I am planning to overhaul my breakfast room, which is has a botanical theme, as I have had the palette of colours for so many years that I think it needs an update. The room currently is a pale sage and has lots of botanical prints, flowers and my Portmerion Botanic Garden china.
Then I saw these amazing botanical prints, I think they will set the tone for a much stronger room if I take them as a starting point:
I came across the below by Charlotte Brown at Interior Design It Yourself, and I think it is great advice for what will hopefully be a much more intense look:
This is the perfect interior design with botanical prints look for anyone who loves a sense of drama, deep, velvety-rich walls and vibrant pops of color.
It’s the polar opposite of the previous schemes where we saw the botanical designs set against a pale (white) backdrop – here colorful flower designs are given maximum impact against deepest, darkest black.
Color Essentials
- Dark background – black is ideal – you could also use darkest gray, plum, navy or bottle green
- Splashes of ‘wow’ color – fresh (lime) greens, oranges, golds, pinks
- Lighter touches – small amounts of paler colors are essential to keep the look fresh and not too dark and dreary
- This is essentially a modern look – ideal for bedrooms, dining rooms, or living rooms.
- When using darker colors, it’s always best to be aware that the colors will make the room feel darker and smaller, but this can be compensated for (but not for everyone) by your end-result feeling more cozy, warm and also more dramatic.
- Just like the dining room look, earlier on, this is a great look for evening rooms where the dark colors will end up looking very velvety and luxurious in the dim lights.
- A cheeky idea for this look is to use it in your smallest room (WC or bathroom)! Although it goes against the ‘normal’ interior design rules (which try to keep everything nice, spacious, bright, light and airy), such dark and strong colors in tiny rooms can give a very dramatic impact – and a great result! (Plus, if you’re not sure about the impact, you won’t be spending too much time in there, anyhow!)
Essentials for this style
- Keep backgrounds dark for maximum ‘wow’
- Use as much botanical pattern as you dare!
- Mix in vibrant colors, such as upholstery, bedding, curtains – these do not need to be tiny splashes of color – think of a whopper splash that you’d make off the 30ft high diving board – that’s what we’re looking for
- Use 2 or 3 bright colors together – green, plus red, orange, pink, gold
- Don’t forget some smaller accents of white or cream – we’ve still got to lighten it up a little to keep it feeling fresh
- There’s so much going on with the color and pattern you need to keep everything else as simple as possible
- Use dark or pale furniture, as your scheme requires
- Very modern, striking look
- Wow!
Emma Kayne 