Design Happens

I live on a farm in East Tennessee with a view of the Smokies. The ever-changing vista — rain, fog, sun, foliage — makes me see new creative possibilities, inspired by things like the colors of sunset and the asymmetrical folds of the foothills. I’ve started taking decorating risks based on what I see on my walks, like grounding my living room with a 9 x 12 Chinese Art Deco rug in the sunset colors of orange, hot pink and pear green, kind of like this one:

This week, I ran across a post at Apartment Therapy about a company called Panteek that sells antique botanical prints. I love botanical prints — what a great way to bring nature inside — but they’re hard to find at our local antique shops, which tend more toward Appalachian kitsch or high-end primitives.

Panteek’s variety is wide, from a series of Kerchove palms to walnuts, screech owls and blue flag iris. Here’s one of my favorites, a praying mantis and wildflowers:

Look at the Parliamentary Carrot! And these apples are similar to the fruit and veggie prints on the back covers of Cook’s Illustrated. And on the fall bargains page, you can get prints for as low as $25.

You can make your own botanical prints. Check out these handmade cuttings from Design on a Dime‘s Kristan Cunningham. If you search on “botanical” at HGTV’s MarketPlace you can find new versions of this trend.

And get inspired by how they’re used in these designer rooms:

Leaning against the wall in the Guest Bathroom from HGTV Dream Home 2009

Aligned above a couch in a garden living room

As background texture above a bedside table

Have you decorated with botanical prints? Upload pics at Rate My Space and share the link in the comments below.