheme from the floral piece. This can be a highly effective way to pull a room together — you just have to make sure you get the colors spot-on, so it helps to bring a swatch (or at least a photo) of the floral print with you while shopping for other pieces in the room. Try using the background hue as a wall color, using one of the main floral colors as a solid upholstery color or on the curtains, and picking out an accent color from the fabric to use on pillows and accessories.
Discover throw pillows in every color
Discover throw pillows in every color
Wild card: Pair it with an animal print. It helps if you think of animal prints like blue jeans — they work with everything, even though it seems like they shouldn’t. Try an animal-print ottoman or small rug. Eclectic and glamorous, this pairing will completely change the look and feel of a room.
4. Ground it with leather. Hardworking leather can be wonderful for bringing some weight to a room with a light floral print. Like a floral print sundress with cowgirl boots, this combo is easygoing and down-to-earth.
5. Repeat the motif. The key here is to go for a big contrast in scale. For instance, you could pair a small-scale floral-print chair with a rug featuring a single, giant bloom. In this space the floral motif on the sofa is repeated in pillows featuring single big blooms. But the other floral motif doesn’t need to be a textile at all — why not try botanical paintings or floral photography instead? And bringing in a vase of flowers never hurts!
Wild card: floral frenzy. Layering floral print upholstery, floral rugs and floral artwork in the same space is definitely not for the shy — but when done well, it can be a fun look. Keeping some elements simple and neutral will help rein in all of those flowers. In the space shown here, the walls are brick and white, and a few simply upholstered chairs and wooden tables are mixed in with the wilder pieces.
6. Tone it down with neutral cushions. If you are having second thoughts about your floral-print armchair or sofa, have just the seat cushions, or just the front, re-covered in a solid hue. The nonpatterned space will help tone down the busy print, making it easier to work with, while retaining some of the zest that made you love the piece to begin with.
Ask an upholstery professional for more pattern combinations
Tell us: Do you own furniture with floral upholstery? How do you decorate around it? Share your photos and tips in the Comments!
Ask an upholstery professional for more pattern combinations
Tell us: Do you own furniture with floral upholstery? How do you decorate around it? Share your photos and tips in the Comments!
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Lisa, you'll probably want something with a simple or no pattern to avoid fighting the pattern in the chair seats. Picture nos. 1 & 3 are examples showing geometric patterns but in just one main color. Like those pictures show, choosing one color from the chair will ensure that the rug will look good with the chairs, but if you have an upholstery sample you can take with you, that would be helpful while shopping for the rug. If there are other design features in the room and nearby spaces, you'll probably want to keep those colors in mind as well.
Hello,
I have a floral pattern chair. The fabric is called Telfair Garden (it can be seen on the internet). This will be in a sun room I just purchased a sofa which matches the light yellow color perfectly. I am thinking about 2 additional accent chairs and wondered what your thoughts would be on their color? They will sit directly across from the sofa and the floral chair will be at the end of the grouping. Or could I just get one more solid chair to go with the floral chair and what color would work best! The floor will be a light beige and maybe a coffee table in between?? thanks for your help. Charles
Charles, I'm seeing multiple patterns in a search for Telfair Garden fabric, but I can speak to what I have. I took a pillow that came with my floral loveseat and chair to a fabric store and found a plaid upholstery fabric with the same colors. I also purchased a piece of foam to fit on the built in window seat in the room and had my daughter, an excellent seamstress, sew a cover for it. I think the plaid looks great with the floral and provides more interest than a single color fabric if that's what you're looking for. If the floral is fairly new, and a popular pattern, you might be able to find a fabric design that was made to go with it. When I purchased my plaid, the store actually had the floral that was on my chair as well, right next to the plaid so it was easy to see how they went together. Since I was planning on using that window seat as part of the seating for the room, I didn't look for furniture that already had that plaid, so I don't know how common it is for furniture makers to upholster items in those complimentary fabrics.