apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

I really love your idea for orange pillows! I think that would compliment the tones in your couch.

I love that pale blue-gray color. Its not quite as bold as the red but it still makes a lovely statement. Just my $0.02 :)

I like the red color for a more bold but the pale blue-gray really looks good with the color of the couch. I am going to have to agree with AmandaC /suziegoombs.

I think something in orange and navy would look cool.

I think you might compromise with a red-orange. Straight up orange might "defeat" the lovely pear green color. You said you were terrible at matching colors. I was too (and am still learning). I got an inexpensive cardboard colorwheel for my bag to carry around. I match my existing color (your pear green) and then look at the complementary, analogous, etc. tints/hues. That has helped me select some colors that actually work together. Although I always want to buy pillows and more pillows first, I was wondering what other colors you have in the room, i.e., carpet, wall color, etc. where you might want to use to coordinate the pillows also.

To start off with, what a lovely couch it looks comfy!

I think the couch, even though the pear has an overall green tone to it, is basically a neutral providing a clean palette that can be highlighted with more or less anything depending on the season, mood, or perhaps more importantly the rest of your decor. That is the great thing about throw pillows. They are really quite interchangeable and are a great way to update the look of a couch. I agree with the folks at AT that bold color is the way to go, but I personally LOVE color.

I don't know if your personal style is more modern, classic, retro, eclectic or what but think of the pillow like a piece of jewelry in the sense that it accessorizes and can make all the difference and really adds a bit of personality.

I'm not sure how much experience sewing you have but if you have a hard time finding an existing pillow maybe visit a fabric store and grab some swatches and make your own? I myself am going to urban source sometime soon to look at some fabrics to reupholster this great danish chair.

I personally would say just have fun, be daring and don't be afraid! It's such a quick and simple things to change if you change your mind down the line :)

i think a dark orange would go well, setting you up to compete in the fall colors contest.

I think a butter yellow color be better than any shade of orange and I typically love orange with just about anything.

I love this couch. Where is it from?

The couch is the Corona from Macy's, priced around $799. It's available in pear, stone and chocolate. There were a number of posts here on AT about it. I've got one on order that I've been waiting on for at least two months.... it's been a popular item.

If you can handle pastels (lighter yellow, coral, dare i say pink?) or jewel (rich purple would be super) tones do it. The other combos, although pretty, are also pretty overdone.

FYI...
Bluefly.com has great deals on Thomas Paul home accessories.

Overdone or no, I am in agreement with bold with this couch and I would also agree that going to more of a cooler tone, such as a true red that has a touch of blue in it would work, the blue gray just doesn't do it for me, judging by the want for orange. However, someone also suggested something other than straight up orange, such as amber, umber or something in the pumpkin/yam color might work, but straight up orange, don't know. I'm not a fan of orange other than as an accent and even then, it'll be paired with yellow, brown and red, ala mod 70's.

But whatever you do, don't be afraid to try. If you can, see if you can get a small swatch of the fabric of the couch to take with you to try against various fabrics. Also, don't forget texture as it will have a say in how the color "reads" too.

Good luck!

teal.

Olive green satin.

Thanks everyone for the suggestions. I think I'm going to go with a true red. I really want a strong color...

And yes af, this is the Macy's Corona couch. I have to say I love it, and the price was fantastic. Luckily, I had saved a lot more than that for a couch, so I rewarded myself and banked the excess for additional furniture expenses.

They now carry a very similar couch at DWR (Bantam sofa) with a single extended seat cushion for $1600.