Talk to me about cushions

[dingit]

I need new ones as
A. Never really liked the expensive John Lewis ones I had to begin with
B. it looks like someone has murdered Orville the ducks little cousin, feathers come out all the time.
Sofa is chocolate leather ( yawn). Curtains red wine colour.
I want that nice mixed cushion look, but don't know how to achieve it.
Cushions at the moment are floral and all the same. I quite fancy tartan or stripes, and some texture. Where do I start please?

I love cushions. We have chocolate leather sofas too, but I think they make a good neutral background for more vibrant accessories.

We had some feather filled cushions, I think also from JL, that were a nightmare, the fabric inner was poor so the feathers were always coming loose.

I would suggest starting by making a Pinterest board of cushions which appeal to you and go from there. I usually stick to three colours per room as too many can get a bit chaotic.

Have a look here
www.tkmaxx.com/home/cushions/icat/4231 and their Home Sense branches too as they have plenty of variety to help you work out what you're looking for.

Bless you, I didn't think of tkmax. I've looked at next, bhs, Dunelm mill.

So just one more question, do I make them all different on each sofa, or have some the same, and how many on two seater and three seater?

It really depends on what stores you have near you. You do have to sort the wheat from the chaff as it were, but I find Home Sense has some really nice stuff and the stock changes so often.

That's another point actually, don't feel as though you have to get everything sorted all at once. I have a variety of cushions collected over time, but the criteria is a really good case and quality filling.
There were some very good bargains in JL just after Christmas, I got some patterned with pigs on the front and pink and green tartan on the reverse.

Otherwise you could buy the covers and the inners separately.

I have a mix of square and rectangular and I think I have five on a three seater sofa and in the other room probably six on each sofa, but they're really big sofas. I also have some on chairs and propped up on a footstool that sits against a wall, but we use the cushions to get comfy, so they move around, they're not just for display, they're patterns we like, but there to be used iyswim?
We do treat them quite casually. I don't think there are any style rules really, just what you feel happy with.

Ours are a mix of plain covers which have some texture, some embroidered and also printed.

Best places for cushions are etsy and eBay. Lots of individuals that use wonderful fabrics to make covers, much cheaper than in the shops.

Have a search for marimekko cushions, or Thomas Paul, or try designers guild.

You can search 'retro cushions' if you like! Lots of interesting things.

I'd recommend you start with the perfect tartan, then look for fabrics that somehow tie in with that... Maybe pick up one of the colours, but in a different texture, like a silk dupion, a sheepskin, or a chunky knit. Lots of fabric collections have different styles (eg a tartan, a stripe and a herringbone tweed) that use the same colour combination.

If you can sew your own, or if you can find (pay?) someone who'll do it for you, it really opens up your options.

We have a total of six cushions between a 3-seater, 2-seater and an armchair - a variety of shapes and sizes. No two are identical, and they do tend to migrate around according to who's sitting/sprawling where - we're not fussy.