9 Garden Design Tips from an Interior Designer: Best of Growing Joy Replay

2026-06-04

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If you're looking for your garden to be a little more curated, calm, and cohesive (put together in a way that just feels right) what if you've been looking for advice in the wrong places? What if you shouldn't be looking at a garden designer at all, but instead at an interior designer to give you garden design tips that help pull everything together? I'm bringing this one back as part of the Best of Growing Joy series a conversation I had a couple of years ago with Kelly Wilkniss, an interior designer, avid...

If you're looking for your garden to be a little more curated, calm, and cohesive (put together in a way that just feels right) what if you've been looking for advice in the wrong places? What if you shouldn't be looking at a garden designer at all, but instead at an interior designer to give you garden design tips that help pull everything together?

I'm bringing this one back as part of the Best of Growing Joy series a conversation I had a couple of years ago with Kelly Wilkniss, an interior designer, avid gardener, and co-host of the Decorating Tips and Tricks podcast. Kelly uses her interior design principles in the garden, and I still use the concepts we talked about in my own garden and houseplant collection today.

We cover how these beginner-friendly garden design principles can completely change and improve your plants and your outdoor space, and you'll walk away with practical tips to create flow, balance, beauty, and calm in your garden.

In this episode, we learn:

[04:50] How has Kelly’s gardening passion intersected with her interior design career?
[07:16] What inspired Kelly to do an all-white garden
[08:45] What is Kelly’s interior design style?
[10:30] Kelly’s opinion on modernizing antiques
[12:01] How did she transition from being a lawyer to an interior designer?
[14:08] Where can you find stylish lights for upgrading indoor plant environments?
[16:04] Where to find a personalized Mother's Day gift that includes handcrafted wind chimes
[20:31] Tip #1 Take a photo of interior and exterior spaces (it promotes a cohesive design flow!)
[21:56] Tip #2 Limit your color palette
[25:18] Tip #3 Create a flow
[33:49] A must-have book for outdoor living area design ideas with mix-and-match suggestions and before-and-after pictures
[35:10] Tip #4 Plant in odd numbers
[37:55] Tip #5 Layering!
[40:44] Tip #6 Balance and scale
[44:26] Tip #7 Visual noise
[48:48] Tip #8 The touch of black
[52:08] Tip #9 Not having an ugly storage
[01:00:13] Where can you find Kelly on social media?

Mentioned in our conversation:

Growing Joy Episode 145: Interior Design Trends and Houseplants With Betsy From Affordable Interior Design
Wayfair sheds
Growing Joy Episode 180: Minimalism and Plants With Stephanie of Sustainable Minimalist

Which of the 9 interior design tips are you most excited to try in your garden?

Check out the full show notes and blog for Kelly's beginner-friendly garden design principles!

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