How to add countryside colour to your interiors
Bring the countryside home this summer. Picture: PA Photo/iStock - Credit: Press Association Images
Fancy adding a burst of florals and nature pop to your decor? Sam Wylie-Harris picks out the best of the bunch.
You don’t need a holiday cottage or walled garden to embrace all that the great outdoors currently has to offer - meadow flowers and beautiful bouquets can be brought to life in your home decor.
Pairing colourful plant-inspired designs with a simple sofa or armchair could transform a tranquil corner and create impact in rooms.
While freshly picked grasses and shades of green can create a positive and calming space, a variety of plant shapes can be used for contrast – and you can always artfully place flowers among them.
Here’s our pick of the bunch…
1. Bloomsbury Clancy Grey Wallpaper, £60 per roll, Graham & Brown
We may not have made it to any of the famous garden shows or festivals this year, but this big blousy print is worthy of its place among the magnificent floral displays we would have been dazzled by. Impressive as a feature wall too, you can almost smell these scented blooms.
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2. The Shopper in Morning Glory (centre) and Fuschia (left), £18, Cath Kidston
Of course, it goes without saying you’ll need a suitable bag to bring home your rich bounty of sprays – and what could be prettier than a reusable chintz-inspired floral shopper? Lightweight and durable, Cath Kidston will make a 20 per cent donation from every Shopper sold to The Prince’s Trust Women Supporting Women initiative, which aims to change the lives of 10,000 young women within five years.
3. The Shopper in Oak Leaf, £18, Cath Kidston
And if you’re feeling creative, we love this down-to-earth idea of snipping some leafy branches or picking up a bundle of eucalyptus and planting it inside one of these shoppers for a decorative work of art.
4. The Sofology Cricket In Cricket Velvet Mix Green, £949, Sofology
This sumptuous velvet sofa in lush green plays well against a backdrop of periwinkle blue, especially if it’s framed by ferns, plants and succulents. With contrast piping and deep, hand-buttoned detailing on the back, this is a striking and super-comfy statement piece.
5. Reversible Glass Vase, £38, Block Design
A really cute idea, especially when you consider it only takes a single stem, such as a dahlia or chrysanthemum, to create some wow factor and lift your mood. A dual-purpose vase made from laboratory glass, it can be flipped to give your prize pick a different pose.
6. Artist Collection Roses by Paul Donaghy, £40, Malvern Sideboard, £299, Next
A reproduction of a floral still life by Irish artist Paul Donaghy, whose paintings are inspired by nature and the likes of Cézanne and Matisse. Donaghy has exhibited in solo and group shows throughout the UK and Ireland, and this really is a priceless piece to imbibe the natural beauty of sunny blooms.
7. Emma Bridgewater Pink Roses Collection, from £14.95 for a Small Mug to £17.95 for a Dinner Plate, Emma Bridgewater
We’ve got a crush on this flirty pink tableware, which combines flower power and a rosy outlook. Mix it up with bold colours, eclectic decos and an embroidered tablecloth for some tip-top tablescaping and a nod to boho styling.
8. Set of Six Peony Glasses, £89, Graham & Green
With the promise of peonies in season 24/7, these intricately etched tumblers will not only give your drinks trolley a makeover, but you can colour code them for cocktails, mocktails, spritzers and fruity infusions.
9. Mimulus Anthracite Wallpaper, £175 for three rolls, Mind The Gap
If you want to go wild with bold wallpaper, this menagerie of foliage suggests fistfuls of buttercups, narcissi and ferns – and probably the closest thing to a greenhouse to call your own, without the bother of having to tend to all those seeds, bulbs and plants.
10. Villa Multi Floral Rug, from £49.99 (other items part of room set), Carpetright
Throw rugs offer endless inspiration, especially if you love moving things around. And a little bit of matchy-matchy can work wonders with bed linen in a similar floral print. After all, who doesn’t want to wake up to life being a bed of roses with petals strewn at their feet?
11. Twilight Garden Single Reversible Duvet Set, £45, Cath Kidston
This reversible single set includes a duvet cover and pillowcase (200 thread count in 100 per cent cotton) in a wild flower meadow print. And will look perfectly at home in a guest room or dreamy sanctuary to call your own.