Whether you are infamous for lacking a green thumb or simply lack the time and/or money to constantly buy fresh flowers and greenery for your Airbnb, artificial plants make an economical alternative in any short-term rental or vacation home. Not only are these beauties pretty, they give off a peaceful vibe by bringing a sense of nature indoors. Guests love them, hosts love them. This is why we try to incorporate faux plants into every room in our designs.
Beware however – for every realistic faux plant or flower on the market, there are twenty that shout out “I’m fake and you can see it a mile away!” and people can instantly tell that they came from a cheap dollar store bin. As residential hospitality designers, we have come to know the good stuff from the truckloads of bad and we want to share our go-to sources with you. Here are some of the best ones for creating a verdant refuge—without the constant expense of buying real greenery or upping your chance of becoming a plant murderer. Check out our top picks, below…..
Afloral
Afloral sells both live, dried, and artificial botanicals. They are one of our top go-to sources for faux plants and flowers. We like their business philosophy as well, which is summed up on their website:
Our small team carefully curates a custom and seasonal collection of boutique, premium florals and vases you can’t buy anywhere else. We test every item in our homes, source only from unique and sustainable vendors, and deliver an environmentally thoughtful experience from seed to centerpiece.
Although beautiful, we know the floral industry has an immense environmental impact. We only source high-quality reusable products from sustainable vendors to decrease our footprint. We’ve streamlined our shipping processes and removed 75% of plastic shipping materials in 2023. Within 3 years, our shipping process will be 95% plastic free.
One of our very favorites from Afloral is their magnolia leaves. They are uncannily realistic to the point of absolutely no one guessing. Ever. The ability to bend the individual leaves in a variety of angles makes them look all the more like the real thing.
Pottery Barn for Faux Succulents
Pottery Barn rocks when it comes to their artificial succulents. And who doesn’t love a good succulent? Even though the real thing is the easiest to maintain in the indoor plant world, they still need some care, like sun and the right amount of water (too much water and they die; too little and they die). Pottery Barn makes really good arrangements and also sells single fauxs that you can stick in a shallow bowl or vessel. Our favorites are echeveria and sedum.
Bloomist
Bloomist was the one of the first in the faux botanical world to introduce eco-faux botanicals, avoiding the environmentally unfriendly petroleum based plastics so common when making artificial plants. Their faux botanicals are made of upcycled materials from single use plastic or PET bottles as well as recycled fabrics that would have gone into landfills. They use no Styrofoam in their components, instead opting for paper mache.
Not only are they environmentally friendly, Bloomist faux botanicals are made by master artisans who hand make each specimen. These artisans study every detail of real botanicals, photographing and dissecting them to ensure that faux looks indistinguishable from real. We have never gone wrong with anything we have sourced from Bloomist.
Tips for the Best Arrangements
- Choose good quality vases – our go-to vases are usually antique or vintage because their patina adds elegance to any room. Faux and dried botanicals will look all the more realistic in a good quality vase.
- When arranging your faux botanicals in their vessel, bending and spreading the leaves creates a more organic arrangement and ensures they don’t look tacky.
- Keep arrangements simple. We usually put all of the same or maximum three different types of botanicals in our vases. Again, it’s about elegance and simplicity.
- Keep your faux botanicals clean by lightly wiping them with a damp sponge. The cleaner they are, the more realistic they appear.
And One More Thing….
Be prepared to spend money on good faux botanicals. There is a reason why one stem or branch is $34 or more at the better merchants – they look like the real thing. The good news is in the long run, you will save money not buying flowers or greenery or running the risk that your real greenery will die. Plus your guests will never know the difference when you buy the good stuff.