With over a million Spoonflower Marketplace designs, we have what you need to curate a stunning mix of patterns for your home decor and wallpaper. What do we mean by mixing patterns? With pattern mixing, the focus is on finding designs with differences that work together. Think mixing bold stripes and neutral polka dots for a classic take, or giant happy cats and small silly dogs for animal-friendly designs. We know it can feel a bit intimidating at first, but there are a few ground rules to follow that will make your patterns work together, every time. Ready to get started? We’ve asked our resident expert, Spoonflower’s Senior Manager of Merchandising Emerson Jones, to share her top pattern mixing tips to get you shaking up your style!  

Three people are laughing in a bed, one adult and two young children. The duvet features bright florals on a white background. The top sheet and pillows are bright yellow with small white flowers. The three pillows at the top of the bed each feature floral designs: one is green with small white flowers with black accents, one is dark blue with lighter blue and white flowers, and one is burgundy with rows of larger white flowers.
Floral designs created in different styles and in varying, yet harmonious, colors and sizes, make for an elevated, inviting mix of patterns. Featured collection

Emerson: With so many Spoonflower designs to choose from, it’s easier than ever to create a luxurious layered look in any space. From wallpaper to curtains, from duvets to sheets set and shams, follow these simple tips below to master the art of pattern mixing.

A round table with a pink-and-red tablecloth is covered in scattered plates and napkins in striped and checkboard designs in shades of green, yellow, red and blue, some with white accents. A cake with lavender-and-burgundy icing is on a clear glass cake stand to the back right, a short thick turquoise candle in a white wide candle holder is to the back left. The background wallpaper is lavender.
Finding a color scheme can help create a cohesive look. Featured collection

The Five Steps:

1. Curate a color scheme 

• To maintain a cohesive look, select a color scheme of 5-6 hues that speak to your personal style and the theme of the collection you’re creating.
• From there, select 2-3 primary colors and incorporate them throughout the space.  
• Use the rest of your palette as accent colors—this will create a sense of harmony and prevent the patterns from clashing. 
• Avoid including too many designs featuring the entire palette. Instead, opt for designs that contain 1-3 colors together, then pair them with complementary prints that feature your other accent hues. 

As shown from above, a person wearing an olive green shirt and black glasses cuddles with a black-and-white dog in a bed. The bedding linens all feature black-and-white designs. The duvet is a black-and-white plaid. The top sheet is white with a black grid. The bottom sheet is a black-and-white stripe. At the top of the bed, there are three pillows, which the person is laying against. A white pillow with rows of repeating black squares, a white pillow with rows of black squiggles and a pillow that’s black-and-white plaid.
Keeping your color palette to two colors can make for easier pattern mixing. Featured collection

2. Find your hero print

• Choose a statement pattern to serve as the focal point of the collection and establish the overarching theme. This one pattern is called a ‘hero’ design as it’s the one design a collection or group of designs is created around.
• This hero design should speak to your personal style and set the tone for the space.  
• Once you have your hero design, you can find complementary designs that contain motifs from the hero or pull out individual colors into more simple patterns. 

Pro Tip

Want to make this process a snap and lean more toward pattern matching? Curate your entire collection from the same artist to find designs that were made to coordinate and are more likely to color match. 
Image of a bunk bed with a tween child in each bed. The kids are looking at each other and smiling broadly. The top bunk area features a celestial theme with planetary wallpaper and star-themed sheets and duvet. The bottom bunk area features an ocean theme with crashing turquoise-wave wallpaper, surfboard-themed duvet, pillows and sheets.
Scale variety not only creates visual interest—it also helps to better define individual spaces. Featured collection

3. Consider pattern scale and create variety 

• When mixing patterns, consider their scale.  
• Combine large-scale patterns with smaller, more intricate ones to create visual contrast and avoid overwhelming the eye.  
• Think ditsy florals with bold, large-scale stripes or small gingham checks paired with jumbo florals.  

Image of a living room with a brown leather sofa and thin-planked wooden floors. A large tall window is behind the sofa. Wallpaper featuring tall brown close-together trees with small brown branches that have lots of brown leaves is on the wall behind the sofa. The curtains hung on either side of the window are a black, green and blue plaid. Thrown over the left arm of the sofa is a navy, black and green plaid blanket. The pillows on the sofa are a mix of subtle plaids and florals in a range of muted colors, red, yellow, slate, green and cream.
With echoing motifs and colors running through these designs, this living room looks cozy and cohesive. Featured collection

4. Mix pattern types   

• Experiment with different pattern types to add depth and texture.  
• Mix stripes with florals, ikat prints with polka dots or even animal prints with geometric patterns.  
• You want to balance contrasting and complementary patterns, creating an engaging visual dynamic. 

A bed with a white rattan headboard is shown from the side and placed lengthwise against a white shiplap wall. At the top of the bed are four pillows and shams. Two are in a checkerboard design (a blue-and-white sham and a red-and-pink pillow) and two have ditsy floral designs (a yellow sham with white flowers and a blue pillow with white flowers that have dark blue accents). The fitted sheet is white with small repeating red flowers. The top sheet is a blue-and-white checkerboard. The duvet is yellow-and-white plaid. Two other duvets folded down toward the middle of the bed are dark flowers on a lavender background and small purple-and-white flowers on a burgundy background.
These ditsy floral designs mixed with classic checkerboard patterns make for an eye-catching, cheerful bed. Featured collection

5. Trust your gut.  

• Ultimately, since mixing patterns is an art form, rules can be broken.  
• Trust your instincts and personal style.
• As you build your collection, step back, assess the overall look and change things up as needed. 
• Your project should reflect your unique taste and personality at the end of the day. As long as you choose designs you love individually, you will create a space that works together. 

Pro Tip

If you’re not sure of your personal style, creating a home decor or interior design mood board featuring images of homes you see in magazines or online can be a great place to start. You can also take our What’s Your Interior Design Style Quiz!
An infant smiles and stands up in a white crib with yellow floral bedding. A green chair is to the right of the bed, and has a white pillow with yellow lemons on it and a green blanket with yellow lemons and white flowers draped over the seat. Two rectangular wallpaper panels are behind the crib, they each have gray banners with white circles going around them and each feature a lemon tree on a light yellow background.
Pattern mixing is for everyone! It can work for all ages and all rooms. Featured collection

Frequently Asked Questions

What is pattern mixing?  
Pattern mixing is when you combine different prints together. While the patterns can match, the object here is to focus on mixing them, meaning they a) don’t have to match and b) can contain disparate unmatching elements. 
How do I mix patterns? 
This guide to pattern mixing will walk you through how to mix patterns like a professional!
How can I easily mix patterns on Spoonflower? 
To easily mix patterns on Spoonflower, utilize collections. You can start by looking at collections curated by a) you of designs you personally like, b) a specific artist based on a theme or motif, often of their own work, c) a Spoonflower community member or d) one of Spoonflower’s curated themes. Feeling daring? Take what you learned in this post and curate your own pattern mix show-stopping collection using these pro tips! 

Because Pattern Mixing Is For More Than Home Decor

Now that you know how to mix patterns for wallpaper and home decor, learn how Spoonflower artist and former Project Runway contestant Katie Kortman uses her bold and colorful designs to mix up patterns in her wardrobe too!
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