Gone are the days when students had to choose a style and stick with it when decorating the home. Today, hybrids attract designers and students everywhere. And they are capitalizing on the surprising outcomes of mixing and matching unexpected combinations of furniture styles. Here are some tried and true combinations that will lend a fun and chic ambiance to your home.

Asia meets France

Pair Asian screen hangings with a couch covered in a slipcover made from French sheets. The most important thing is contrast. If your screen is colorful, choose a muted color for the couch. When East meets West, you’ll have an interesting and surprising outcome.

Old Meets New

While some bank on combining chrome and black leather and enjoy the modern outcomes, there is a way to add a little more surprise and interest to an otherwise modern palette. Incorporate the modern and new feeling of metal with a more rustic antique and your space will incorporate the interest created by combining the unexpected.

City Meets Country

Just because your house is in the middle of an urban city center doesn’t mean you have to deck it out in all urban wear. Often incorporating some rustic country details, you can create a warm feeling without making it too much of a cabin feel. Consider using salvaged wood for cabinets alongside of chrome chairs.

Tradition Meets Modern

Designers can’t emphasize the use of contrast enough when it comes to compelling interior design. Placing a traditional chaise lounge next to a minimal leather chair can offer a cool twist on the expected choice of one or the other. The chaise lounge will enjoy a new life and still maintain a comfortable and classic look.

Cozy Meets Edgy

Placing the sleek designs of glass and metal next to more primitive materials can create interest. For example, designer Kelley McDowell designed a metal shower window in her bathroom. In contrast, the stone floor makes the room feel like a cross between a primitive country home and a cutting-edge sanctuary.

Bright Meets Muted

If you want your personal flair to come across in the design of your home, avoid making it look like the beige and white stereotype found in catalogues. Instead, use color to brighten up your space. But don’t go overboard. If you use a bright color such as bright yellow, soften it by using muted rugs to tone it down. The rugs don’t have to be boring. Choose fun patterns, but make sure they don’t compete with the wall, or your guests eyes might go crossed.

Hard Meets Soft

You’re probably starting to notice the pattern. Opposites attract. Instead of designing your home with all metal, consider bringing in a mix of metal and upholster. Designer Vicente Wolf insists, “people get into trouble when they do too much of one thing.” Place super graphic and geometric furniture next to round, soft furniture.

The matchy-matchy look has been getting ditched by designers lately. They’re done playing by tired rules and they’re looking for ways to make design fresh. The only caveat is to make smart decisions about what contrasts you combine. You don’t want your eclectic dreams to turn into chaos.

Rose Singer writes articles for interior design sites and suggests a chaise sofa for comfortable seating.