Whether you want to curl up on the couch with a hot mug of coffee, want to style a cozy reading nook, or even simply want to add texture to your spaces, a throw is a perfect way to do that.
It may look simple but the art of styling a throw requires some care, love and a keen eye for detail. With the right placement, it can soften the look of your room, add a bit of colour, and even break things up with a little pattern and texture.
Here’s a handy guide you can use to style throws in your interior designs:
On the sofa: The sofa is the perfect and most prominent piece of furniture to style a throw fabric on. You can also practice a lot of versatility with your styling options here. Many people feature a folded-up throw on their sofa’s backrest while others prefer to organically drape it on the corner of an arm for a cozier look. Some people also feature it on the corner cushion of their sofas as well.
Corner chaise sofa: Corner and L-shaped sofas are becoming popular fixtures in modern home interiors. Their open-ended chaises are the perfect place to style a throw. You can neatly fold up the fabric and put it on the edge of the chaise. Alternatively, you can also drape the entire fabric on the front of the chaise to emulate a lived-in look in your living room.
Beds: Many homeowners style a throw at the base of their bed in a strategically haphazard manner. Once again, it’s all about evoking a lived-in look, so you can be casual about this kind of styling. However, if you want to be a little formal or have a bedroom theme that requires a bit of rigidity, then you can always fold up the throw in a neat rectangle and carefully drape it over the side of the bed.
There’s another type of throw styling technique that you can use for beds. It requires a quilt blanket, which can be used as a backdrop so that you can layer your throw on it. It’s great for adding texture and fabric contrast to your bedroom.
Pro tip: A throw should never be confused with a bed blanket. The latter is bigger and thicker in size and never gives off the same effect.
Accent chairs and benches: Accent furniture is an excellent opportunity to style your throws on. Chairs are especially important, as they’re generally selected in colours and styles that stand out from the rest of the interior. You can choose throws in contrasting patterns and fold them over the top of the chair. Alternatively, you can also drape an unfolded throw over the arm or the seat of your chair for an organic, cozily styled look.
As for benches, you can angle a folded throw on the corner or simply drape an organically opened throw (make it smaller in size) across the center.
The great thing about this particular throw styling is that it uses the couch cushions to its advantage. In fact, the cluster of three contrasting cushions works really well in setting the right tone for this setting. The organically arranged throw has been semi-covered with the smallest cushion to give it more depth and stylistic precision.
Pro tip: Note how the colour scheme of the throw has been selected to provide the perfect balance between the grey of the sofa upholstery and the navy blue of the cushions. In this way, throws can also be used as the middle-man that visually connects two contrasting pieces of fabrics on the same piece of furniture.
You can always drape an unfolded throw on the back of your armchair for a stylish look. However, do remember to offset it with a single cushion, so that it looks intentional instead of messy. Other than that, you should also be artistic about your placement technique. You can style it so that the body of the throw arcs against the backrest and its edges touch the floor at a swishy angle.
Pro tip: Always choose the throw colour that plays in contrast with the upholstery of the armchair. This way, you’ll end up with a visually interesting setup.
If your interior design leans on the formal, classical, or even traditional side, then it’s best that you work with a folded-up throw. You can place it on the backrest of your accent or armchair, but it would certainly look better if you put it in the middle of the seat and complement it with a backdrop of stylish cushions. It’s a highly elegant and sophisticated way to feature throws in your spaces.
Pro tip: In this instance, you can match the throw colour to the chair upholstery, but your cushions must be selected in a contrasting hue to ramp up the contrast.
There are two ways that you can style a throw on your bed. The first is by neatly folding up the fabric and placing it horizontally in the middle of the bed. For this technique, you should ensure that the quilt or bedsheet underneath plays in textural contrast with the surface of the throw. It should also be darker than the bed covers so that the layering looks visually interesting.
The second technique is by organically placing an opened-up throw across the bed. It should be artfully wrinkled up at the right places to amplify the coziness of the bed.
Pro tip: You should have at least one or two throw cushions in the same hue as the throw. Ideally, they should be matched with cushions of a lighter hue so that there’s a nice visual anchoring and pleasing dissonance with the overall setup.
Foot cushions and ottomans are other unique furniture pieces to style throws on - granted that they are big enough. If your footstool leans on the oversized side, then you can simply drape your throw organically across its side. But if it is smaller, then fold up your throw before putting it at the end of the ottoman.
Pro tip: Make sure that the throw is darker in hue than the upholstery of the ottoman.
Another formal and sophisticated way to style a throw on your accent chair is by draping its folded version on the chair’s arm. It’s a formal style, so it looks good with classical style furniture. You can make the whole setup look even more holistic by setting up a plump cushion in the center of the chair. It would heighten the sense of coziness
If you want to be even cozier and unique with your throw styling technique, then you can do so with the help of a simple ladder shelf. They make an excellent interior design accessory and are perfect for giving any space a trendy, contemporary, and highly lived-in look.
You’ll need to pick out a strategic location to put this shelf on. It could be beside your media wall if you want it to be apparent. You might want to place it behind your accent chair if you want to be subtle about it. Then all there’s left to do is to drape a folded throw into one of the top rungs of the ladder and watch how everything pulls together wonderfully.
Many homeowners don’t know this, but throws can also be styled beautifully on outdoor furniture - especially chaise lounges. If you’ve got one where you like to sunbathe in winters or enjoy some cool outdoor times in summer, then this would be the perfect inspiration for you. Just artfully display the throw horizontally across the chaise bed and pair it with two contrasting throw cushions to complete the look.
Pro tip: The organic look of the throw styling works better for outdoor spaces, making it more casual.
So, this is everything you need to know about styling throws all throughout your home. We hope this guide gives you a better understanding and more confidence to style your throws.
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Have Fun Styling!
