Mixing patterns, and thanks, FLOR! : Annie Elliott Design

You know I love FLOR carpet squares, right? I do. Have for years. I was an early adopter.

So imagine my delight when the FLOR folks invited me to give a presentation about pattern at their brand-spanking-new showroom in Georgetown last Thursday. Thanks so much to all of you who attended – it was super fun! (Naturally I meant to blog BEFORE the event, but, well, I was preparing my presentation and didn’t get to it. Sorry about that!)

A long time ago, I told you that patterned wall-to-wall carpeting was making a comeback – which it has, sloooowwwly but surely. If you haven’t had the opportunity (courage!) to embrace this trend yet, consider patterned FLOR squares. They’re less of a commitment, given that they’re not permanently affixed to your floor.

During the talk, I said that to mix patterns successfully, there has to be at least one unifying element:

– Color palette,

– Scale, and/or

– “Feel.” By which I don’t mean style, such as “mid-century” or “traditional,” I mean, “earthy,” “fancy,” “informal,” “luxurious.” You know, feel.

Ideally, a successful mix of patterns will have at least 2 of these elements, but one is better than none. (With apologies to Candice Olson, we all know that design rules were made to be broken, but let’s get you comfortable with this guideline and then you can riff all you want, ok?)

Here are a few examples of mixing patterns using FLOR tiles. Imagine this on the walls…

Manuel Canovas Como Flock flocked wallpaper — Como Flock wallpaper, by my main man, Manuel Canovas

This on the floor…

FLOR carpet tile Full Kilt black plaid — FLOR’s “Full Kilt” pattern in Smoke

And this in a pillow somewhere…

Romo fabric Arbus pattern — Arbus fabric in Ebony, by Romo

Or this rug…

FLOR carpet tiles Cambium Geranium — FLOR in the pattern Cambium, colorway Geranium

With a sofa upholstered in….

Romo Sarona fabric in Rope — Romo’s Sarona fabric in Rope

And some big, down-filled pillows in this small-scale pattern…

Picus fabric in Rocoto by Romo — Picus fabric in Rocoto, by Romo

You get the idea.

So remember: one unifying element when mixing patterns. Mix away, Gentle Readers! Mix away.

Quoted in publications from The New York Times to The Washington Post to Real Simple magazine, Annie Elliott is considered an expert in color, residential space planning, and telling people what to do in the nicest way possible.