Jan 23, 2026

How We Design Our Silk Flowers in the Hill House Studio

At Hill House Decor, every everlasting stem starts long before it lands in a vase.
It begins in our hilltop studio in California – with a real flower on the table, a sketchbook, and the question:

“Would this be believable enough to fool a bee?”

In this post, we’ll take you behind the scenes of how we design our silk (and faux) flowers: from the first petal sketch to the finished arrangement styled in a home, office, spa, or hotel.

Step 1: We Start With Real Flowers

Before anything is “silk” or “faux,” it’s real.
We bring fresh flowers into the studio and spend time just looking at them:

How the petals curl, not in theory, but in this variety.
How many shades of one color are hidden in a single bloom.
How the stem leans when it’s at its most beautiful, just before it starts to fade.

We photograph the flowers in natural light, take notes, and draw quick studies of their silhouettes. The goal isn’t a perfect botanical drawing – it’s to understand each flower’s character.

Photo ideas:

Close-up of real flowers on your studio table, with a sketchbook and pencil beside them.
Overhead shot of a few loose blooms, petals scattered, natural light coming across the page.

Step 2: Sketching the Stem

Once we’ve lived with a real flower for a while, we move to sketching the stem we want to create.

We think about:

The overall shape: tall and architectural, or soft and rounded?
The petal structure: how many layers, how tight or open?
The foliage: should the leaves be a quiet background, or part of the story?

From there, we translate that into petal shapes, leaf patterns and stem proportions that can work in silk and high-quality faux materials.

This is where “quiet luxury” begins: not in adding more, but in editing down to the most believable, graceful version of the flower.

Photo ideas:

Sketchbook with petal and leaf drawings, a real flower lying across the page.
A designer’s hand drawing, with a mug of tea and a single stem in a bud vase in the background.

Step 3: Choosing Color and Texture

A flower is never just “pink” or “white.” It’s a gradient of shadows, highlights, warmth, and coolness.

In the studio, we lay out color swatches next to real petals and ask:

Is this shade too flat?
Does it capture the slight translucency at the edge?
Does the green feel alive, or like plastic?

We always aim for:

Matte, petal-like finishes (no obvious artificial shine)
Subtle color shifts from base to tip
Leaves that look like they’ve seen real light

The goal is to create stems that blend in with fresh flowers, not shout “I’m faux” from across the room.

Photo ideas:

Flatlay of color swatches, real petals, and sample silk/fabric pieces.
Close-up of your chosen faux petals and leaves, showing texture, not just color.

Step 4: Small-Batch Sampling in the Studio

Once we’re happy with shapes and colors on paper, we move into small-batch samples.

We create test stems in limited quantities and:

Arrange them in vases just like a client would.
Style them on entry tables, bedside tables, console tables.
Watch how they look in different light throughout the day.

We ask tough questions:

Does the stem move like a real one when you touch it?
Do the petals hold shape, or do they look stiff?
Would we personally live with this arrangement for months?

Anything that feels even slightly “off” gets edited and adjusted before we move forward.

Photo ideas:

A row of sample stems lined up in simple vases, all slightly different.
Before/after of a sample version vs refined version of the same flower.

Step 5: Partnering With Makers in Vietnam and Zhuoang Chau

When we’re satisfied with our small-batch samples, we work with our production partners in Vietnam and Zhuoang Chau, China to bring them to life at scale.

Even as we go global, the design stays anchored in our California studio. Every petal shape, color note, and stem proportion is defined here first; our partners help us translate that into consistent, high-quality stems.

We see this as a collaboration: our design direction, their technical mastery. The standard never changes: the flower must feel real, both from across the room and up close in your hand.

Photo ideas:

A simple illustrated “map” graphic showing California → Vietnam → Zhuoang Chau → back to California.
A shot of multiple finished stems laid out neatly, ready for quality check.

Step 6: When the Flowers Come Home

Finished stems come back to California and arrive at the Hill House studio for quality inspection.

Here, we:

Check every stem in natural light.
Gently reshape petals and leaves as needed.
Remove anything that doesn’t meet our “could this fool a bee?” standard.

Then, and only then, we arrange the stems into bouquets and centerpieces. Each arrangement is composed by an artisan florist, not just assembled from a production line.

Our job at this stage is to make the flowers feel alive:

Slight asymmetry
Soft, natural movement
A sense that they grew that way, rather than being forced.

Photo ideas:

Florist’s hands adjusting stems in a vase.
A table full of stems, some being inspected, some already arranged.

Step 7: Styling for Real Life

Finally, we style our arrangements in the kinds of spaces they’re meant for:

A home entry table that greets you every evening.
An office reception desk that always looks “ready.”
A spa waiting room where everything needs to feel calm.
A hotel suite console that hints at extra care.

We design with the belief that true luxury doesn’t shout; it quietly makes a room feel more complete. Our everlasting flowers are meant to disappear into your life the way fresh flowers do—except they’re still perfect next week, and the week after that.

Photo ideas:

One arrangement in three locations: home, office, spa or hotel.
Cozy vignette: flowers, a book, and a cup on a side table.

Why We Do It This Way

We could make “good enough” faux flowers quickly. But that’s not why Hill House Decor exists.

Our mission is to create everlasting flowers that:

Respect the real blooms they’re inspired by.
Offer quiet luxury without constant maintenance.
Make everyday spaces—homes, offices, spas, hotels—feel remembered and cared for.

Every stem that leaves our hilltop studio carries all of that: the real flower on the table, the sketches, the samples, the global journey, the hands that shaped it, and the hope that it will become part of your daily life—not just your decor.