How Bold Spring Florals Can Make Your Space Bloom
Today’s floral wallpapers and accents are less fussy, more gutsy. An expert shares her tips for using them
Signs of spring shouldn’t be limited to the outdoors. With flowery styles crowding New York’s and Paris’ recent Fashion Week runways, and with more interior designers leaning into color maximalism, there’s a garden of possibilities when it comes to incorporating modern florals into a home’s look. “Floral accents bring the outside in. They connect us to nature and create a feel that cannot be achieved solely by linear patterns,” says interior designer Janelle Blakely Photopoulos of Blakely Interior Design in Rhode Island. Here are a few things to keep in mind if you’re looking to sprout some seasonal inspiration inside.
A Bouquet of Colors
The more colors a floral pattern contains, the more accent possibilities you have to work with throughout the space. Photopoulos says she prefers working with relatively abstract florals that have more than four colors. For example, in this living room in Providence, Rhode Island, she used the multicolored pillow as a foundation for the room’s design.
“I fell in love with this chinoiserie fabric, which has a very large-scale scene with Japanese trees. It was really the inspiration for the whole room,” Photopoulos says. “I love that it incorporated a unique blend of colors you wouldn’t normally see in one fabric — red, pink, purple and green — and it totally works!”
The more colors a floral pattern contains, the more accent possibilities you have to work with throughout the space. Photopoulos says she prefers working with relatively abstract florals that have more than four colors. For example, in this living room in Providence, Rhode Island, she used the multicolored pillow as a foundation for the room’s design.
“I fell in love with this chinoiserie fabric, which has a very large-scale scene with Japanese trees. It was really the inspiration for the whole room,” Photopoulos says. “I love that it incorporated a unique blend of colors you wouldn’t normally see in one fabric — red, pink, purple and green — and it totally works!”
Often florals will include some shade of green, but more modern takes may not.
Find a local interior designer in the Houzz pro directory
Find a local interior designer in the Houzz pro directory
How to Make a Statement
Today’s dramatic, oversize florals can make a big impact in the form of an accent wall or in another format that lets the print shine by combining it with comparatively understated pieces and colors. The hits of pink and coral in this accent wall are balanced by the beiges, whites and grays in the room.
A Minimalist’s Guide to Maximalism
Today’s dramatic, oversize florals can make a big impact in the form of an accent wall or in another format that lets the print shine by combining it with comparatively understated pieces and colors. The hits of pink and coral in this accent wall are balanced by the beiges, whites and grays in the room.
A Minimalist’s Guide to Maximalism
But a statement wall isn’t the only way to put a striking floral pattern on display. This floral bathroom sink makes an unexpected accent. Against the otherwise dark finishes, its purple and blue petals become a focal point of the room.
Shop for painted bathroom sinks
Shop for painted bathroom sinks
R Titus Designs
How to Keep Things Feeling Fresh
The trick to keeping florals from feeling too old-fashioned, experts say, is in how they’re positioned within the larger context of the space. Alongside straighter lines and more modern colors, for instance, a floral detail adds a touch of organic, eclectic interest instead of stuffiness.
How to Keep Things Feeling Fresh
The trick to keeping florals from feeling too old-fashioned, experts say, is in how they’re positioned within the larger context of the space. Alongside straighter lines and more modern colors, for instance, a floral detail adds a touch of organic, eclectic interest instead of stuffiness.
Committee Creative
“If you like florals but don’t want your space to become too ‘traditional,’ be sure to temper them with solids and linear patterns, using the same color palette,” Photopoulos says.
“If you like florals but don’t want your space to become too ‘traditional,’ be sure to temper them with solids and linear patterns, using the same color palette,” Photopoulos says.
Embassy Design
Your turn: How do you incorporate modern florals into your home? Tell us in the Comments.
More on Houzz
6 Reasons Floral Patterns Will Make You Happier in Your Home
See more floral inspiration photos
Find a pro
Shop for products
Your turn: How do you incorporate modern florals into your home? Tell us in the Comments.
More on Houzz
6 Reasons Floral Patterns Will Make You Happier in Your Home
See more floral inspiration photos
Find a pro
Shop for products
Bolder Blossoms
Whereas an older generation of floral details could feel a little stuffy, the florals that designers and homeowners are gravitating toward now often have more of an edge. Contemporary floral patterns tend to be more abstract, Photopoulos says, with brighter color palettes than more traditional examples and with unexpected color combinations. Larger scale prints are also common.
Shop for floral wallpaper on Houzz