Decorating your home is a big process. Between deciding on furniture and general decor there’s a lot that needs to be taken into consideration. Flowers bring the beauty of the outdoors into your home. When you use them carefully, they can become an integral part of a room’s palette! Here are a few tips to help you get started designing with flowers.
1. Create Pops Of High-Contrast Color
There are a few main ways designers use flowers in decor. But one of the most striking ways is using them to create a pop of brilliant color. One dramatic way to do this is by incorporating complementary colors. For instance, say you have a mostly blue and white room. Orange is blue’s complementary color, so it pops against the blue.
Try adding one or more bouquets of orange flowers throughout the room. Or if you want something a little more permanent, include a potted orange flowering plant or two. You don’t have to do this with complementary colors, though. Bright yellow daffodils look especially striking against a charcoal gray accent wall!
2. Choose Quality Replicas For Year-Round Color
Lots of people love the look of real flowers. But if you want to make flowers a more permanent part of your decor, consider high-end replicas. Well-made artificial flowers can be virtually indistinguishable from fresh-cut flowers. And when you find a bloom you like, you can make it a permanent part of your home’s decor. You can have calla lily decor in the middle of winter or fresh-looking chrysanthemums in early spring!
3. Cultivate A Multi-Texture Monochromatic Palette
If using flowers to create contrast isn’t for you, you might find you want to use them in a monochromatic palette. Dreamy-colored hydrangea blossoms can add some interest to a cottage-style living room. Try soft white or pastel-pink blooms atop a whitewashed wooden dresser.
Even in a monochromatic palette, you can still add some visual interest with texture. If you have a white marble kitchen, try including a vase of fluffy white carnations on the kitchen island. The soft, puffy blooms contrast nicely with the flat, glossy marble countertops. If you want to play up the texture contrast, you can choose a ribbed or otherwise textured vase, too.
4. Fill In Awkward Spaces
Every home has that space at the end of a hallway or a strange corner you’re unsure how to fill. Maybe the space is large enough to look empty but too small to add a bigger piece of furniture. In this case, adding flowers might be the right choice. Try placing a vase of multicolored blooms on a small corner table. Or if you want to take up some space, try a small flowering tree or large flowering plant.
Don’t forget that the vase or pot you choose can make a major difference in your decor. Choose neutral colors if you want the plant to blend in with the rest of the room. If you want to draw the eye, go with a bright and/or textured vase or pot.
5. Make A Focal Point
Maybe you want to make a design choice that isn’t quite as high-contrast as a complementary color palette. In this case, you can take a mostly-monochromatic room and add flowers in a contrasting color. If you have a mostly-beige living room, try putting a vase of bright pink roses on the mantle. The splash of color forms a dramatic contrast with the otherwise-neutral palette. Don’t be afraid to include a large bouquet or plant. Just make sure it isn’t competing with a lot of other objects for attention.
In doing this, be sure to choose a type of flower that goes with the aesthetic of the room. If you already have a minimalist design going, you might want to choose a single flower with clean lines. In an opulent room, a whole bouquet of large, showy flowers might be the most appropriate. It can be fun to experiment with different flowers to find the look you like!
Conclusion
You don’t have to feel limited to the tips above—there’s no wrong way to use flowers in interior design. Choose flowers you love that fit in with the aesthetic of your home, and you’ll be well on your way.