The Impact of Color: How to Use Pillows to Enhance Your Home Decor

You may struggle to get that “magazine-worthy” look out of your living spaces. The colors can easily become the silent game-changers of any interior design strategy. They influence the ambiance, mood, and perception of your space. Let’s learn about the impact of color in detail.

Color Theory

Hues, saturation, and lightness are the three attributes of a color. Hue is the pure and undiluted state of color. Saturation refers to the intensity of the color. Low saturation makes color look ‘washed out’ and ‘grayed’ while high saturation imbues it with richness and sharpness. The lightness of a color refers to the brightness of the color. 

Tools

You need to understand various tools for manipulating color to achieve a specific result. The two main tools are contrast and anti-contrast. You will gain a solid understanding of the impact of color with these tools.

Contrast

Contrast is the difference between different colors. For example, the greatest contrast is using black alongside white. They will look extremely different.

 

You can use contrast to make colors pop. It will also restrict your colors into clearly distinguishable separate parts.

 

Modern aesthetic styles often utilize extreme contrast more than their classic counterparts. Large geometric patterns are commonly found with contrasting colors. 

 

There are various degrees of contrast. It depends on the hue, saturation, and lightness. Orange and red have less contrast compared to blue and yellow. 

Anti-Contrast

Anti-contrast is the concept of blending similar colors to achieve a style. It aims to provide an aesthetic by blending colors rather than their contrast.

 

For anti-contrast, you must choose colors similar in hue, saturation, and lightness. You must harmonize or even remove elements with contrasting colors. This style leans more toward the classical style.

Bright Colors

Blues, reds, bright yellows, and whites are some of the bright colors common in pillows. These colors are intense and can be challenging to balance.

 

You need to use multiple subdued colored pillows to balance a single one with a very bright color. There is a high risk of making your furniture look like a mismatched color wheel if you use too many brightly colored pillows.

 

In spring, use a bright pillow with colors like white and cream. Surround it with gray and brown pillows to subdue its intensity. Geometrical patterns complement such colors. Aim for some contrast without creating a complete blend.

 

In the summer, the general brightness is high. Dark pieces can look very subdued if you use them. So, make good use of contrast. 

 

Select pillows with bold and bright colors. Use as many bright and loud colors as you can. You need to balance the pillows with the general climate, too. 

 

Bright colors are difficult to balance in the fall. We recommend you use pillows with earthy tones to balance the bright ones. You should center your style around the blend of coziness and elegance.

 

Winter is the time for white pillows. They exude comfort and coziness. You shouldn’t use colors like pink or green. Avoid colors that are popular in spring and summer.

Pastels

These colors are pale and light compared to the bright ones. They are generally the light forms of standard colors like blue, pink, gray, and green. They are the middle ground between bright and dark colors. It is straightforward to use them without being too dominating or subdued. They are a safe choice for good style.

 

In spring, you should pair the pastel-colored pillows together. They shouldn’t contrast like in the summer. Use pillows with medium brown and light blues for a small effect. It is better to use solid pastel-colored pillows. Patterns can be too overpowering and overshadow the pastel base.

 

Summer is the time for contrast. You can use bright colors or dark colors to achieve the contrast. The effect will be milder compared to the contrast of bright and dark colors. Therefore, you should use them on a mild summer day or in a place with low exposure to sunlight.

 

We advise you to avoid combining the pastels. The combination will make your furniture look washed out. You want popping colors and contrast in the summer. 

 

Patterns should have an anti-contrast effect with the pastel-colored pillow. Too much contrast with bold patterns will overshadow the pillow. 

 

Pastel colors are standard in the fall, in the same way, bright colors are in summer, and dark ones are in winter. The texture will make or break your style this season. You should use slightly darker pastels.

 

The subdued pastels should act as the base, while the bright pastels like light blue and olive should be the highlight. Orange-colored pillows with lots of subdued pastels to balance it is a great choice for fall.

 

You can opt for contrast or anti-contrast in the fall. You can combine bright pastels with darker ones for a rich, elegant look. This style is suitable for a place with excess sunlight.

 

Anti-contrast can be a great tool to arrange your pillows in an area with a colder and darker fall. You can blend gray with light brown to achieve a muted look. Use what you want; you can’t go wrong in the fall.

 

The pastels should look like lighter versions of the dark colors in winter. You should avoid patterns with such colors. You need to create an inviting vibe in your home. Therefore, you should focus on textures more than the colors.

Earthy Colors

These colors reflect nature and the world. They emit a sense of the grandeur of the large forests. You should use them for a cozy look and to balance other colors. Some examples are browns, dark green, maroon, and tans.

 

Avoid using them too much in spring. You should only use them for contrast or to balance other colors. These colors aren’t suited to the bright and fresh spring.

 

Earth tones should be used as contrast pieces in summer. You can use a combination of brown pillows and red pastels for an iconic summer look. They can form the base of your pillow layers.

 

These colors make other colors pop. You shouldn’t use them as the highlight in summer. Avoid using big geometric patterns. Solid colors are decent.

 

Fall is the time for earth tones. Earthy tones are pastels for fall. Any combination of earth tones will look awesome.

 

You can pair brown-colored pillows and gray ones to create an inviting space. You can either choose contrast or anti-contrast as the overarching choice in fall. 

 

The anti-contrast style will make your furniture look monotone and muddy. You should use colors that are very similar in saturation and brightness. Patterns should be small, as you must design your style using a blend of colors. On the other hand, you can use very noticeable patterns for a highlight from the color blend. 

 

You should choose high contrast for a powerful style. Choose colors with different hues. You need to aim for consistent saturation and brightness. You should choose an assortment of uniquely colored pillows for a high-contrast fall style.

 

You should use earth tones with low saturation since high saturation and brightness are too overwhelming in winter. Avoid bright and colorful styles and use colors like brown and navy.

 

Limit the lighter earth tones to contrast only. The dark ones should be the base of your style. You should use large, distinguishing textures to complement the color blend. 

Dark Colors

Dark colors include blacks, charcoals, dark grays, and other overcast colors. Low saturation and brightness are the defining characteristics of this color.

 

Spring isn’t the best time to use dark colors. Try to use the pastel version of these dark colors, like light grays.

 

The advice for summer is similar to the one for spring. You can use a few dark-colored pillows to create an overwhelming contrast with the light colors. You can use the dark colors paired with pastels and earth tones. You can balance the truly dark colors with medium browns. Use a light pastel to top it all off. 

 

Grays are your friends in the fall. Try to use the gray-colored pillows as much as you can instead of the black-colored ones. Patterns don’t suit these pillows for the vast majority of the time. Sometimes, you can use bright patterns for a unique look.

 

Winter is the best time to unleash your dark-colored pillows. Feel free to use as much black as you can. The world will balance your colors. 

 

You should layer the colors for depth and dimension. You can use lots of blacks and grays to create a cozy haven in your home.

 

Dark colors work great with most types of textures. Even the overwhelming textures are balanced by the desaturation of the dark colors. You can also use embroideries with these colors.

It’s important to experiment with colored pillows to find the right balance. One Affirmation has a large pillow collection containing various colors and styles. We hope this guide helped you to enhance your home decor easily.