Dried Grasses, Leaves and Branches: How to Use Natural Elements in Home Styling
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Hi, I’m Sandra.
If you're in awe of stunning interiors and crazy about home decor, you’re in the right place. As an interior writer with a background in styling and photography for leading magazines around the globe (see below) as well as an avid home renovator, I am here to help you style and decorate your home with ease and confidence, like a pro.
On this blog, I’ll be sharing inspiring tours of beautifully styled spaces along with insightful articles packed with advice, tips, and ideas for home styling and decoration. Having styled countless different homes, I am able to introduce you to a wide variety of interior styles and aesthetics, rather than focusing on a single look or trend. Check out today’s blog post with shows different dried grasses, leaves and branches you can use to style your home.
STYLING WITH DRIED GRASSES, BRANCHES AND LEAVES
Photo credit: Sandra van Aalst
I have dried grasses and leaves dotted all around my house; with extra tall pampas in the bathroom, eucalyptus in the living room, and in the dining room, delicate oat grasses. I love their textures, earthy colours and natural feel, but the greatest benefit is that dried grasses, leaves and branches always look good, don’t droop, and you hardly ever need to replace them. There are now so many more species available from around the globe, and they really make a statement in your home, especially in the right vessel. Dried stems are low maintenance, long-lasting, and perfect for pots that are decorative but can’t hold water. In the image here that I photographed during design week, there’s a gorgeous combination including bunny tail, wheat grass, and foxtail millet. But what brings them bang up to date is the gorgeous curved vase. In this article, I’ll show you different types of grasses you can style with, as well as leaves and branches, including tips on how to dry them and dye them a different colour to suit your interior scheme.
DRIED GRASSES
Pampas grass
Bunny tails
Miscanthus
Quaking Grass
Copper beech leaves
Wheat grass
Fluffy reed grass
Foxtail millet
Palm spear
Canary grass
Oat grass
DRIED LEAVES
Eucalyptus leaves
Copper beech leaves
Ruscus
Ferns
Magnolia Leaves
Fan palm leaves
MAGICAL DRIED BRANCHES, LEAVES AND GRASSES AT CHRISTMAS
This impressive display at Lime Wood Hotel shows just how dramatic and enchanting a decoration looks using branches, grasses and leaves. It’s a way to bring nature indoors for the whole winter season. At Lime Wood, an entire archway has been formed from dried branches, seed heads and foliage, with twinkly fairy lights and baubles woven through for the festive season. You could steal this idea and recreate it on a smaller scale in your own home, but even a foraged branch over a doorway with dried leaves, such as fern, eucalyptus and sprigs of evergreen, will do the trick. Start with a statement pot or urn, like the gold one pictured here, and build your arrangement upwards, allowing the foliage to climb and spill up and along the wall.
Photo credit: Jake Eastham
DYEING DRIED GRASSES AND LEAVES TO SUIT YOUR COLOUR SCHEME
Some leaves and grasses are dried and then coloured, while others are preserved, often using a colourant during the preservation process. Just so you know the difference, preserved leaves and grasses are different from dried ones, as they have a more lifelike, fresh appearance as preserving adds glycerine to replace the sap, rather than letting it dry out. If you want to dye dried leaves or grasses, follow the tips here. For tips on drying, read on.
You will need either fabric, food, or florist's dye in the colour you have chosen. Alternatively, use a spray, which is far easier as it dries far more quickly; however, you can’t control the intensity of colour.
Fill a container with the dye solution. Leave the grasses or leaves for a minute or more until you are pleased with the colour, then rinse off any excess dye under cold water. If you are using a spray, hold it a few inches away and spray lightly until you are happy with the colour. You can spray a second time if you want it to be more intense.
Dry off any excess water with paper towels, then either lay flat or tie with string and hang upside down to dry.
Photo credit: Sandra van Aalst
STYLING WITH BUNNY TAIL GRASSES IN DIFFERENT TONES
Bunny tail grass, with its small, fluffy heads, is a popular choice and can be found in many dried arrangements. In this image, the bunny tail grass has been dyed in various shades of blue to match the woven wall hanging. Displayed in a neutral-toned rustic vase from Heavenly Homes and Gardens, this kind of styling works well on a shelf, console table or another spot where you want a form of nature.
Photo credit: Heavenly Homes and Gardens
STYLING WITH EUCALYPTUS LEAVES
There are actually quite a few different types of eucalyptus, and all of them dry well. The blue-toned eucalyptus keep their silvery-green colour, while the gumnut or the willow species, which have more pointed leaves, turn into a richer brown as they dry. I always like to have some form of eucalyptus in my home, whether fresh, dried, or artificial, as the tone looks great in most of my rooms. The dried eucalyptus stems pictured here work so well with all different interior schemes and look particularly striking in this contemporary stone vase.
Photo credit: Sandra van Aalst
A SINGLE PAMPAS IN A STYLISH VESSEL
The bold, modern shape and matte black and white finish show that it’s all about the vessel. An attractive vessel or a vase can completely change the look of pampas, making it feel on-trend as opposed to dusty and old-fashioned. Even one simple stem looks stylish in the right vessel, like the one pictured here from Rockett St George.
Photo credit: Rockett St George
STYLING WITH BRANCHES IN THE BATHROOM
Adding organic elements, like the branches in the image, brings nature and texture to a bathroom, which can often feel a bit clinical. I photographed this bathroom to show how a simple bare branch can be stylish and sculptural and adds interest without overwhelming the space. The branches pictured here are in a gorgeous stone vessel and add structure and height to the space. It just goes to show that one simple branch on a stool is all it takes to transform a sparse bathroom into a more stylish aesthetic.
Photo credit: Sandra van Aalst
STYLING WITH
PAMPAS GRASS
I have pampas grass on display in two different spots in my house - a rather unusual one in my kitchen and a bunch of tall ones in my bathroom. I’m a fan of its sculptural form, and it brings height and texture to a room. You can display pampas alone or in a group like this. Opt for odd numbers, so three or five. If you have longer stems and want to create an impact, choose a tall vase. The three pampas grasses pictured here are displayed in an attractive ribbed vase from Cox & Cox, and they have been styled on a console table in front of a neutral-toned piece of art, which pairs well with the tones of the grasses.
Photo credit: Cox & Cox
STYLING WITH DELICATE DRIED WILD OAT GRASSES
I took this photo inside one of the rooms at Wow House - a show house. I liked how they'd styled the grasses in a simple yet elegant way. The long-stemmed wild oat grass is displayed in a tall, etched glass vase, paired with a creamy portable lamp, small ceramic pot, and pale candle. Situated on a mantelpiece inside the grand entrance hall, this is a great example of how dried grasses can also look good in a more refined interior. The grasses add height without overwhelming the space, and the warm, golden tones work beautifully in a neutral aesthetic.
Photo credit: Sandra van Aalst
STYLING WITH DYED FERN LEAVES
I photographed these dried leaves as they immediately struck me as having such an unusual soft damson or mulberry tone, which looked stunning displayed in a similarly toned vase. They are simply fern or bracken leaves and have been preserved and dyed. What’s great about dyed leaves like these is that they bring all the textural nature into your home, and with colour added, can be dyed to complement your interior. They work brilliantly on a console like this, especially when paired with something modern, like the lamp pictured here. I might try dyeing some myself to go in my pink bedroom.
Photo credit: Sandra van Aalst
STYLING SMALL SIMILAR TONE
Here is a neutral bunch of dried elements made up of pampas grass and bunny tail grasses with dried gypsophila. The shades of soft beige work so beautifully together because everything is tonal and nothing shouts for attention. This sculptural off-white vase complements the tones of the arrangement. This shows how mixing dried flowers with grasses works so well. The display is styled next to some magazines on a coffee table here, but it would also look great on a bedside table or in a bathroom for that spa-like feel.
Photo credit: Sandra van Aalst
DRYING LEAVES AND GRASSES
The drying process takes any sap, water or moisture away so rather than wilting and loosing leaves the plant just dries out.
To dry leaves or grasses, bunch the stems together loosely and tying them with string and hanging them upside down. Avoid places that are humid like bathrooms or utility rooms, as moisture can cause mould.
Leave your grasses or leaves for at least two weeks to dry, depending on the type of leaf and how thick it is. Eucalyptus dries fairly quickly and keeps a lovely shape, while fluffier grasses, like bunny tail grasses, can take a longer
Photo credit: Heavenly homes and gardens
LET’S SUM UP
As you have seen in the article, there are so many ways you can style with grasses, leaves and branches. And if you have got the time and patience, you can dry and/or dye your own for a completely bespoke look to fit in perfectly with your interior. If you want to find out all about dried flowers, read my post on dried flowers here: www.interiorstylehost.com/blog/styling-with-driedflowers
