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All florals can't be lumped together. That pillow looks great.

What do they do to you if you break a rule in the design rule book?

That's a nice pillow (although I think a brighter color would have added some pop amid the gray and white surroundings). Don't let your sister get your down- she's just jealous of your good taste.

That is a more modern floral and looks great on that couch. All design decisions don't need to be based on DWR catalog. I actually prefer when people mix modern or mid-century pieces with more feminine colors and patterns.

Oh, lord. Choose the pillows you like. Those are lovely and look great with the sofa color. This is part of the love/hate thing I have with design and even my beloved AT--it has helped me so much in furnishing my new apartment, which looks better now than any place of mine ever has, but also makes me second-guess every design decision, because what would THEY think? (THEY meaning those in the know, the AT folks, the world at large.) At the end of the day, who cares? We're the ones that have to live there!

I have an Amy Butler modern floral pattern on the pillows on my Room & Board Andre sofa and they work well. If you were going shabby chic, might not work, but yours look great.

For the love of design.. do not, I repeat, DO NOT use a catalog as your only design guide! Perhaps DWR just doesn't sell pillows so having a floral pillow would confuse people and they would constantly ask where they can buy such pillow.

Your pillow looks great on the sofa. Tell your sister to get over it. :)

I agree.. There are no hard and fast anti-floral laws.
But I also think that if you are going to use so many muted colors (the grays, browns and blues) you could punch up the color a little somewhere nearby (maybe a more saturated pillow to accompany the floral?) to keep the space modern and fun.

I wouldn't even consider that pillow "floral". I would call it botanical. And modern. And it looks nice.

"Floral" is a broad category; I don't see how anyone could lump this pillow in with, say, an Oriental rug or country French curtains and dismiss them all because they include flowers! Your pillow has a fresh, contemporary floral. I think it's very nice.

1. Hurricane in New Orleans
2. Fires in Southern California
3. This pillow

We sell that pillow and many other "floral" ones in our online store. There is absolutely nothing wrong w/florals or botanicals. There certainly are beautiful modern interpretations of traditional themes, i.e. florals, and just because one store is not selling something it doesn't mean that it is not "in" or it is a faux pas of some sort to own such an item.

My best advice is to buy what you like, what makes you happy and what you can live with. That Amenity pillow is beautiful but admittedly it is not an inexpensive pillow. When choosing decorative accessories, especially better quality ones that can cost a bit more, it should be something that YOU really love and not a purchase based on what other people will think.

Who cares what other people think anyhow? It is your sofa. Dress it up the way you like and enjoy it!!!

Rick: Great point! Thanks for the reminding of what's really important.

If you like it, do it. "Fashion Faux Pas" are ridiculous!

If you love it, it doesnt matter what DWR or AT say!

Your home should be full of the things that make you happy.

As others have said, that's a botanical, not a floral. Sisters are to be loved, not always to be heeded.

Besides, have you ever seen the Design Sponge blog? She shows all KINDS of hip, happ'nin' new fresh funky florals and patterns, and stuff that are almost ALL very modern.

There really does seem to be a very big trend these days toward various kinds of silhouettes of things done in a color against a white background. It MIGHT have coincided with the popularity of the now-only-fairly-young African-American artist whose name escapes me now, whose work evokes the old timey black-and-white paper-cut-out silhouettes from the Victorian era, but which she executes on a mural-sized scale, and tends to do in politically- and racially-charged scenes.

Think what you will about the content, they're gorgeous, and I wouldn't be surprised if they've contributed, whether consciously, or un-, to the popularity of this look.

PLEASE forgive how long a response this has been!

Oh, and by the way, I like your pillow with that sofa. Since I can't see the rest of the room, I'm kind of hoping that you're acknowledging that blue elsewhere in the room, though.

I love it. The contrast makes both pieces pop.

a) I like it quite a lot. And incidentally, as someone pointed out, the pillow is a pretty "modern" floral.

b) It's all about what you like. It's your home. The only 'faux pas' in my book is living in rooms that don't reflect your personal taste.

(p.s. DWR is not the decorating Bible. I promise you're not hell-bound if you throw in a baroque sconce or even a velvet Elvis if that's your thing. ;))

I think it's the lamp that might be over.

I say this with compassion, as I actually have the exact same brown gourd lamp. I love it, but it was a trend and now it's past its prime. Maybe I will put a floral lampshade on it, just to be really sassy.

I think your sister committed a social faux pas, and those are waaaaaaaaay more serious.

And besides, from the very few items we can see, it appears as if you like your modern soft, as evidenced by the lamp. It's totally okay to layer less-than-severe modern pieces in a modern interior.

My roommate does the same thing to me - I'll happily reveal my newest purchase, and he'll give me this somewhat pitying look. However, I don't take it to heart since I've seen his room, and he doesn't even have blankets on his bed.

So yes, there's no accounting for taste, but all that matters if if YOU like it!

Thanks everyone! Your feedback, as always has been terrific! Rick, I almost fell on the floor with your response! Thanks for the laugh! I got what I needed, and know that i should go for what i like... I guess that is the part I am not so good at as i seem to like A LOT of conflicting styles!!!! But given the feedback, perhaps i need to embrace these contradictions! (either that or discuss with real therapist!!)
Thanks again all!

DWR is fetishized quite enough around here without you treating it as Holy Writ. You need to remember that a) good design doesn't change on a seasonal basis and b) an apartment full of the latest 'it' pieces will look as cold and contrived as a corporate lobby.

That is not your grandma's floral print. It looks sleek and modern. Your sister is reading from an old script. She just doesn't know...

I agree with wildfires and hurricanes and darfur and AIDS etc etc etc etc being more important than a pillow... but if you want to read/discuss those things perhaps you should be blogging on CNN, Drudge Report, BBC, or the countless other websites out there devoted to such things.

Now, your pillow dilemna.... agreed with other posts, its a modern floral pattern, very graphic and looks good with your sofa.

Curtis: Kara Walker.

I think it looks wonderful. And, I think catalogues, while sometimes inspiring, are most often very "safe" as they have to appeal to most people. Where as your room should appeal to you :-)

(it appeals to me too, though!)

I think anybody gauche enough to come into your house and think "floral patterns are just...no!" needs a punch in the nose more than they need your hospitality.

But that's just me.