Opposites attract: How to add drama without crowding the stage
The fabric covering the two loveseats in the far seating area features sapphire blue ikat motifs laid over an off-white background. The off-white color lightens the tone of the room and amplifies the limited natural light that streams through the patio windows. The goal in designing this room was to show respect for the formal features of the room—the high ceiling, crown molding, Ionic columns, chandeliers, portrait, and antique furniture—without allowing the room to feel stuffy. So we couldn’t go casual, but we did need to find ways to make the room feel comfortable and welcoming.
If you’re looking for a way to add excitement to your room without creating visual clutter, try this simple trick. Choose two fabrics that oppose each other and let them liven each other up. The opposing fabrics might be materials that contrast with each other’s texture or finish, such as silk and sisal. if you go that route, you might play up the contrast and pair silk curtains with a sisal rug. Or take a different route and choose fabrics with patterns that mimic each other’s design, but in reverse.
What does that mean? In the photo above, you see two loveseats with sapphire blue ikat motifs laid over an off-white background. The off-white background lightens the tone of the room and amplifies the limited natural light that streams through the patio windows.
Ikat fabric in accent pillow: Sapphire Ikat by kimsa (spoonflower.com)
The ivory colored sofa in the foreground also lightens the tone of the room and helps amplify the available natural light. Here’s the contrast: The large accent pillow on the ivory-colored sofa accentuates the ikat pattern in the two loveseats. That is, the ikat pattern in the accent pillow reverses the design layout of the loveseat fabric, with a sapphire blue background and off-white ikat motifs. The motifs in both fabrics are different, but they both echo the ikat theme, and the two colors featured in both fabrics—sapphire and off-white—are identical. The result is that each fabric makes the other more interesting, without competing and without creating a cacophony.
