Five Different Ways to Arrange Pillows on Your Bed
Styling your bed can seem like a daunting task - it’s not always easy to know how many pillows to use, what sizes to choose, and how to make it all look good together. A couple of months ago, I took a poll on Instagram asking about this very topic, and the overwhelming response was that YES, you’d love some tips. Clearly there’s a need for some easy, actionable tips on how to pull together a great-looking bed!
Well, good news - I’ve got some for you!
Today I want to share five of my tried-and-true ways to arrange pillows on your bed. These easy to follow formulas will guide your bedding decisions and help you make it look like one of those pretty beds on Pinterest (or maybe a fancy hotel room!) by the time all is said and done.
Note that the examples I put together are for a queen bed, but I’ll add some notes below each one on how you can apply the same look to a king bed.
Before we dive into my five go-to formulas, I want to define some terms to make sure we’re all on the same page on the vocabulary part of things. If you already know these, feel free to skip on down!
Standard sham: a decorative rectangular pillowcase that fits a standard “sleeping” pillow (20”x26”),
Euro sham: a decorative square pillowcase that fits a 26”x26” pillow insert,
King sham: a decorative rectangular pillowcase that fits a king size “sleeping” pillow (20”x36”).
Lumbar pillow: a small, rectangular decorative pillow that can vary in size - 12”x20” or 14”x20” are two examples of ones you might see.
All right, now that that’s out of the way, let’s go through these bedding ideas!
(As an aside, the bed I used as the backdrop for each of these examples is this Wingback Upholstered Headboard in Zuma White*. It comes in a bunch of different colors and fabrics and has great reviews, so if you’re looking for a modern upholstered bed, check that one out!)
1. Two euro shams + two standard shams + one long lumbar
This arrangement is one of my favorites because it looks really tailored and pulled together, but is actually super simple! The euro shams hide your sleeping pillows (they’re not always that pretty to look at, are they?), and that extra-long lumbar is a little bit unique and modern, which I love. It’s also great for folks who don’t want to have to make a bed with a ton of pillows, but still want it to look full and polished.
Here are the pillows I used above:
For a king bed: add a third euro sham and swap the two standard shams for two king shams.
2. Two euro shams + two standard shams + two small lumbars
This look is similar to the first, but instead of a single long lumbar, you’ve got two smaller ones. Our master bedroom is set up this way right now and I’m definitely a fan. My husband thinks it’s too many pillows, but I like the fullness of this look and I find that it’s not a big deal to throw the two sets of decorative pillows back on when I make the bed in the morning.
Here are the pillows I used above:
For a king bed: add a third euro sham, swap the two standard shams for two king shams, and make sure the lumbars you use are on the larger side (bigger than 12”x20” is a good rule of thumb).
3. Two 24” pillows + one lumbar
If you want to go super simple, this look is a great option. It’s especially good if you sleep on two pillows that you can stack at the base of the headboard - they’ll provide a nice spot for those decorative pillows to lean up against. The key here is for those two square pillows to be on the larger side, but not be quite as large as a euro sham. For a queen, that means 22” or 24” pillows. You can be more flexible with the size of the lumbar.
Here are the pillows I used above:
For a king bed: this look isn’t necessarily my favorite for a king since it can look too bare. If you do go with this look, not much changes from the arrangement above, but I’d stick to 24” square pillows and go with a larger lumbar to make sure everything looks substantial and stands up to the wider width of a king.
4. Double stacked pillowcases + two 24” pillow + one 20” pillow
Here’s another one for those of you who sleep with two pillows! This one starts with a double stack of standard pillows at the base of the headboard and builds out from there with square pillows. With this arrangement, you’re only removing three pillows from the bed at night and it’s super easy to remake in the morning!
As a side note, this post is less about choosing the actual pillows, but isn’t this pillow combo a fun one? I love the mix of colors, textures, and styles.
Here are the pillows I used above:
For a king bed: no changes! :)
5. Two euro shams + one 22” pillow + one 20” + one lumbar
This last pillow arrangement formula is for those of you who are more free-spirited and like a more casual look overall. The two euro shams in the back provide structure for the combo of three different decorative pillows in front. Those three get progressively smaller-scale as you get to the front and they just sort of lean against one another in a low-key way. If you really want to mix up the colors and textures, this is a great look for that.
Here are the pillows I used above:
For a king bed: add a third euro sham, and choose decorative pillows in 24” square, 22” square, and a larger lumbar ((bigger than 12”x20” is a good rule of thumb).
What do you think of these different ways to arrange pillows on a bed? Do you use one of these in your home now? Which one is your favorite?
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