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Flexible decoration for a cozy and individual look

You’re really taken with the greenery living trend with its deep green colors and natural plant motifs, but you’re somehow hesitant to turn your whole apartment upside down and redecorate it. Instead of completely following the motto, you limit yourself to a few decorative cushions with large leaf prints that give your couch a whole new look. This guide will tell you how you can freshen up your home with the beautiful textiles and try out new trends without a lot of work or expense:

Beautiful in shape: This is what distinguishes decorative pillows from normal pillows

Decorative cushions are one of the easiest and cheapest ways to give your home an individual look. The soft decorative cushions make your sofa, armchair or even your bed more comfortable and add a decorative touch to the seating. Whether plain or colorfully printed – the zipper makes the pretty cushion covers easy to remove, so you can easily replace them and flexibly redesign your home without having to replace furniture or invest in a new coat of paint.

However, the sofa cushions differ from normal cushions in more than just their eye-catching covers. In addition to the usual angular or square shapes, they can also be round like a donut or have the shape of your favorite hero from a children’s series. Unlike classic pillows, decorative cushions are also usually filled with synthetic fibers such as polyester or cotton wool, so they keep their shape longer and you don’t have to fluff them up as often.

Plain or patterned? You can choose from these designs

Depending on whether you prefer something simple or eye-catching, different types of covers are possible for your decorative cushions. Here you can get an overview of the different options.

Patterned decorative cushions: eye-catching stripes, checks and motifs

If you like something eye-catching, colorful patterned decorative cushions are a good choice. In addition to models with flowers, checks or maritime stripes, cushions with motivational sayings and photorealistic animal or landscape motifs are popular. They can quickly give plain sofas a special look. For seasonal celebrations such as Christmas, you can decorate your home with snowflakes and reindeer. Afterwards, you can simply swap the cushions or covers for everyday print motifs.

Tip: The decoration looks particularly well-rounded if the patterns or the predominant colors of the sofa cushions are repeated in your living room curtains or bed linen.

Plain-coloured decorative cushions: subtle colours and structures

The advantage of single-coloured decorative cushions is that you can easily combine them. In plain colours or tone-on-tone with your sofa fabric, they are discreetly understated and make a wildly patterned sofa appear calmer. Tangible high-low structures and quilting as well as models in a classy velvet look, made of cuddly faux fur, traditionally knitted or with glamorous sequins provide variety. You can create a nice contrast with decorative cushions in bright colours such as purple, yellow or petrol.

Tip: Cushion sets with plain and patterned cushions that are colour-coordinated ensure a harmonious mix.

Natural or synthetic fibers? The right fabric for your cover

How your decorative cushion looks and feels also depends on the cover material. Read here how natural materials such as cotton and linen differ from the synthetic fibers polyacrylic and polyester.

Skin-friendly cotton

Cotton is skin-friendly and durable. The highly absorbent material can absorb a lot of moisture from the air and ensures a pleasant indoor climate. Cotton blends have a synthetic component that makes them more stretchy and robust. One example of this is corduroy, which has an interesting feel with its elongated grooves.

Cooling linen

Linen pillowcases are characterized by their fine box structures, which ensure a good grip. Linen is a strong and durable natural material. It is less supple than cotton, but just as breathable. Linen is popular in summer due to its cooling effect, and it also has an antistatic effect, so your hair doesn’t become electrically charged.

Warming polyacrylic

Polyacrylic is a man-made fiber that feels as soft and warm as wool. The material itself is light, but puffs up voluminously and can store your body heat well, which is why the material is particularly comfortable in winter. Pillows made of polyacrylic are elastic and dimensionally stable and hardly wrinkle, even when you squeeze them.

Hygienic polyester

Polyester is known as a smooth material, but can also have a velvety soft surface. The synthetic fiber is extremely robust and three times finer than silk, so mites cannot penetrate into the pillow. This makes the material particularly hygienic and suitable for people who are allergic to dust mites. Polyester pillows keep you warm and dry quickly, and they are also dimensionally stable and crease-resistant.

Tip: You can also use decorative cushions made of polyester or polyacrylic outside on the balcony, as they retain their colours even in a lot of sunlight.

Rustic to reduced: Which decorative cushion suits your sofa?

To ensure that your decorative cushion fits well into the room, it should match your sofa and the rest of your furnishings. Here are three different design ideas for inspiration.

Country house style: group formation in warm tones

In the down-to-earth country house style, warm earth tones and dark woods set the tone. You can round off a brown leather sofa with a few decorative cushions in burgundy red or mustard yellow . A few linen covers in the traditional tartan pattern loosen up the cushion ensemble and go well with a rustic wooden box as a side table.

Tip: Groups of pillows in odd numbers look particularly harmonious.

Oriental style: colorful all sorts with exotic charm

The main thing is that it’s colorful – this is the motto of the oriental living style. A large corner couch in simple black offers plenty of space for a sea of colorful decorative cushions in different sizes and shapes. Playful fringes, pompoms and tassels underline the exotic look.

Tip: To avoid it looking too wild, the colors should come from the same color family or be found in the carpet.

Scandi style: dark contrasts on a light background

The Nordic Scandi style is much more minimalist, as the design is reduced to simple shapes and light colors. Decorative cushions with geometric patterns in contrasting black or dark gray go well with a pastel-colored chaise longue. Natural motifs such as lush green forests also harmonize with the Scandinavian look and are a nice splash of color.

Five care tips: How to keep your sofa cushions clean

Decorative cushions usually have removable covers so you can wash them easily. The manufacturer’s instructions and the following tips will tell you how to clean the different fabrics.

1. Regularly beat your sofa cushions to remove dust. You can also use the upholstery attachment on your vacuum cleaner for this.
2. To wash, remove the pillowcase. Treat stubborn stains with a care spray. Test the cleaning agent on an inconspicuous spot, such as the back of the inside of the pillow.
3. If the manufacturer’s label allows machine washing, wash the cover as described. Models made of pure cotton can often withstand 60 °C on a gentle cycle, mixed fabrics, synthetic fibers and linen should not be washed at temperatures higher than 30 to 40 °C and should be spun as little as possible. For polyester and polyacrylic, fabric softener prevents the fabric from building up a static charge.
4. Wrap the wet pillowcase in a towel and then leave it lying down to dry. If possible, avoid using a dryer.
5. If the inside of the pillow is made of cotton wool, you should wash it gently by hand so that it doesn’t clump. You can put fillings with fluffy polyester balls or down in the washing machine as described by the manufacturer – tennis balls in the dryer will distribute a down filling evenly again.

Conclusion: Decorative cushions give your seating furniture a new look

With decorative cushions you can easily redesign your home, try out new trends and upgrade simple seating. You can find important information about this summarized here:

• Patterned decorative cushions with colorful stripes, checks, lettering or photo prints look great on plain-colored furniture. Seasonal decorations, such as Christmas motifs, are also possible. Make sure that the cushion colors are repeated in your curtains, carpets or bed linen.
• Single-coloured models bring more calm to a colourful sofa or bed. Special surface structures such as velvet or faux fur provide variety. Colour-coordinated sets of plain and patterned cushions look very harmonious.
• Removable pillowcases are easy to change and clean. Covers made of natural fibers such as cotton or linen are breathable and particularly individual. Synthetic fibers such as polyacrylic and polyester score points for their robust and crease-free shape.