Sage Green Living Room Ideas
Sage green is a natural fit for living rooms because it is soft enough to live with every day but still has real colour. Pair it with a cream or oatmeal sofa, warm wood and one warm accent, such as terracotta, mustard or blush, and choose art that brings in that accent next to a little green.
Below: the best sofa colours for sage walls, sage with grey or with wood, rustic sage ideas, and how to choose art for a sage green living room.
Prints for this look
The colour palette
Sofa colours for sage green walls
- Cream, oatmeal and boucle are the easiest choice and keep the room light.
- Caramel or tan leather brings out the warmth in sage.
- Terracotta or rust velvet is a bold, earthy pairing.
- Charcoal suits cool, grey-leaning sage and gives a more tailored look.
Avoid a sofa in exactly the same sage as the walls, which can make the room feel flat. A shade lighter or deeper, such as olive, works better.
Sage green and grey, or sage and wood?
Sage leans either cool or warm. Cool sage has more grey or blue in it and pairs well with soft grey, white, black metal and stone. A sage green and grey living room feels calm and modern, but add warm wood or a brass lamp so it doesn't feel cold.
Warm sage has more yellow in it and sits naturally with oak, walnut, cane and terracotta. Whichever way your paint leans, keep the sofa, rug and art on the same side.
For the overall balance, try the 60-30-10 rule: 60% sage, 30% cream and wood, 10% accent. Our decorating rules page explains it.
Rustic sage green living room ideas
For a rustic look, combine sage walls with chunky wood furniture, a jute or wool rug, linen curtains and terracotta pots. A worn leather armchair, a woven basket for throws and a few stoneware pieces on a shelf all add to it. Keep metals warm: brass, bronze or blackened iron.
On a sage TV wall, a pair of 12 x 16 in prints in warm oak frames either side of the screen keeps the rustic feel and stops the TV dominating.
Art for a sage green living room
Prints with a warm accent and a little green look most at home on sage: terracotta abstracts, botanicals, desert plants and soft landscapes. Very bright primary colours tend to fight with sage, so choose softer, earthier versions.
Above the sofa, aim for art about two thirds of the sofa's width. On an 80 in sofa that is roughly 52 in of art, hung 6 to 10 in above the sofa back. Browse the sage green wall art collection or warm the room with terracotta prints.
Sizes at a glance
| Size | Works for |
|---|---|
| 8 x 12 in | Shelves, desks, small gaps, sets of 3 |
| 12 x 16 in | Hallways, side walls, pairs |
| 16 x 24 in | Above a sideboard or small sofa, the anchor of a gallery wall |
| 24 x 32 in | Above a standard sofa or bed |
| 32 x 48 in | Large walls, open-plan rooms, statement pieces |
Every print is made to order on museum-grade matte paper.
