W editor’s letter
ith the advent of spring (the vernal equinox falls on March 20 this year), our focus naturally shifts from interiors to the outside world. Our gardens come alive again, and daily life returns to the living spaces we’ve planted and tended to suit our outdoor lifestyles. In Richmond, the Garden Club of Virginia’s Historic Garden Week tours have been showcasing the essence of spring for almost 100 years. The beautiful homes and gardens featured on the statewide tours bring thousands of visitors from across the country and around the globe to celebrate the wonders of the season with us. In this issue, we’re celebrating spring and all things botanical — glorious gardens, homes with deep connections to the outdoors and other spaces with fabulous floral decor.
This year, several homes on Richmond-area Garden Week tours salute the roots of the event, opening the gates to their gardens only … no houses included. We’ll walk through a garden featured on the May 1 tour of Chatham Hills, a residential enclave designed by Charles Gillette in 1916, plus a hosta garden in Lower Tuckahoe and the contemporary gardens at Tuckahoe Plantation, both featured on the April 29 tour (get a sneak peek on Page 62).
In recent years, the Libbie Avenue area has exploded with new home construction. We tour a recently completed residence with serious flower power (Page 54), where the homeowner’s only marching orders to the designers were that the house should not look like anything else in Richmond.
It’s also time for our annual salute to local professionals in design, architecture and related home services fields. Readers’ Favorites recognizes the winners of our yearly survey. Many thanks to all of our readers who shared their favorite shops and service providers.
In this issue we also visit a vintage home in the West End refreshed with spring-inspired interiors (Page 29), and a new home in Chesterfield designed to reflect the owners’ outdoor-oriented lifestyle (Page 86). We take a look at the history of botanical art (Page 46); share botanically inspired home decor finds (Page 34); and, for budding or experienced gardenistas, present a list of resources for workshops, volunteering and more (Page 38).
WISHING YOU ALL A BRILLIANT, BEAUTIFUL SPRING,
Susan W. Morgan
Find us at R•Home magazine on Facebook and @rhomemag on Instagram.
CHECK OUT R•HOME ON CBS 6 DURING ‘ VIRGINIA THIS MORNING’!
Tune in for our home and garden tips on the following Wednesdays: March 12, April 9 and April 23.
ONLINE, ALL THE TIME
Find beautiful photos of local homes, expert design tips and advice, and much more at rhomemag.com.
Susan and Walter Robertson III’s terraced garden in Chatham Hills
Rachel Maves
Rachel Maves is an award-winning illustrator and animator who regularly contributes to Richmond magazine and its sister publications. She has worked with Google, Warby Parker, Uber and Virginia Commonwealth University and has been showcased in Society of Illustrators, the Richmond Animation Festival and Gallery5. She currently teaches classes at the Visual Arts Center of Richmond and was its featured illustrator in winter 2024. Maves’ illustrations accompanying the 2025 R•Home Readers’ Favorites can be found on Page 68.
Kyra Molinaro
Kyra Molinaro is an award-winning writer and editor who is excited to return as a contributing writer for R•Home since having her first child in August. She also manages donor communications in the advancement office at the University of Richmond. For this issue, she shares what she learned about ikebana, the Japanese art of floral arranging, on Page 50.
Taylor Peterson
Taylor Peterson’s reporting focuses on arts and culture, with an emphasis on underrepresented voices. A writer for the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, Peterson is a Richmond native who has written for RVA Mag, The Auricular and Dialogue Magazine, and she is a co-founder of Rum// mage, a publication that features written and visual submissions from the Richmond community. In this issue, Peterson profiles Jensen Outdoor, a luxe furniture maker headquartered in Sandston, on Page 90.
Kate Thompson
Kate Thompson is a commercial and editorial photographer who uses her camera as a way to connect with others, ask questions and bring more kindness into the world. A lover of books and printed images, she is a big-picture thinker who finds moments of beauty and spontaneity in projects large and small. On Page 96, Thompson captures the indoor/outdoor connection in a family room designed by Kristi Lane.
DEN
The Collier RAF sofa is by Century Furniture, the Madison swivel chair is by Oomph, the Christy Bench co ee table is by From the Source, the pillow fabrics are Bengali Bazaar by Kravet and Virginia Mammals by Sara Hillery Home, and the tennis rackets are vintage.
NURSERY
The Butterfly in Lavender wallpaper is by Thibaut, the Murano glass ceiling light is vintage, the Highland House ottoman is upholstered in Rocky performance velvet from Schumacher, and the glider chair is by Ballard Designs.
FAMILY ROOM
The Del Mar sofas and Bedford co ee table are by Century Furniture, the Maze rug is by Annie Selke, the Bolier Classics fireside chairs are by Ginny Howerton, and the sofa pillow fabrics are by Schumacher.
bright and airy family room. Meanwhile, several works by Charlottesville artist Isabelle Abbot add abstract notes of blue, green and pink. Hillery also repurposed an existing TV nook to display one of two large purple geodes in the room.
“It shifted the focus from the TV,” Hillery says. “She looks at screens all day at work. It’s nice to take a break and not have that be the focus.”
Hillery then completed each space
with fresh flowers and low-maintenance botanicals, including the beloved hydrangeas, lush ferns, and lemon cypress and myrtle topiaries.
One of the final rooms she completed was an upstairs nursery as the couple prepared to welcome their daughter. A pink-and-purple butterfly motif — driven by patterned wallpaper — marries the gender-neutral animal theme sought by the father with the feminine atmosphere
desired by the mother.
The color palette also seamlessly integrates a pair of custom-built pink mirrored doors the couple received as a wedding present. In the corner, Hillery created a quiet reading nook with a pink rocking chair, lavender ottoman and built-in bookcase. A vintage floral Murano glass light fixture from Italy and an array of wild animal art prints and soft toys completes the look.
3. Priyanka Effie DINING CHAIR, Anthropologie, $648, anthropologie.com
1. Anna Weatherly pink tulip PITCHER, Fraîche, $665, fraichehome.com
2. Custom papiermâché POTTED FLOWER, Melea Markell, three sizes, $250-$450, meleamarkell.com
4. Wildflower SEED CANNON, Odd Bird, $12, shopoddbird. com
5. Blossom green LIGHT, Umanoff Design, $125, umanoffdesign. com
6. Schumacher Josef Frank Citrus Garden 175760 LINEN FABRIC, U-fab Interiors, $396 per yard by special order, u-fab.com
7. The Quiet Botanist X Colonial Williamsburg Plant Hunter DARK CHOCOLATE BAR sweetened and embellished with botanicals, $17.95, thequietbotanist.com
8. Green chinoiserie Georgian-style ACRYLIC TRAY with brass handles, Reprotique, two sizes, $365-$385, reprotiqueart.com
9. Matouk San Cristobal QUILT in green, Fraîche, full/queen $648, fraichehome. com
OUTDOOR LIVING O
LANDSCAPING L
LANDSCAPE CARE L CAR
LOW VOLTAGE LIGHTING L LIGHT
elements such as stained-glass windows featuring flowers and plants. The botanical trend continued into the 17th century with the baroque and rococo styles, which incorporated floral motifs into opulent furniture and decorative elements such as moldings.
Entering the age of discovery, flowers and botanical gardens grew in popularity, bolstered by previously unknown species of plants being brought over from the New World. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, notables began cultivating elaborate botanical gardens that they hoped to preserve through works of art, commissioning artists to immortalize their prized flora. Perhaps the most recognized artist from this period is Pierre-Joseph Redouté, whose illustrious patrons included Marie Antoinette and Josephine Bonaparte. This period was dubbed the golden age of botanical illustration, as advancements in printing resulted in more accurate and colorful prints that could be disseminated to a wider audience.
As botanical prints became available
to the masses, they also became more established in interior design. Victorian-era decor was dominated by botanical themes covering everything from textiles to wallpaper. Industrial improvements allowed these items to be mass produced, bringing them into the homes of many. Over the years, botanical forms continued to appear in other design styles such as art nouveau around the turn of the 20th century, though they
A late-18th-century botanist and painter for the French royal court, Pierre-Joseph Redouté is considered one of the greatest botanical illustrators of all times.
ultimately fell out of fashion.
It wasn’t until the 1980s that botanical decor truly came back to the forefront of design. Renowned interior decorator Mario Buatta, known as the Prince of Chintz for his love of floral fabrics, embraced all forms of botanicals, regularly using fresh floral arrangements alongside botanical prints and paintings. Buatta’s career spanned over 50 years, influencing designers and fueling the resurgence of botanical imagery in decor.
Flora and its artistic likenesses have since translated seamlessly into multiple genres of modern design, from the more traditional to eclectic and even minimalist. Whether it’s a naturalistic botanical wallpaper, bright chintz accent pillow or classic floral print, plant-inspired decor is everywhere. Bringing the beauty of the natural world indoors seems a pursuit destined to endure through the ages.
P A T I O S
STAMPED CONCRETE
RETAINING WALLS
OUTDOOR KITCHENS
FIRE PITS
FIREPLACES
FIBERGLASS POOLS
GUNITE POOLS
SCREENED PORCHES
PAVERS
E C K S P O O L S
PAVILIONS
AVILIONS
PERGOLAS
ERGOLAS
P P P C
PVCDECKS
VC DECKS
COMPOSITEDECKS
OMPOSITE DECKS
DEN/LIBRARY
The Wesley Hall armchair is covered in a Cowtan & Tout fabric, the accent chair is from Highland House Furniture, the co ee table is from Overstock, the drapery fabric is by Cowtan & Tout, and the rug is from J&D Oriental Rugs Co.
—James Kastelein, Owner
