Bespoke Artificial Planting for Smiths of Smithfield
Client: Smiths of Smithfield
Project: Interior planting scheme
Location: Smithfield, London
Sector: Hospitality / Restaurants & Bars
Installation: Bespoke artificial foliage and planting
Key requirements: Low-maintenance planting, hanging foliage and planting designed around the existing interior
Bringing the Greenery In: Bespoke Artificial Planting for Smiths of Smithfield
Sometimes, it doesn’t take a statement tree to make an impact.
For Smiths of Smithfield, we designed and installed a bespoke artificial planting scheme using layers of hanging and trailing foliage throughout the restaurant and bar.
The aim was to introduce more greenery while working with the character of the existing interior, using the architecture already there rather than filling valuable floor space.
The result was a rather jungly mix of Monstera, pothos, ivy, senecio and ferns appearing above the bar, around windows, down columns and overhead.
The Artificial Planting Brief
Smiths of Smithfield already has plenty of character, with exposed brick, metal columns, timber beams and large industrial windows.
Our brief was to introduce more planting throughout the space, bringing in additional foliage while keeping the overall scheme clean and cohesive. Some of the planting also required UV resistant foliage depending on its position within the building.
Rather than treating the planting as one large feature, we looked at how greenery could be worked into different areas of the restaurant.
The bar, columns, shelving and staircase each gave us an opportunity to do something slightly different.
Working With What Was Already There
One of the things we particularly liked about this project was being able to use the existing architecture to our advantage.
Around the bar, trailing foliage was designed to frame the large windows, with a mix of variegated ivy, pothos, Monstera and senecio bringing greenery down from above. Smaller planting in terracotta pots was introduced amongst the bottles and shelving below.
Elsewhere, the metal columns became natural points for clusters of Monstera, pothos and trailing senecio, allowing us to introduce greenery at height.
Going a Little More Jungly
The staircase gave us the opportunity to have a bit more fun.
Rather than adding another free standing plant, we created large foliage balls suspended from the ceiling, filled with a mixture of Monstera, variegated pothos, ivy, senecio and hanging ferns. The different leaf shapes, lengths and tones helped the planting feel less uniform, with foliage trailing down at different levels.
Using a mixture rather than repeating the same plant throughout gave the hanging features the fuller, slightly jungly feel we were looking for, while bringing greenery overhead.
Artificial Planting for Hospitality
Restaurants and bars are increasingly becoming a big part of our Bespoke work.
And while we’ll always love a large statement tree, a project like Smiths of Smithfield shows how much can be achieved with planting alone.
Hanging and trailing artificial foliage allows us to work with height rather than footprint, soften harder architectural features and introduce greenery into areas that would otherwise be difficult to have real plants.
There’s also the rather useful benefit of it being artificial.
No watering, no dropping leaves and no wondering who was supposed to look after the plants over the weekend.
For a busy hospitality space, that makes quite a difference.
The Finished Planting Scheme
The finished scheme brings pockets of greenery throughout Smiths of Smithfield rather than concentrating everything in one place.
Foliage frames the bar windows, sits amongst the shelving, works its way down the columns and hangs above the staircase, connecting the different areas of the interior.
For us, it’s a great example of artificial planting doing exactly what it should: working with the space rather than competing with it.
Planning a Bespoke Planting Project?
Twilight Trees designs and installs bespoke artificial trees, planting and florals for restaurants, bars, hotels and commercial interiors.
From statement trees to hanging foliage and complete interior planting schemes, our team can create something designed specifically around your space.
Talk to our Bespoke team about your project.
