Fashionable cushion spaces

Today, cushions have become much more than mere furniture elements. They can be used as style accents and are great comfort enhancers and space utilisers. Their shape, size and feel can beautify the overall decor of the room.

This season, it is all about customising and expressing yourself by representing your personal style in your homes. And cushions are the best way to add your style to the decor of your room and give a sense of homeliness, warmth and individuality.

There are a plethora of cushions to choose from, right from the size, shape, texture, design, print and even the style of arrangement. This is what makes a ‘cushion’ the most versatile piece of upholstery in a home, as it immediately sets the tone for the feel in the room.

With the start of a new year, investing in cushions is the quickest and the most
affordable way of completely transforming an old couch or chair or bed from tired to lively! The first thing to remember while choosing cushions for any space is to consider the sizes involved. For instance, if you have a compact sofa, don’t put too many throw pillows on it. You don’t want to keep removing and putting them back every time you sit. Do consider the shapes also. These are the only technical aspects to keep in mind. Let’s take a look at what’s trending in the cushion world (you are totally free to unleash your creativity here).

Mix and match is the latest trend; coordinate richer colours with lighter ones to get the room to pop. Doll up your living room by mixing one or two patterned cushions with other cushions in a plain colour to highlight the whole living room decoration. Also, to make your home look bright and cheerful, you can bring in cushions that have graphic tints or embroidery. To complement a strong-coloured piece of furniture, you can choose cushions with neutral colours and noticeable embellishments like sequins, sparkles and tassels.

In the bedroom, nature-inspired designs like floral prints impart a festive appeal to your decor and add a sense of style to the room. To add an ethnic touch, jazz up the  decor by placing colourful cushions in floral prints. You can also depict your personal fashion through these cushions by simply taking an old sequin or mirror work kurti and transforming it into a cushion cover, which will brighten the space and make the room more vivacious. Today, one can find many ethnic-inspired cushions in the market. For the divan in your living room, go in for ikat cushions and for the couch in your balcony or garden, bring in tribal-themed throw pillows.

Colourful cushions are also perfect pieces to highlight an outdoor area with style like the seats in a small balcony, swings in the garden, comfy chairs in the library and other such areas. If you love quirky, you can go in for cushions that are shaped like fruits, vegetables, flowers or even cartoon characters.

Hues of choice

For a different ambience, pick the colour of your cushions according to the primary colour scheme existing in the room, or if there are already too many colours in the room, you can tone it down with neutral shades of cushions. Rich colours such as red, maroon, tangerine, orange and chrome yellow are indicative of royalty and evoke a sense of luxury. They add a touch of grandeur to the room.

If you are not a fan of bright colours, don’t worry. Subtle hues like grey and black also make any space look good, provided they are paired with the right colours. For example, pair grey with mustard yellow for a white couch and see what it does to the space!

(The author is executive director, Welspun India Ltd & managing director, Welspun Global Brands Ltd)