Flower power returns as a major theme in home decor

Floral patterns are a perennial favorite in home design. But in spring, they're the design salve that winter-weary eyes always welcome.

In an interior, flower motifs reflect the multiple personalities of their live outdoor counterparts. Like fresh buds in a vase, they're especially desirable because they bring the outdoors inside. They can be bold and bigger than life, but also romantic, bringing softness to hard-edged furniture. They can lend a funky sensibility when patterns are offbeat, oversized, surprisingly colored or dimensional.

Botanical motifs can focus on a single bloom or they can be part of a mixed bouquet -- a potpourri of blooms and colors.

Even the style of the flower pattern offers considerable range, from the realistic, inspired by English and French country gardens, to the painterly, plucked from works by old masters.

In bold, large patterns, fabric designers sometimes take liberties with hue -- like modern renditions of Marimekko, the Finnish textile company known for its edgy, graphic designs, or the super-sized neon florals that fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi did for Target a few years back.

Much of the inspiration starts, after all, with fashion. Retailer Bergdorf Goodman is exuberant with blooms this spring, reflected by ready-to-wear designers from Jean Paul Gaultier to Ralph Lauren. This year's handbags are outstanding for their unusual techniques: Carlos Falchi's python, hand-painted with blowsy posies, and Valentino's leather bags, decorated with applied flowers, for instance.

The runways even turned out a new fashion accessory: a pink peony-bedecked netbook, sported like a sassy handbag. Fashion designer Vivienne Tam introduced the tricked-up laptop for Hewlett Packard. The Mini 1000 features a glossy red keyboard and sells for $699.99 on www.hp.com

So it's no surprise that flowers are again packing a punch in home design -- on everything from bright enamel, flower-shaped napkin rings (just under $3 at Crate & Barrel) to sofas and rugs in all price ranges, depending on your verve with commitment of design and dollar.

"Lively floral motifs continue to be a strong trend this season," says Wendy Thayer, a spokesperson for Garnet Hill. "They make you happy, and when infused with a sense of color and design, vivid floral home textiles are an exciting way to create a cheerful, upbeat space."

What makes this crop of floral fashions fresh is scale, bold graphics and unorthodox color combinations. Simple two-color patterns pop, like a scattering of agapanthus or African lilies -- white on lemongrass in a brilliant shade available as a lampshade from www.lampsplus.com.

As in fashion, flamboyant combinations such as hot pink with orange call out to fiery personalities. But all-over patterns can be equally attention grabbing when multiple patterns have vivid, engaging hues, such as coral teamed with lime green.

Even subtle colors can make a statement if the colors are fresh and the patterns are crisp. A new hydrangea-themed bed linen pattern from Martha Stewart's home collection for Macy's is a case in point. Green-stemmed hydrangeas in delicate rose, blue and lilac, mixed with cream, have a crisp look because they appear drawn in ink on a white ground.

Appliques also add an unexpected dimension. Besides alighting on pillows, where they've been popular for some time, appliques are being stitched to lampshades at Anthropologie, where they recall wonderful vintage hats from the 1940s.

"Our customer loves pieces with bold color and graphic prints or detail," says Kathy Gross, Anthropologie's divisional merchandise manager. "They're consistently drawn to optimistic colors, which are even more meaningful in this economic environment."

So what can florals do in a living room?

A dynamic floral-patterned sofa or chair in a monochromatic space can have arresting effects. A new armless wing chair called Jardin from Crate & Barrel -- and a matching ottoman -- has the vibe of a lush tropical scene. But it's the unusual teaming of plum, lime greens and russet that make it current. Pick up one of the hues for draperies, or play it against an all-creamy setting, and it's a standout.

On the other hand, Garnet Hill hints of the drama that a single, tight-skirted ottoman can introduce in an otherwise neutral room. One pattern, with stylized floral medallions broken up by art nouveau-like blooms, combined with a geometric band of diamonds, gets its attitude from a contemporary palette of rose pink, chocolate and mustard.

Accessories, of course, are the easiest way to plant floral motifs. Add a floral-printed pillow as an accent, drawing from a solid hue of a sofa. Set the table with flower-patterned serveware or plates, then echo the blooms with real cut flowers as a centerpiece.

Like blooms that spring to life then fade in the garden, floral-patterned accessories, especially those with more spring-like hues, might have a shorter shelf life, to be changed out at the end of each season. But like some perennials, they may return. Or, if you really fall in love with a flower pattern on a rug, sofa or bedding, you just might decide to keep it around year-round.