Decorative Pillows - Basic Knowledge - Uses

Decorative - Decorated pillows uses and common knowledge

Decorative pillows serve a dual purpose. They often have fancy cover material which serves to decorate the room where they are found. Since decorative textiles are commonly 54 inches in width, many decorative pillows finish about 17x17 inches. When used to decorate a fully made up bed, decorative pillows are likely thrown aside at bedtime, since they are not covered with a washable pillow case, thus, while found on the bed, they are primarily there for decoration, hence they fall under this category. These pillows may be custom made, as well as made by freelancers.

Decorative pillows are also found on furnishings in more public parts of the home, such as sofas, chairs and window seats. Here, their common use may overlap both orthopedic and bed pillows. For example, unless a person has some particular medical condition, they will likely use a handy decorative pillow for lumbar support, as needed, while seated on a sofa. Likewise, for the occasional nap, decorative pillows are handy for supporting the head or neck, even though they may not be covered with a pillow case, as are bed pillows.

There are five common synonyms for decorative pillows which are descriptive of their use in the home. "Accent" pillows emphasize or accent some other part of the home decor. The terms "sofa pillow" and "couch pillow" refer to the place these decorative pillows are likely found. The terms "toss pillow" and "throw pillow" may refer to the way they generally arrive in their places.

Novelty pillows are shaped like humorous objects (a banana, tweety bird, a human leg, a chainsaw, a dill pickle, a former president) and are meant to brighten up and add humor to a room or lounge area.

Tent-flap pillows are placed at the front of a stack of pillows decorating a bed. This pillows have a separate flap of fabric that is attached at the top of the pillow and folds down over the face. The tent flap can be loose or tacked down; if the flap is loose a decorative tassel or bead is usually used to weigh the flap down so it hangs properly.

Floor pillows are another subset of decorative pillows. These pillows often finish 26×26 inches (one half of the width of the textile, less seam allowance)

Combination pillow

A combination pillow is a pillow which is for those sleepers which are sleeping in a combination of positions and would like to use their pillow to hug or play.