This post is sponsored and contains affiliate links. All opinions are my own.
Houseplants are one of the best decor items you can use to bring life to your interiors. Everyone is currently hyped up about them, but they have been used for ages in interiors.
Why? There are so many reasons they are loved so much – most are affordable, they are pretty, add a touch of color, help bring nature in and add character to a space. They fit in any type of decor, and how you style them and which ones you choose will make all the difference.
So, let’s take a deeper dive into all this. Here are five tips to cohesively integrate plants in your decor.
Choosing plants that fit with your decor style
While there are no rules of which plants fit with each interior style, and you can totally buy what you love, I like to select my plants in a way that fits with my style, but also with the different spaces I have.
For example, my living room has a lot of curves and arches as well as soft edged furniture, so I like to complement it with plants that look delicate with small leaves. I chose a variety of small to mid-size plants. Some are hanging plants, others are bushy but in general, they are light plants that provide movement and flow.
Some examples are Jasmin, String of pearls or String of turtles, a ZZ plant and different types of Pileas. I have one corner of the living room where I used a bigger and more imposing plant, a Fiddle Leaf Fig to make a statement and anchor the space.
My office space on the other hand feels more robust with sharper edge furniture and I used a combination of Pothos, Snake plants and cacti. In my opinion, choosing plants that fit with a space’s style helps create cohesiveness while bringing life to a space.
Making an impact by displaying plants in the right places While the most common places to see plants are the main living areas, don’t forget about the rest. Plants can totally make an impact when placed in other less common spaces.
Think for instance of a bathroom. They help create a zen atmosphere and add a pretty touch. Just as you’d pick pretty hardware for your bathroom, think of plants when accessorizing it. Some plants do very well in the bathroom because of the humid nature of this space. Hang a Pothos in a corner, add a little snake plant above the toilet or a Peace Lilly in a corner and you’ll have an upgraded bathroom!
If your bathroom does not get a lot of natural light, plants will brighten up the space. You’ll just need to choose plants that do not require a lot of light such as Snake plant, Peace Lilly, Pothos and ZZ plants.
Other places to think of are bedrooms and kitchen. Plants help clean the air, so they work great in a bedroom and add a pretty touch to a kitchen. Look around your house, any place can use a plant if you want to upgrade it easily!
Playing with contrast and dimensions Another way of styling with plants is to play with contrast and dimension, and even texture just like you would with other decor pieces. Plants have various colors, some flower while others don’t. Leaves come in different shapes, sizes and textures and here is how I like to use these aspects for styling.
For instance, you can place a plant with flowers or with variegated leaves such as a golden Pothos against a dark background to make the corner stand out.
Group small plants with different textures together to create depth and dimension. Use the interior design rule of three to make your grouping as using an odd number in styling is more attractive to the eye.
Use plants to create balance on a shelf for instance. You can use on one end a hanging plant and on the other a plant that stands tall to balance a shelf or two.
Finally, there is nothing like a large plant to make a statement. Use these larger plants as standalones to fill an empty corner or next to a couch.
Choosing the right planters
There are endless ways you can display plants. Depending on where I want to display them and what I’m looking to achieve in a space, I’ll choose different planters to complement both plants and my style.
For instance, I love raw materials and they fit well with my style. So, for my large plants, I will go for large, beautiful planters made with clay or ceramic. Combined with a large plant, they add depth and a beautiful statement in any space.
For small plants that go on a shelf, table or cabinet, I stay in the same style but will choose planters that are cohesive together and with my overall home style and color palette. My go-to are white, beige, black planters with different textures.
However, think also of plant risers and stands. I use thrifted books as risers or a long plant stand when I want to give more length to a mid-sized plant.
In general, keep an open mind on where you can display plants. Think of hanging them from the ceiling, in a cabinet, on shelves, display them on your coffee table or a corner of your desk. They are pretty anywhere!
What to consider when buying plants
Now that you’ve determined where you want your plants, how many and what kinds of plants you want, time to start shopping. But, before that, there are a few things you need to consider.
1. Natural light
Some plants require a lot of natural light while others don’t. When selecting your plants you need to consider where you will be placing them. For example, while Fiddle Leaf Figs are gorgeous and very trendy, they are very sensitive plants that require natural light with no direct exposure to sun, they don’t like to be moved around frequently and should not be placed anywhere there is constant change in temperature such as an entryway.
If you don’t have enough natural light, plants like the ones below would work perfectly:
- Sansevieria
- Dracaena Marginata
- ZZ plant
- Lucky bamboo
- Monstera Adansonii
- Ficus benjamina
- Burgundy rubber plant
- English Ivy
- Spider plant
- Golden Pothos
2. Temperature
Temperature is another factor to consider. Is your area too dry from heating or is there constant change in temperature like in an entryway? If so, look into these options:
- Dracaena Marginata
- Sansevieria
- Jade plant
- Ponytail Palm
- Philodendron
- Succulents
3. Kids & pets
Some plants are toxic for pets. Make a thorough research or ask before you buy. If pets won’t have access to the plant because you may place it on a shelf, then that’s fine.
Also, if you have kids, consider that if they’re young they may want to explore and may put anything in their mouth. Again, plant toxicity is key here. Another thing to consider with kids is that if you have delicate plants in high traffic areas, it may be damaged easily.
- String of turtles
- Spider plant
- Pilea peperomioides
- Peperomia watermelon
- Calathea beauty star
- Staghorn fern
4. Experience
Finally, experience! It’s a lovely journey to grow plants and learn about them. To me, it’s more than decorating, it’s also a ritual and very much part of my wellbeing. While you learn as you go and you will inevitably make mistakes and loose some – like we all do – I suggest starting with easy to care for plants if you are just beginning your plant journey. Here are some suggestions:
- Pothos
- Ivy
- Snake plants
- Cacti
- Air plants
- ZZ plant
- Monstera Deliciosa
- Pilea Peperomioides
- Money tree
Last but not least, where you buy your plants is key because of the level of care they’re given prior to you buying them and the support and advice you get. When I discovered Fleur & Co, I fell in love with the concept. Not only are they specialized in plants only, so this is their core business, but they have a wide variety of plants including some more rare ones you don’t find everywhere.
And, best of all is that they ship right to your home so all you have to do is shop while cozying up at home and your green babies will arrive ready to be displayed and cared for! They are a Canadian company and ship throughout Canada and let me tell you that not having to brave the cold and the snow to shop for plants is a game changer!!
Feel like plant shopping? You can use the code LIVANDBLOOM to get 10% off your order at Fleur & Co.
Here are some of their plants that I love!