How to Decorate With Throw Pillows + 38 Elegant Pillow Covers

Saffron Marigold - Updated: January 22, 2023

Keeping a variety of pillow covers on hand makes it easy for you to refresh and switch up your decor seasonally.  Luckily, our throw pillow covers aren’t only decorative, but they’re soft, inviting, and easy to launder. With a large selection of styles and colors, our block printed pillow covers will make it easy for you to find a pattern you love.

Indian block print pillow covers in various colors on a bench in front of pillows, decorating with throw pillows

Saffron Marigold carries Euro shams and throw pillow covers, both of which can be used in the living room, bedroom, or anywhere you can use a pillow! 

Decorating with throw pillows

Decorating with pillows isn’t always as easy as you’d think. Too few and your couch will look drab; too many and you won’t have anywhere to sit. Follow our formulas below for how to arrange pillows on a couch and you’ll have a designer look in no time. (And as a bonus, try our simply designer’s trick: pair a patterned pillow with a solid pillow or other patterned pillows that share at least one color.)

Display a throw pillow (or 2) on a chair

Whether it’s your favorite easy chair or a side chair that serves more of a decorative purpose, toss a throw pillow or two against the seat for instant, beautiful, and functional decor.

Blue and white star pattern pillow covers at Little Eastham Cottage

Decorate an entry bench using throw pillows

An entry bench may be your drop zone for books and bags, but it’s also where we sit to tie shoes, pull on boots, and pausing to remember last-minute details. Bring cozy comfort to an entryway bench by propping up a few throw pillows along the back. 

two throw pillows in an Indian print on an entry bench surrounded by eclectic decor
photo: April Hershberger at Barn Home Living

Bright up a window seat with throw pillows

Nothing quite beckons us to slow down and curl up with a good book quite like a window seat. Soften the space and save your back with a few throw pillows. And since window seats and pattern mixing are both charming, mix patterns here to your heart’s content.

floral cushion covers on throw pillows on a window seat

Toss two throw pillows in the corner of your sofa

Avoid the solitary look of one-pillow-per-corner on your sofa, and create a cushier, cozier spot instead. Simply set two decorative pillows in each couch corner for an welcoming, lush look.

photo: Krystal Black

Arrange a throw pillow trio on your couch

Don’t worry about being symetrical and instead follow the interior design rule of three. Try placing a single pillow in one corner and a pair of pillows across from it. This looks pulled together without trying too hard–a win-win.

how to arrange pillows on a couch, white and blue moroccan curtains at the windows

You might be wondering how many throw pillows can go on a couch? This is a frequent question–and for good reason! Once you start finding pillow covers that you like, you tend to collect them and want to use them all. However, it’s always a good idea to follow the old soccer advice of “when in doubt, kick it out.”  This recent commercial describes what we’re saying better than we could ourselves:

Clearly, you should always leave enough room on the couch for seating. Too many pillows prevents you and your guests from sitting comfortably.  To arrange throw pillows, work from the outside in. Use your biggest, fluffiest throw pillows in the corners, and progressively work your way from biggest to smallest the closer you get to the center of the sofa.

When you’re arranging pillows on a sectional, try working from the inside out by propping two pillows or one larger throw pillow (like a Euro sham) into the L-shaped corner seat of the sofa. After that, style the sectional using any of the tips we’re shared in this post for how to arrange pillows on couch.

colorful block printed pillow covers brighten up a leather sectional couch

Throw pillow covers: shop by style

Boho 

Moroccan 

Coastal 

Floral 

Throw pillow covers: shop by color

Purple 

Blue 

Orange 

Yellow 

Red 

Colorful 

How do you wash throw pillows?

To wash your Saffron Marigold pillow covers, simply follow the instructions on the tag inside the pillow cover. Note that any of our prints that have gold paste applied are dry clean only. For the rest, you can follow these instructions:

  1. Machine wash separately in cold water with a gentle detergent. Do not use bleach or a detergent with bleach additives.
  2. Tumble Dry warm.
  3. Iron using cotton settings.

You can also find specific instructions by collection by clicking on your print here.

The same rule of thumb applies when it comes to washing your pillow inserts. Pillow inserts made of silk, down, or wool tend to be dry clean only. In general, the rest can be washed by simply removing the pillow cover, pre-treating any stains, and wash on the delicate/gentle cycle. Hang to dry.

Shop Our Block Printed Pillow Covers »