Nothing will refresh your home more than fresh plants and flowers, however, botanical watercolors come pretty close. Not only do they bring beauty, color, and fun into any room but botanical prints can also bring a sense of calmness and a connection with nature. Whether you prefer an antique version like watercolor or a modern interpretation print, bringing them into your home will for sure add whimsical and energy to your decor. If you haven’t caught up with the trend, there is a real urge for everything nature-inspired lately. We can see botanical-inspired designs on everything from wallpaper, fabric, and art. According to Elle Decor “This year alone, searches for botanical prints are up 114% on Pinterest, while interest in framed plants is up a whopping 396%.”
I love the use of botanical prints or drawing on the panels of this bathroom. They dress the whole room while giving it consistency.
A collection of nineteenth-century botanical watercolors in the Paris apartment of Lee Radziwill. Radziwill displayed the watercolors in every home she ever lived, taking them from Oxfordshire, England, to Paris, to New York. She later gifted the botanicals to Tory Burch, who has them hanging in her Southhampton bedroom.
From AD, An array of leafy 19th-century botanical prints and a delicate chintz fabric in the master bedroom add naturalistic life and color. “I wanted my bedroom to resemble a greenhouse as much as possible, with pale green and white color scheme which gave it a very airy feeling. I filled it with large ferns and hung Anglo-Indian botanical watercolors on the walls. When I woke up, I felt like I was in the country.” Mrs. Radziwill told AD.
Tory Burch’s Southhampton home, above and below. As you can see, Tory admired Lee’s style very much, so much so that she almost had her room replicated from Radziwill’s own, which I wouldn’t mind doing as well. 
We were lucky to find the two antique botanicals watercolors at the corners above our family room sofa for sale during our last trip to Palm Beach. They are watercolors engraved paper from the 1500s by Crispin de Passe. My husband and I fell in love with them and didn’t want to pass the opportunity.
For a more transitional style opt for botanical prints instead of watercolor as seen in this soothing bedroom.
And of course, there is always room to make a striking black and white interpretation for a more up to date version. Photo via Quintessence.
Julie Paulino Design
To see the post above, click here.
When framed in the same type of frames and grouped together, any art can make a great focal point and statement in a room.
One great source to buy antique watercolors is The Antiquarium.
Below, a few Botanical-inspired wallpapers available via Interior Designers only.
Top row from left, Pierre Frey, Pierre Frey Ombre, Curiosites Mat, and Espalier Foin.
Bottom row from left, Pierre Frey Florilege, Schumacher Citrus Ganden, and Pierre Frey Jamaica.
Below, original botanical drawings on antique paper.
Below, botanical prints.
