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mixing patterns on the table…

Black-white-room-blog

Black-white-room-blog

If you've read this blog for just one month or for twelve years, you probably know that I love patterns. We mix and match patterns a lot. And I totally understand that sometimes it may seem like a lot. You might be saying, "Joy, you guys are crazy over there with all that pattern mixing!" OR, "I wish I could mix patterns more, but I have no idea how." Well, if you're saying statement number two, we're on a mission to help guide you and make you feel more excited and confident about combining patterns. Today, we're using this tabletop setting as an example to show you how…

Black-white-room-8-blog

1. Start with a color palette to give the full room (or table) a cohesive look. In this case, we started with black and white and added in a bit of color with pale pinks and shades close to it.

Black-white-room-6-blog

2. Mix pattern scales. If you were to mix too many small scale patterns or too many large scale patterns, your eyes would go crazy trying to figure out what to look at. But if you mix scales (large next to small next to medium), it allows the eyes to more easily move around and see everything in front of you.

Black-white-room-12-blog

For this table, we started with a large scale pattern (grid) with the base table cloth and then mixed a smaller scale and different pattern (dots) with the runner. Then, we added a third pattern (diamond stripes) with the napkin at a medium scale. To add texture and pop, we accented the patterns with gold accents and touches of pink. Flowers topped off the table in pale shades of pink and citrus colors to complement the pale pink plate but also to let the black and white shine as the focus of the table.

You can apply these same rules to a full room…or even to an outfit!

Items Shown: Ikea fabric, Sarah Sherman Samuel runner, Target geoburst, Target vase, Target spotted vase, Target flatware, Ikea plate, Savannah Hayes napkin

{Photos by Casey Brodley, styling by Julia Wester, styling assistance by Jess Hong} 

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