12 Modern Ways With Floral Wallpaper
Banish memories of chintzy florals and bring nature indoors with these contemporary botanical wall coverings
Egon Walesch
24 May 2016
Houzz UK and Ireland Contributor. Interior Designer and Proprietor of Egon Walesch Interiors and Flowers. Passionate about how good design can improve quality of life. I love colour, calmness and bringing the natural world into the home. Owner/Designer of Ireland's Home of the Year.
Houzz UK and Ireland Contributor. Interior Designer and Proprietor of Egon Walesch... More
We all know wallpaper is a great way to add colour and texture to a space, but the choice of wall coverings these days is dizzying. Let these floral and botanical papers spark some ideas – the new contemporary designs are far removed from the twee patterns of old. From big and bold to ultra-naturalistic prints, here are some great examples of modern floral wall coverings that will help you bring nature into your home.
Think bold and have fun
This modern floral scheme is sure to bring a smile to your face. It may not be to everyone’s taste, but it demonstrates there are no half measures in design. The bold pink tones of the wallpaper are reflected in the matching cupboards below. A bright pink rug completes the effect. Truly, fortune favours the brave!
You could, of course, use a wallpaper like this in a smaller area, perhaps in alcoves either side of a chimney breast, if you didn’t want it to dominate the room too much.
Learn how to decorate with all-over wallpaper
This modern floral scheme is sure to bring a smile to your face. It may not be to everyone’s taste, but it demonstrates there are no half measures in design. The bold pink tones of the wallpaper are reflected in the matching cupboards below. A bright pink rug completes the effect. Truly, fortune favours the brave!
You could, of course, use a wallpaper like this in a smaller area, perhaps in alcoves either side of a chimney breast, if you didn’t want it to dominate the room too much.
Learn how to decorate with all-over wallpaper
Show us the Monet
This beautiful impressionistic wallpaper calls to mind the essence of a garden without depicting specific blooms. It provides the perfect reference for injecting colour into this serene bedroom scheme, with the mossy green and deep pink picked out for accessories.
Artist-designed wallpapers are well worth seeking out for their assured use of colour and form.
This beautiful impressionistic wallpaper calls to mind the essence of a garden without depicting specific blooms. It provides the perfect reference for injecting colour into this serene bedroom scheme, with the mossy green and deep pink picked out for accessories.
Artist-designed wallpapers are well worth seeking out for their assured use of colour and form.
Play with scale
Floral wallpaper offers an opportunity to play with scale – one of the tricks beloved of interior designers. Instead of shaking things up with an outsize lamp or piece of furniture, why not try some overblown blooms to create a delightful, quasi-surrealist vibe?
Continue the individual effect by ensuring the rest of the scheme is quirky and unconventional.
Floral wallpaper offers an opportunity to play with scale – one of the tricks beloved of interior designers. Instead of shaking things up with an outsize lamp or piece of furniture, why not try some overblown blooms to create a delightful, quasi-surrealist vibe?
Continue the individual effect by ensuring the rest of the scheme is quirky and unconventional.
Treat as an artwork
Plenty of wallpapers are beautiful enough to be placed within a frame. This treatment is great for expensive papers where you might struggle to afford to cover the whole room – or even a wall.
These peonies have a strong graphical identity and the colours are reflected beautifully in the painted surroundings.
Plenty of wallpapers are beautiful enough to be placed within a frame. This treatment is great for expensive papers where you might struggle to afford to cover the whole room – or even a wall.
These peonies have a strong graphical identity and the colours are reflected beautifully in the painted surroundings.
Position carefully for impact
It’s always worth working out where to place the large images on a paper such as this before you actually hang it. You want to make sure your favourite parts of the design are given prominence when it’s in situ. Think of the other furniture and accessories, too, when working out the optimum position.
Here, the paper has been teamed with calming French Grey paint to tone down the exuberance of the floral design and create a restful yet interesting space for relaxing and bathing.
It’s always worth working out where to place the large images on a paper such as this before you actually hang it. You want to make sure your favourite parts of the design are given prominence when it’s in situ. Think of the other furniture and accessories, too, when working out the optimum position.
Here, the paper has been teamed with calming French Grey paint to tone down the exuberance of the floral design and create a restful yet interesting space for relaxing and bathing.
Emphasise your floral masterpiece
The riot of colour in this contemporary floral paper is carried through into the soft furnishings. It’s also strongly emphasised by the use of similarly coloured and shaped flowers in brightly coloured vases, reinforcing the wild abandon of this modern flower meadow.
The empty frames on the cabinet add depth and structural interest without competing with the colourful pattern.
The riot of colour in this contemporary floral paper is carried through into the soft furnishings. It’s also strongly emphasised by the use of similarly coloured and shaped flowers in brightly coloured vases, reinforcing the wild abandon of this modern flower meadow.
The empty frames on the cabinet add depth and structural interest without competing with the colourful pattern.
Flirt with flowers’ dark side
Floral wallpaper can be dark and moody as well as light and colourful. This monochrome paper on a feature wall has a strong geometric pattern, while the botanical theme is picked up in the accessories.
Some designers are a bit sniffy about feature walls. They are, however, an effective way to make a strong impact without overwhelming a space, as might be the case if the paper was used on all of the walls.
A useful tip when hanging dark wallpapers is to carefully run a large felt-tip pen along the edges of the paper before hanging to avoid the appearance of white lines between the strips of wallpaper.
Floral wallpaper can be dark and moody as well as light and colourful. This monochrome paper on a feature wall has a strong geometric pattern, while the botanical theme is picked up in the accessories.
Some designers are a bit sniffy about feature walls. They are, however, an effective way to make a strong impact without overwhelming a space, as might be the case if the paper was used on all of the walls.
A useful tip when hanging dark wallpapers is to carefully run a large felt-tip pen along the edges of the paper before hanging to avoid the appearance of white lines between the strips of wallpaper.
Experiment in less-used spaces
Small cloakrooms are great places to experiment with colour and pattern. Because you don’t spend so much time in there, it gives you the freedom to be bold and consider wall coverings you wouldn’t use in your main rooms.
This colourful paper might overwhelm a room designed for relaxation, but it provides the right cheery note in this small space. The dark furniture and mirror frame help to anchor the scheme and stop it going too far over the top.
New to wallpaper? Read this beginner’s guide to getting it right
Small cloakrooms are great places to experiment with colour and pattern. Because you don’t spend so much time in there, it gives you the freedom to be bold and consider wall coverings you wouldn’t use in your main rooms.
This colourful paper might overwhelm a room designed for relaxation, but it provides the right cheery note in this small space. The dark furniture and mirror frame help to anchor the scheme and stop it going too far over the top.
New to wallpaper? Read this beginner’s guide to getting it right
Soup up the ceiling
Maybe you don’t want anything to compete with your artwork, or you’d just prefer to keep walls plain and simple. Putting wallpaper on the ceiling is a fun alternative. It draws the eye upwards while ensuring the primary focus of this room remains on the fireplace and the eye-catching painting above it.
Putting paper on a ceiling is a more difficult job than doing a wall: you may want to enlist some professional help!
Maybe you don’t want anything to compete with your artwork, or you’d just prefer to keep walls plain and simple. Putting wallpaper on the ceiling is a fun alternative. It draws the eye upwards while ensuring the primary focus of this room remains on the fireplace and the eye-catching painting above it.
Putting paper on a ceiling is a more difficult job than doing a wall: you may want to enlist some professional help!
Create a surprise
If you’re worried about tiring of a patterned wallpaper, why not use it in an area where you can conceal it if needs be? This office in a nook has a curtain to hide away messy papers and the bold pattern of the wall covering when a more sedate mood is called for.
The interiors of cupboards and drawers are also good places to experiment with bold papers before making a commitment on your walls.
If you’re worried about tiring of a patterned wallpaper, why not use it in an area where you can conceal it if needs be? This office in a nook has a curtain to hide away messy papers and the bold pattern of the wall covering when a more sedate mood is called for.
The interiors of cupboards and drawers are also good places to experiment with bold papers before making a commitment on your walls.
Echo tradition in a modern way
This ultra-feminine scheme in delicate shades of rose and cream is a masterclass in creating serenity in a bedroom. While evoking a traditional style, the crispness of the contrasting elements and the lush textures prevent the scheme from appearing twee.
This ultra-feminine scheme in delicate shades of rose and cream is a masterclass in creating serenity in a bedroom. While evoking a traditional style, the crispness of the contrasting elements and the lush textures prevent the scheme from appearing twee.
Venture beyond blooms
Remember, botanical influences don’t have to be restricted to flowers. Trees and foliage bring the natural look into a room in a calm, reflective way – perfect for this woodland cabin bedroom.
TELL US…
How have you used wallpaper in your own home? Was it a hit or a miss? Share your tips in the Comments below.
Remember, botanical influences don’t have to be restricted to flowers. Trees and foliage bring the natural look into a room in a calm, reflective way – perfect for this woodland cabin bedroom.
TELL US…
How have you used wallpaper in your own home? Was it a hit or a miss? Share your tips in the Comments below.
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I wallpapered my stair risers with scraps of paper left over from my bathroom
£15;99 per roll from E,bay. Peeled paint effect wood.
Thank you for featuring our Angel Among Roses mural.