Spring is a time for the flowers to bloom, whether they be in the back garden or on your maxi dress. Christian Dior, Vivienne Westwood, Stella McCartney and most of their friends had floral prints on their Spring Summer 2011 runways, and the high street has followed the trend with all different shades, styles and accessories.
Nothing celebrates the change of seasons like a bright flower bomb ensemble. To complement the trend designers like Lanvin, Alexander McQueen and Tiffany & Co. have embraced accessories that wouldn’t look out of place in a bird’s nest or flower bed. Bugs, butterflies, buds and leaves add to this garden party chic!
Tropical
Christian Dior had palms and plants in their collection, embracing more of a tropical feel for their Spring Summer show. The colors were bright with green, navy, orange and fuchsia, giving it a very look-at-me take on floral. This is a fantastic option for those who really want to stand out in the crowd and declare that the sun is well and truly shining.
French Connection’s Safari collection does a good job bringing this tropical vibe to the high street. It’s also easy to find patterns like these in cheaper shops like Forever 21, who have a wide range of dresses, jackets, tops, skirts and leggings to give you that floral feeling.
Understated Patterns

If you think wearing floral in the first place, without the electric color pallet is enough, then you should look more towards the collections shown by Erdem and Alberta Ferrati. They stuck to more of an English garden kind of landscape. Their hues were a selection of greens, browns, taupes and creams.
Ferrati showed a softer, more flowy and delicate way to wear the trend that will leave you looking more like a flower fairy than a flower bomb. The collection very much stuck to natural, earthy tones, with large foliage prints featuring twigs and vines.
Erdem didn’t go too crazy on the color front either, using white as a base with little red, green and blue flowers, much like those on a Monet painting. Really it’s a case of taste and personal style, as always.
Oriental
Vera Wang did the opposite, using black as a base and very small red and pink posies in the patterns. The materials were satiny and the cuts were kimono-like. This is more suited to an evening garden party or office look, as it features high-necklines and discrete patterns.
Patterned kimonos, with loose fit and waterfall sleeves, are also a bit of a trend right now. Dusty pink and black patterns are available from Zara for $99 and a delicate feather-printed number is available from Topshop for $150.
Detailed Footwear
Here’s the fun part of this trend. The accessories are to-die-for! Natalie Portman’s red Swarovski rose from the Golden Globe’s doesn’t cut it with the pieces designers are digging up from their gardens and bringing to the runways this season.
Sarah Burton added flair to McQueen’s infamous shoes this season with leather, resin and hand-painted wedges and stilettos with leaf patterns and butterflies that featured such exquisite detail that one would be forgiven for wanting to put them on your mantelpiece rather than your feet.
Dior brought the tropical theme to their models’ toes with feathery creations in hot pinks, reds, sunset oranges, indigos and blues. So delicious that you could abandon the whole floral theme and just invest in a pair of these babies. Even if John Galliano isn’t Mr. Popular right now he put on a good show for spring!
Bugged Out Jewels
Lanvin had some really buzz-worthy jewellery in their spring collection. From bees and flies to moths and butterflies, it gave the collection a feeling of old-world elegance and is the perfect way to make this look more interesting, vintage and expensive. If you really feel like splashing out you can pick up a plexiglas necklace with crystal butterfly from their collection for a mere $1,855. If not, flea markets and vintage stores usually have an assortment of this kind of unusual jewellery for more pocket-friendly prices.
Pocket Full of Posies
Instead of filling your pockets with posies, why not have a clutch full of posies? Stella McCartney, Marc Jacobs, Oscar de la Renta, Alexander McQueen and Roger Vivier had a thing for little clutch purses with floral details this season. These patterns were paired with sequins, chains, straw, and embroidered silk to offer that little bit of a nod to the summer’s bloom in case you don’t want to go the whole hog on the trend.
As with the clothes, there were rich colors in the Marc Jacobs collection, more of an old-fashioned feel to the McQueen collection, and lighter, more delicate hues from de la Renta and McCartney. However, high-tailing it to the high street is probably your best way to go. Stores like Aldo and H&M won’t let you down. Patterns are easily recreated and if there’s one trend that the high street loves to show off with every year it’s floral.