If you’ve bought a new sofa or bed and it looks a bit empty, or just want a change, then cushions are the best way to brighten up a living room or bedroom and tie it together.

Here are 7 tips on how to choose your cushions

1: Choosing your colours

Choosing a colour for your sofa or bedroom scatter cushions is the most difficult part! If you have a light coloured neutral sofa, such as a beige sofa, or neutral bedding it is just crying out for colour, but how do you know which colours to choose?

If you already have the rest of your room decorated, then turn to that for inspiration. Look at the curtains or blinds, any art work, wall hangings, other furniture and items such as vases. What colours do you see? Take one or two of those colours and use them as the main colour so that you can use the cushions to tie the room together.

If you don’t have a scheme or décor yet, and you have a coloured sofa then go by the sofa (or bedding) colour….

Beige Sofa

If you have a beige sofa, then this is a great blank canvas. Either choose from the rest of your room, or start with your favourite colour!

Brown Sofa

Brown leather sofas are in fashion right now. Rich golds, maroons and teals provide a nice contrast. Dependent on the style of your home, neutrals with textures, such as fur or knitted work well.

Grey Sofa

A grey sofa can look nice with either light complementary neutrals, such as beige, pinks and blues or with a bold contrasting colour such as red.

Blue Sofa

Blue sofas look best with colours that are very close to blue or neutrals. Choose bright contrasting blues to make the colours pop.

Green Sofa

Green sofas can look very classic or very dramatic, dependant on the shade. For classic green sofas choose another shade of green, neutral colours or floral patterns. For a dramatic green (such as a dark green velvet) choose dark cushions or metallics

Black Sofa

You can probably use pretty much any colour on a black sofa, but it is best to stay with lighter colours so that they contrast, rather than get lost.

Red Sofa

A red sofa is a bold addition to any room. Bright clashing cushions such as cerise cushions with create a dramatic effect, Lighter coloured cushions such as grey cushions will give it a modern look.

2: Number of cushions

The general consensus is for a sofa is:

• Use an even number of cushions for a formal look

• Use an odd number of cushions for an informal look

• Use 1-2 more cushion that there are seats eg a 2 seater = 3-4 cushions

You want to be able to sit on the sofa comfortably, with the cushions.

For a bed its more about practicality. Do you really want to take 20 cushions off your bed every night to sleep! Just a couple will look nice and will be practical.

3: Cushion size

There are a variety of sizes of cushions that are available. Size decisions depend on the size of the sofa. Huge cushions could drown a tiny sofa.

A common ‘large’ size is 60cm x 60cm.

All the cushions at theme30 are a medium size of 45cm x 45cm, which should look good on any size sofa or chair.

Try pairing two sizes together, such as a large or medium cushion as a ‘base’ and then a smaller one in front.

4: Cushion shapes

There is so much choice when it comes to the shape of cushions. Square cushions provide a traditional look, whereas a mixture of shapes provide an eclectic look. Try and stick to two shapes or three shapes, e.g. square, rectangle and a feature shape so that there is not too much going on visually.

5: Textures and patterns

It is the colours that will really tie the look together, so you can really go wild with textures. Velvet is a very classic look, but when mixed with a variety of other textures, such as fur or linen looks up to date. With patterns, you need to be cautious that you don’t clash the style, and so one, or maybe two patterns maximum is advised.

6:Cushion filling

The cushions at Theme30 do not come with a filling because it is down to very individual tastes. We recommend a 50cm x 50cm filling in our 45cm x 45cm cushions to make them nice and plump.

The two common types of filling are feather down and polyester. Feather down will stay plump and last for longer, but polyester is the cruelty free option.

Most can be reused, so if you have an old cushion, you can just change the cover!

7:Change your cushions with the seasons

Cushion covers are easy to swap over and a great way to reflect the different seasons, especially if you have a neutral sofa. Try some fluffy warm cushions in winter and some fresh colours in summer.