To bring harmony to a room or liven up its atmosphere, there’s nothing better than using throw pillows. A true decorative accessory, the throw pillow works well in any room: living rooms, family rooms, offices, or bedrooms. You can also change them up as often as you like, depending on your tastes or the seasons. To do this, there’s nothing better than playing around with the many shapes they come in: round, square, rectangular, and more.
How do you choose the right size for your indoor cushions? What factors should you consider when deciding on the size of your cushions? What is the ideal size for a cushion based on the furniture it will complement? Find all the answers below.
Use Pillows to Enhance Your Home Decor
Cushions can be used as interior decor in various rooms. For example, they can be incorporated into the following types of furniture and spaces:
- on a sofa (whether it's a sofa bed or not);
- in an armchair;
- on a bed;
- on a bench;
- on the ground;
- on a sofa bed.
In addition to their decorative function, cushions can be used to provide comfort when sitting, particularly on dining room chairs or on recliners and lounge chairs. In the following sections, we’ll look at cushion sizes based on the furniture they’re meant to complement and decorate.
Choosing the Right Size for Sofa Pillows
When decorating a living room, family room, lounge, or office with throw pillows, there are several factors to consider.
Armchair Cushions
When choosing the right size cushions to accessorize a single armchair, an L-shaped sofa, a bench, or a sofa bed, it’s important to consider harmony and comfort. To do this, you should take the following into account:
- the height of the chair's backrest, because the taller the chair, the larger the cushions you can choose;
- the shape of the sofa—straight, U-shaped, L-shaped, with or without armrests, etc.;
- the height of the armchair or sofa;
- the number of pillows to use.
For a low-back or relatively low armchair, it may be a good idea to choose small cushions, whether square or round (about 20 cm in diameter). Sofas or armchairs with high backs can benefit from more generously sized cushions, provided they do not exceed half the height of the backrest. Additionally, these cushions should follow or conform to the lines of the armchair in question (rectangular or square).
Finally, however, it’s important to keep the concept of harmony in mind. Indeed, the goal is to choose cushions that don’t overwhelm the armchair, creating a refined and chic look.
Chair cushions
Chairs, single-seater armchairs, and recliners can be accessorized with cushions that you can lean against or sit on for added comfort. Again, the height of the cushion should not exceed half the height of the seat it is designed to complement. In terms of shape, you can choose round cushions or flat cushions for chairs. The latter provide additional comfort to the person sitting (making it more relaxing), as they are designed to be a few centimeters thick (2 to 5 cm).
Choosing the right size for floor cushions
A floor cushion serves both a decorative and a comfort-enhancing purpose. As a result, it should be larger than cushions designed for armchairs or chairs. You can also use this type of cushion to add a splash of color to the floor, particularly in the following rooms:
- a child's bedroom;
- an office;
- a large living room (to complement a sofa, for example).
In terms of shape, floor cushions come in a wide variety and offer greater flexibility compared to more traditional cushions. You can vary not only their width, length, or diameter, but also their height. So whether they’re round, square, or rectangular, their size can be adjusted to suit individual tastes.
Furthermore, if space is limited (in a studio apartment or a child’s bedroom), the floor cushion should be sized to fit the available space. In this case, the floor cushion should not exceed 40/45 cm in diameter or length/width.
Finally, floor cushions can lose their shape quickly if the filling material isn’t durable. Additionally, the height of these cushions may decrease over time. For example, cushions filled with polystyrene and down are the ones most prone to sagging. It may therefore be wiser to opt for cushion fillings made of natural fibers or even standard foam.
Choosing the Right Size for Bed Pillows
There are many ways to decorate a double bed using pillows.
- You can opt for a minimalist look by using two square cushions measuring 40 x 40 cm or 45 x 45 cm.
- You can combine a bolster with two square pillows to place at the head of the bed.
- You can use two large, solid-colored square cushions as a base, then gradually add various smaller cushions. The idea here is to play with both the sizes of the cushions (from largest to smallest) and their colors and patterns. Note that patterned cushions should be placed in the front. The goal, of course, is to achieve a chic and luxurious look by varying the sizes and fabrics of the cushions.
- The last option is to follow the arrangement described above, adding a round pillow as the finishing touch to the arrangement of the various pillows placed at the head of the bed. This pillow arrangement can also include square and rectangular pillows.
The various arrangements and configurations suggested above are designed to create different looks. The variety of cushion sizes and dimensions is intended to complement the interplay of fabrics and textures.
For single beds, using a bolster—90 cm long, for example—may be more than enough. You could also consider adding a square European pillow on top. Similarly, the ideas described above for double beds can be adapted to this type of bed.
We recommend these other pages:
- What shape should you choose for your sofa cushions?
- What shape should you choose for your chair cushions?
- Rectangular, square, or round cushions: Which one should you choose?
- What color should you choose for your decorative throw pillows?
- What kind of cushion material should you choose?
- Why choose a linen pillow?