I, Mark Roemer Oakland, believe one of the easiest ways to style your outdoor space is to make use of outdoor cushions. Cushions and soft furnishings are available in a wide range of color options, styles, fabrics, textures, and sizes and are much more economical compared to furniture. In fact, you can even experiment with different decor styles and themes to match the seasons without burning a hole in your pocket.

Here are a few tips you can follow to style outdoor cushions:

1. Customize the color scheme – When choosing outdoor cushions, it is important to pick the most suitable colors that would blend well or compliment your outdoor space. You can draw inspiration for color schemes by researching good color combinations for evoking a specific mood. Alternatively, you can pair the color palette of your outdoor cushion with the existing furniture in your deck or outdoor area.

Ideally,  you would want to pair bright and exciting colors with neutral furniture and vice versa to create a balance and make the space look more cohesive. Generally, neutral tones such as gray, white, and light brown work well in outdoor spaces.

2. Experiment with different shapes and sizes – The outdoor cushions you select don’t have to be of the same size and shape. In fact, choosing outdoor cushions of different shapes and sizes can allow you to customize the look of the area and infuse it with extra depth.

For instance, the careful placement and combination of square and rectangular outdoor cushions infuse the space with a modern vibe. Alternatively, you can stick to square cushions of the same size to give the deck a formal vibe and infuse it with a depth of symmetry.

3. Choose the best fabric – Outdoor cushions need to be durable since they are subjected to harsh weather conditions outside. All your styling effort will become futile if you select outdoor cushions with low-quality fabric that become dull or weathered over time.

We recommend you select outdoor cushions with high-quality fabric that is resistant to UV rays, water, mold, and bleach, and is durable enough to last for years. Typically, such cushions are made to be life-proof and tend to be expensive. However, the extra money is well worth the cost since it will save you more money in the long term.

4. Mix different patterns and textures – Once you are done selecting the color scheme of the outdoor cushions, it is time to experiment with different patterns and textures to create the optimum effect and style. The goal is to select a variety of different pattern prints that work well together to make the overall decor more meaningful and aesthetically pleasing.

For instance, you can combine two patterns — one large-scale pattern and one small-scale pattern to create harmony and prevent the space from becoming too overwhelming. If you want to select multiple pattern prints, ensure you limit the total to a maximum of 3-4 prints.

5. Consider the theme – It is not always necessary to style the outdoor area around a particular theme. However, creating a theme can help add a sense of depth, character, personality, and wonder to the overall decor of the space. The theme of the space will affect and depend on every element present in the outdoor space.

Thus, you have to consider the different furniture, furnishings, items, and accessories when creating a theme with the different prints, colors, textures, or sizes with outdoor cushions. Your theme can be anything from a relaxing retreat, vintage era, and modern industrialism to anime, nature, and productivity.

6. Match quality vs quantity – The number of cushions you can have in your outdoor area will depend on your preferences and other factors such as the space available, your budget, the theme, and more. You can accommodate more outdoor cushions if you have a lot of outdoor space that can house large furniture or several small pieces of furniture.

The goal is to create a balance between quantity and quality when styling the deck or outdoor area with the outdoor cushions. For instance, it makes no sense to fill up the space with too many low-quality cushions that you have to replace in the near future. It is also not a good idea to purchase only a few super expensive cushions without the majority of the space left empty.

7. Prioritize comfort – You can decorate your outdoor space with the most incredible and beautiful cushions but they would be a waste if they don’t feel cozy and comfortable. The outdoor space is often associated with relaxing evenings with friends and families or peaceful retreats in the morning where you can forget all the worries of the world for a little while.

Thus, the outdoor area should be made as functional and comfortable as possible. Select cushions that have a firm and soft fill material with a comfortable exterior so that it remains suitable for all body types.

8. Select easy-to-clean cushions – Your outdoor cushions can become subjected to stains of different types including food spills when you are partying with your friends and family during an occasion. It can be a hassle to remove such stains, wash the fabric, and dry it to preserve their original appeal if you select cushions of the wrong type.

We recommend you select outdoor cushions that are easy to clean even when stained with sauces and coffee stains. Ideally, it should be stain-resistant or come with machine-washable covers for more deep cleaning. You can easily check for such things by inspecting the label of the product.

I, Mark Roemer Oakland, suggest you experiment with the placement of your outdoor cushions in the outdoor space to determine how they impact the overall decor and feel of the space. The combination of different colors, sizes, shapes, and textures can help you beautify the space but you also have to make the space feel comfortable and cozy. We suggest you only select high-quality cushions with durable and easy-to-clean fabric since they offer the best ROI and last a long time.