I Tried Pattern Clashing in My Home, but Failed Miserably — So I Asked Interior Designers How They Get This Tricky Skill So Right

Image of a bedroom with pink chintz wallpaper, and pink trim, and a pink ceiling. There is a purple and blue plaid chair and ottoman, and a bed with a green velvet headboard and blue and pink bedding.

Fallen in love with a cheetah print, but can't stop thinking about those chintz curtains? Surely there's no way they'd work together. Wrong — you shouldn't instantly shy away from mixing clashing prints in your interiors; it's often a sign of true style. But the goal is crafty coordination, not careless clashing, and it's a fine line that designers walk.

With maximalism making a clear (yet elevated) return to contemporary design, you can expect to see several pattern trends dominating the decorating sphere this year. Are you a newly found zebra print fan? Have you bought into the plaid revival? There's no reason why you have to choose just one singular pattern to set the tone of your space; when you carefully layer your prints based on color palette, scale, and a sense of balance, pattern clashing can become a real symbol of style, rather than a design faux pas.