Hello friends! Today we’re thrilled to share a real-life case study on how to mix multiple colors & decorating styles to create a collected space full of character that isn’t busy or confusing.
Matt and I recently stayed in a converted 1920s schoolhouse for our anniversary. It was a sweet little babymoon too, since we had but a few weeks left until our little one arrived. Matt came across this 1920s converted Airbnb schoolhouse that showcased many different style eras & colors so beautifully that we couldn’t stop marveling at how well done it was.
How to Mix Decorating Styles by Giving Pieces Something in Common
Why do some rooms full of different styles feel charming and collected, while others feel jumbled together? Style mixing goes wrong quickly when the pieces have nothing in common. When there is a common thread, the pieces will seem naturally connected. An easy connection is color. Other times the connection is a repeated material or a finish, and occasionally it’s simply scale. The idea isn’t to match things, but to give them a commonality that effortlessly draws them together.
This is one reason English cottage rooms have always inspired me so much. The homey character comes from things collected over generations, carried home from travels, the very essence of that wonderfully layered look which is such a part of what cottage style is. Mixing decorating styles is not a risk of the modern day, but a well-practiced art that dates back through generations. In the loveliest old homes, it’s simply how the rooms grew. This is great news for you & me since it means we don’t have to reinvent the wheel! We can simply observe & learn.
Before you bring something new into a room, ask yourself:
- Does the color relate to something already here?
- Does it repeat a material or a finish?
- Is its scale comfortable beside everything else?
- Does the room still have breathing space?
- Does the piece hold meaning for you?
1. Let One Color Scheme Connect Different Eras
The schoolhouse was furnished from several different periods, and it all sat together happily because the color scheme was carried through the entire building. That repetition kept the eye moving. Rather than stopping to wonder whether two pieces came from the same decade, I noticed how naturally they belonged in the same room. You can do this at home without committing to a single decorating label. Choose a small group of colors you genuinely love, then let them turn up again and again in your artwork, your textiles, your collections.
In our home, blue & white do exactly that. Collections of antique blue & white transferware platters & plates are grouped for the greatest impact. This sets the precedent and naturally makes room for different pieces in the same color palette, such as the blue & white chinoiserie umbrella stand I scooped up at a flea market for $15 while shopping with family. Different makers, different decades, no relationship to one another at all except the color. That’s enough. A settled palette also makes thrifting easier, too. You can bring a little treasure home knowing it will blend with the rest of your decor.
These principles are so helpful if, say, you’re moving away from one style to more fully adopt another. This is the case with many who fully embraced the farmhouse look, but then wanted to pivot and go for the endearing cottage style. For specific tips on that transition, you might want to read this post on moving from farmhouse to cottage style.
2. Let Real Materials Do the Work
The schoolhouse never depended on everything coming from the same decade. Real materials gave the whole building a common language & a solidity. Old original brick was exposed in several places throughout the building; wood furniture, real (high-quality) brass hardware & repeated linens all felt at home together.
We lean towards using real materials in our little home as much as we can. We are very close to finishing a bedroom remodel and have come across a gorgeous, well-made brass doorknob. It is not only beautiful, but you can just tell by the weight & feel in your hand that it is real. We’ve been so impressed that we’ve set the goal to replace all our door hardware with these over time.
When you’re mixing styles, look for materials that age well:
- Natural or timeworn wood
- Linen, cotton and wool
- Brass or another warm metal
- Pottery, stoneware and plaster
- Woven baskets and natural fibers
You don’t need all of these in one room. Two or three of them, repeated, will do more than you’d expect.
3. Mix Reproduction Pieces With Genuine Antiques
Another great lesson on mixing style eras was the lighting. The schoolhouse used vintage reproduction fixtures right alongside antique furniture and vintage artwork. The finishes and the colors agreed, and that was the whole trick. Great news when you’re decorating a real home on a real budget! Not every fixture has to be an antique. A well-chosen reproduction brings the character while giving you the size and the function you actually need. Style agreement versus true age can be just the ticket. In our current kitchen, we hung a true 1920s milk glass pendant with modern fittings, and if you didn’t know the fittings were new, you’d never notice! You can read more on this concept in this post on thrifty ways to add English cottage charm without renovating.
The same holds for artwork. Your frames don’t have to be identical, and the pictures don’t have to come from one period, so long as a color repeats or the frame finishes relate. I shared more of that thinking in my guide to designing the perfect eclectic gallery wall.
4. Practice Restraint & Leave Breathing Room
The last lesson was the simplest, and it makes a big difference: not every surface was filled. Restraint gave the good materials and the collected pieces center stage. My eye had somewhere to rest, proving that a collected home can still be a calm one. Group similar things together, and leave open space around them. That’s exactly why I keep my transferware platters as one group rather than dotting them around the house. A collection reads as one confident statement that way, instead of thinly spread clutter.
A Collected Home Tells Your Story
Learning how to mix decorating styles has very little to do with memorizing rules. It’s about noticing the connections between the things you already love. This is such a part of cultivating the art of home. We’re not matching every object or chasing one perfect style. Repeat a color. Choose materials that age well. Let your finishes agree, put old and new side by side with confidence, and then leave enough breathing room for each piece to be seen. Curating is a skill you build one choice at a time. I’d love to know ~ what styles are you blending in your home? Leave me a comment below!
Warmly,
Rachel
