Hygge & West has been a brand I've admired from afar, in that dream client category of someday... Their designs are sophisticated, storybook, fine home and garden, velvet touch, aspirational second home, you get the idea! Often I'll admire wallpaper in a magazine just to then find out YES— It's H&W.
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a quality of coziness and comfortable conviviality that engenders a feeling of contentment or well-being (regarded as a defining characteristic of Danish culture).
Co-founders Aimee Lagos and Christiana Coop are fine curators of style and taste. The brand has grown over the years and as such supports some of my favorite illustrator sheroes like Emily Isabella, Julia Rothman, and Dinara Mirtalipova while also partnering with some of the most respected brands in the home decor industry.
It was a total honor to be contacted by the Aimee and Christiana to discuss designs for a southwest floral based on my Language of Flowers prints. I enjoyed the entire process because they are professionals. From deadlines to feedback the process was smooth and collaborative.
In November of 2025 Hygge & West launched the wallpaper collection we had started in the fall of 2023. As a designer for private label I'm quite accustomed to long lead times and working in future seasons. Illustrators (especially book illustrators) regularly wait for over a year to see their work in print. Patience pays off and it's always an exciting moment to see your projects in the flesh.
Castilleja is a native wildflower of the southwest also known as Indian paintbrush or prairie-fire. It's also one of the first flowers I learned the name of when camping with my parents. Very easy to spot.
Because my floral collection is mostly fictional, the name came after the design but I can definitely see elements of this flower in the illustration.
This image shows some of the design ideas along the way. Two color options, outlines of flowers and insects and butterflies delineated with color. A pretty dress for palette ideas.
Here's a photo of some of the repeats I was experimenting with to compare for a good flow and enough density. None of these as it turns out. There is a lot of trial and error with complicated prints.
The repeat of the final pattern is dense, with less open spaces. I did not choose the final colors but love what H&W went with to create different moods.
Below I played with the 4 moods of this wallpaper and created different southwest rooms that might all be in the same house (similar furnishings and art) or—and more likely: different homes. I'm calling my aesthetic: High Desert Emporium.
I hope this was a fun look into the work behind a design. If you use this wallpaper in your home please share it in the socials and tag me or H&W or both!
Hit me up with any thoughts or questions and follow Hygge & West on Instagram!
The H&W interview with me on their blog can be found here.