Houseplants add informality, personality, freshness, and often a wonderful fragrance to the interior of a home making them a necessary addition.
One of my favorite design books is An Island Sanctuary A House in Greece by John Stefanidis. The images within the book depict his casual yet luxurious island home. The white walls, inside and out, create a certain starkness. Simple furniture mixes with lovely antiques, beautiful patterned fabrics, latticed cabinet doors, and white bed curtains adding up to an incredibly charming and unique end result.
Another book by Stefanidis is John Stefanidis Living by Design A Country House and Garden. Despite this book being written more than a decade before the Island Sanctuary, I had never purchased it until a few weeks ago. An Instagram post reminded me.
The house is beautiful on its own, but it is the wonderful plants featured in every room that gives it singular charm.
Plants add a softness in a stark house prohibiting coldness.
The gallery of Cock Crow, the Dorset home of John Stefanidis. (Photo: Fritz von der Schulenburg)
The photos reminded me how much I love houses with plants. Not just plants that were purchased for a photo shoot but those that are permanent guests within a home.
A humea elegans and garden roses add color, scent, and softness to the sitting room, Cock Crow. (Photo: Fritz von der Schulenburg)
This airy plant perfectly contrasts the textured solidity of the brick wall behind.
Entry of Umberto Pasti’s Moroccan home. (Photo: The Authentics by Melanie Acevedo & Dara Caponigro)
Plants take center stage in Umbero Pasti’s home. The entry of his Moroccan home, seen above, is made inviting and soft by the profusion of plants. The loose nature of plant material warms the severity of the black and white marble floor.
In ornate houses, houseplants further add to the richness and grandness of such spaces.
Inside Pasti’s living room, tall papyrus and palms, in conjunction with flowering compact houseplants, battle the bevy of beautiful framed tiles for attention.
Château Gabriel, home of Yves Saint Laurent. (Photo: unknown source)
Yves Saint Laurent owned many fantastic homes, one of them being Château Gabriel. The sunporch is one of my favorite rooms in any of his homes. The Victorian floral chairs create the feel of a sitting room within a greenhouse.
Château Gabriel, home of Yves Saint Laurent. (Photo: Ivan Terestchenko)
Another view of the same space. Here the ceiling looks to be a deep agave green.
The bar at Trasierra run on an honor-code system.
One of my favorite places is Trasierra, the Spanish family home turned guest house. The potted ferns add to the feeling of being in someone’s home as an invited guest rather than a paying customer.
The low key entry at Trasierra where guests can sign the book nestled in among potted houseplants with geraniums at their feet.
For some time I have been wanting to add scented geraniums to my house, but I never can find them in any local garden shops. Finally, I thought to look online where I discovered a nice selection at Mountain Valley Growers in California. After reading the various descriptions, I settled on three varieties, lemon balm, nutmeg scented, and brilliant scented geranium as well as a thai basil which I never see in our nurseries either. The pots surround my kitchen sink where I watch them grow, daily it seems, and smell their wonderful scent. It is just what was missing from my home.
Casa V Interiors can assist with bringing some living green charm to your home.