Wisteria hysteria: Are faux floral displays here to stay?

Last updated Sep 17, 2021

Me trying (and failing miserably) to do my best influencer-style pose in front of some draping wisteria.

This article is sponsored by Lapicida

It’s becoming virtually impossible these days to visit a restaurant in Harrogate without having to limbo underneath long pendulous racemes of Wisteria or some other colourful plastic floral displays. And that’s after you’ve dodged past all the influencers.

Floral exteriors and flower-filled walls have become the backdrop of every Harrogate influencer’s Instagram feed. It’s a trend that doesn’t seem to be fading anytime soon. Unlike the faux floral displays themselves.

Added to this bouquet are flower-filled walls with neon slogans spelling out affirmations like “you’re gorgeous” and “let the real you shine” and faux floral mirrors that have cropped up everywhere.

While to many they might be better than balloon arches – are they still a thing? – I wonder whether this design trend is going to become the next “live, laugh, love”? Will they look quite so endearing on a dark, rainy day in October?

Are they less colourful and more destined for landfill?

When the subject was broached with Harrogate interior designer, Joan Maclean, it was met with a groan.

She said:

“Why would you not create some fabulous succulent wall or use some of that amazing reindeer moss and do something that lives?

“Harrogate is a floral town and we have always prided ourselves on this. I know they are just for fun, but do something that could be living – anything that could be living – rather than those pretty grim faux silk flowers.

“By the time it has rained they are going to look absolutely dreadful.”

Let’s be clear. When it comes to floral displays, there’s a tier system in place.

Top tier features the stunning real blooms that have adorned the likes of The Ivy.

Then you have middle tier – high-end flowers that are fake, but gorgeous, and actually look like the real deal – like the silk floral display at West Park Hotel, created by award-winning Harrogate florist Helen James Flowers, who has also created displays for The Ivy.

Anthony Blundell, West Park Hotel commercial manager, said:

“At West Park we’re all about being seasonal in the food and drinks, so this has to follow through to our decorations and our florist Helen James does this superbly.

“At the moment we’re still trying to hold onto summer decorations, but in October we will move on to a more autumnal display before the Christmas extravaganza.

“The value of this is evident in showing off our ‘shop front’ and being appealing to passers by as well as the Instagram picture opportunities that our guests use it for and spread the word of West Park to their friends.”

The summer floral display by Helen James Flowers at West Park Hotel.

But then there’s the bottom tier- cheap, often very pink, fake blooms that just look a bit sad. They seem to be more about jumping on the floral bandwagon than any attempt at statement in interior design. I won’t mention any names.

Joan, of Joanie Mac Interior Design, said:

“You need to have a massive budget to produce anything that creates a real wow factor and has enough volume of flowers and foliage for it to look realistic enough. That’s where the difficulty is.”

Joan said she felt Harrogate was actually slightly on the back foot with the trend, as floral-focused restaurants and cafes in Leeds have been a thing for some time.

They include the highly Instagrammable Tattu restaurant, with its stunning blossom trees, featuring silk flowers sewn onto real tree trunks. And check out Fleur Café for a serious floral explosion.

Joan said:

“I just think can’t you do something a bit more innovative? Commission some sort of wonderful mosaic by a local artist or paint a mural, which would be lovely.

“I can understand why restaurants have gone with the faux flowers, because you can create colour and get beautiful trailing blooms and all that kind of stuff. But I would much rather see something real and growing. The faux flowers are going to look really sad by the end of winter.”

At risk of sounding like a Millennial, this trend is undoubtedly fun and pleasing to they eye, and real flowers can also be a brilliant showcase for local florists. I have definitely been guilty of posing in front of a posy or two – glass of prosecco in hand. Obviously.

And let’s face it, we all need a bit of colour in our lives after the last 18 months of misery we’ve had. They do cheer you up… in a kitsch kind of way.