Mar 2

Mar 2 How to Combine Different Design Styles

When you look at my home you don’t see just one design style. I have a ton of different styles strewn throughout the house. A question someone asked me the other day was “How do you combine different design styles?” so I thought it would make a fun blog post! I am going to talk about five ways to combine design styles without it looking wacky. :)

Common Color
When you are combining styles you want a common thread that blends the styles together. An easy way to accomplish this is with color. If you have a similar color strewn throughout the space then it creates a unified look. If you look at the picture below you can see that they mixed bohemian with more traditional but the green color scheme throughout pulls it altogether. Side note, I am obsessed with this room!

2. Match in Scale

Your style doesn’t have to match but it is important that you have similar lines and scales throughout the room. You want to create balance by having pieces that have similar visual heights. If you look below you can see that these chairs are completely different styles but their similar height makes them work well together. In addition, they all have similar lines in the legs of the chairs that tie in well with the table creating a look that works well for this dining room.

3. Distribute Equally

If you are combining two types of styles you do not want to have half of the room be farmhouse and half of it be bohemian. You want the two styles strewn equally throughout the space to create a look of unity for the room. The picture below does Bohemian Modern so well! The majority of the furniture is mid century modern but then she has bohemian accent pieces placed equally throughout the entire space. Love it!

4. Keep the Mood the Same

If you are wanting a laid back look in your living room don’t add a stuffy arm chair. Keep the mood of your furniture consistent. If you want a formal dining room, make sure all the pieces are formal and you don’t have a very relaxed looking piece. Make sure the mood of the furniture is the same for whichever mood you are going for in that room. The picture below is very traditional glam but the overall mood is formal, they nailed it.

5. 80/20 Rule

When combining styles this is a good rule of thumb. Make about 80% of the room one style and 20% another. That 20% can be bold accent pieces that you want to highlight. When it comes to pieces that stand out make sure you make them stand out. If it is the one piece that doesn’t fit don’t hide it in the corner, put it in the spotlight. If you look at my living room, I would say the majority of it is mid century modern but my coffee table is more traditional farmhouse. I put that bad boy front and center and had it be the focal point of the room.