5 clever small space houseplant ideas to steal from the world's first-ever 'Floating Terrarium'

Just in time for National Houseplant Week, you can now officially book a stay in the world's first-ever 'Floating Terrarium' based in London, which is the ultimate example of how to squeeze a houseplant obsession into a tiny space. 

Reimagining the traditional canal boat, the Floating Terrarium is every nature lover's dream, bringing biophilic design – designing to connect humans with nature – to the forefront of its interior choices.

Naturally, the space is decked out in awe-inspiring houseplant ideas, some of which are right in line with this year's hottest houseplant trend, that we already have bookmarked to emulate in our own homes.

The Floating Terrarium

The biophilic oasis was brought to life by creator and designer Mia Powell in partnership with colour experts Lick and plant specialists Patch. The Floating Terrarium was designed with colour psychology in mind and the ideal assortment of houseplants to boost mood at home and make the small space sing.

So, here are just several ways the Floating Terrarium nails some of our best-loved small space houseplant ideas.

1. Group small plants together

If you're afraid about going big with a singular living room houseplant idea, why not opt for volume instead? Similar to the clustering trend, interiors expert Kate Watson-Smyth notes that this idea of 'abundance' is one of the easiest ways to make a tablescape look expensive, and the same can be applied to any area of home decor – like houseplant ideas.

Consider purchasing a handful of the best indoor plants with a smaller footprint and grouping them together on a ledge or windowsill to achieve that similar 'wow' factor a larger houseplant gives off.

2. Give the illusion of height with hanging plants

Opting for hanging plants will help create the illusion of taller ceilings and open up a small space. Consider adding a hanging plant to a cosy reading corner or nook, or above your bed as a clever bedroom houseplant idea.

3. Utilise vertical space

In line with the last point of opting for hanging plants, utilising vertical space by placing houseplants on the likes of kitchen shelving, for example, just as the Floating Terrarium has done, is yet another way to bring in nature without compromising precious floor space.

Shelves or mantelpiece decor ideas alike are the perfect place to house trailing plants such as fast-growing houseplants like pothos or the easy-to-care-for string of pearls to further add dimension to a small space.

4. Add height with plant stands

If you've heard of the trick which involves raising furniture to make a small room look bigger, the same can be said for how you choose to arrange and display your houseplants.

Consider opting for plant stands and stools that elevate your houseplants off of the floor slightly, to add height and give the illusion of a bigger space.

5. Stick with a neutral plant pot colour scheme

Lastly, on the topic of plant pots, try sticking to a neutral colour scheme, but play with texture and material.

While we love going bold and beautiful as much as the next person, if you're working with a smaller space, it may work in your favour to go neutral to allow the eye to travel more seamlessly around the room, thus tricking us into believing a space is much bigger than it's letting on to be.

Not only is considering a suitable colour palette applicable to plant pots but also during the process of selecting the right colours when painting a room, too.

Speaking on the colours used in the design of the Floating Terrarium, Tash Bradley, Lick's director of interior design and colour psychologist says, 'With little space to work with, it was important to choose colours that wouldn't enclose it further.'

'Softer colours were chosen for the walls and when darker colours were used, they weren't taken up to the ceiling, to ensure the boat had a more expansive feeling.'

A stay at the Floating Terrarium is available to book now on Airbnb. To make the deal even sweeter, Patch has also teamed up with designer Mia Powell to give one lucky winner the chance to spend a night in the Floating Terrarium, of which details can be found out here.

Let's just say, the Floating Terrarium has certainly raised our standards as far as small space houseplant ideas go – and we only home to follow suit in our own homes.