This spring, Victoria Larson has unveiled the Curiosities collection — three watercolor-esque wallpaper patterns celebrating wonder, whimsy and wanderlust. This collection gathers treasured motifs from Victoria’s travels and daydreams, particularly in the Vizcaya Museum & Gardens. Each design is based on original artwork and rooted in a sense of discovery, evoking the feeling of stumbling upon something rare and beautiful. Created to spark storytelling and add a touch of magic to your interiors, these patterns invite you to design with curiosity and delight.
We caught up with Victoria Larson to discuss how the collection came to be.
Raymond Paul Schneider: When did you first start developing this new collection? What was the overall timeline from conception to final design?
Victoria Larson: The Curiosities collection has been on my mind for about 2 years. For several winters now, I’ve been lucky enough to spend a little time in the Coconut Grove neighborhood of Miami, and I always make a beeline for Vizcaya. It’s so layered and extensive that I find new inspiration every visit. After my first visit, I knew it would inspire designs, but I wasn’t ready to form exactly what that would look like. After my second or third visit, my vision for individual designs started to come to life.
This collection took a full year from start to finish. It’s more layered and technical than my past designs and it took me several months just to paint the motifs the way I saw them in my mind’s eye. Then it took many iterations of trying those motifs in different repeats until the designs started to feel the way I wanted.
RPS: What was your initial inspiration, and where did the idea(s) come from?
VL: This collection is entirely inspired by Vizcaya. It’s such a richly atmospheric place — ornamental but not overly precious, with elements that feel both whimsical and historic. I was drawn to details like faux-painted trims, wrought iron railings, sculpted lions and the quiet charm of garden follies. The idea was to capture the elegance and eccentricity of the estate through patterns that evoke curiosity and discovery.
RPS: Describe your overall creative and design process.
VL: My process is never contrived – It has to come from story and place. Whether it’s the enchantment of a villa garden or the shimmer of water and light, each wallpaper design originates in a deeply felt connection to landscape, memory and atmosphere.
I work primarily in watercolor, a medium that echoes the softness and fluidity of my inspirations. The hand-painted motifs are scanned and evolve into repeating patterns. I intentionally leave what others might clean or refine, so designs never lose the touch of painted irregularity and texture. Embracing the imperfections gives my design soul.
Themes often emerge from reverie: a moment by the river, a dreamlike garden or place, or a grotto made of shells. I build a world around that vision, layering personal symbolism and natural motifs. It’s as much about evoking a feeling — a sense of wonder, memory or escape — as it is about surface design.
RPS: Did you have a specific audience or theme in mind?
VL: Yes — Curiosities, like all my collections, is for those who value interiors with soul. I designed this collection for people who want their spaces to feel storied and a little magical — whether that’s a layered family home, a boutique hotel, or an eclectic powder room. The unifying theme is curiosity — patterns that invite a second glance, a sense of narrative.
RPS: What methods, tools, and materials did you use to develop and prototype this design?
VL: I used watercolor on textured paper for the original artwork, then scanned and refined digitally with Photoshop. We printed on a non-woven heavy matte wallpaper to keep the finish soft and painterly. Prototypes were developed through several rounds of strike-offs to get the color balance just right — especially with some of the more nuanced, tone-on-tone palettes.
RPS: Did you use any new techniques or technologies to conceptualize or create this product?
VL: Although I normally produce my own digital files for printing, some designs were pretty intricate and tricky, so I enlisted the help of a talented friend to generate the final repeats. Multiple colors for the Folly design meant many more hours than normal adjusting hues to get it just right. I like to drop the wallpaper design into a room mockup to get a good sense of overall scale and look.
RPS: Were there any challenges that influenced or changed the final design?
Capturing the essence of Vizcaya without being too literal was a challenge I welcomed. I wanted the patterns to feel inspired by the place, not like replicas of it. Finding that balance — especially with Masquerade, where I interpreted faux-painted architectural trim into a stripe — took a few iterations. Another challenge was in scale; some motifs needed to be larger to really come alive on the wall, while still feeling intricate. But those adjustments ultimately made the collection stronger.
RPS: Describe your brand’s overall DNA and ethos.
VL: At its core, my brand is rooted in artful storytelling. Every pattern I create starts by hand — through painting or sketching — and is inspired by my life growing up on the Chesapeake Bay, my travels with my sailor husband, and the everyday beauty of coastal living. My goal is to create wallpaper that feels soulful, stylish, and approachable: designs that evoke memory and emotion, that make a space feel truly personal. I believe art makes a home, and wallpaper can be an extension of that — it should reflect who you are and what you love. Craftsmanship is essential to me. I started with hand-screen-printed fabrics back in 2010, and that hands-on, thoughtful approach has remained central to everything I do. Whether it’s printed grass cloth or a licensed collection, I want every piece to feel intentional and deeply considered.
Equally important is how we care for our customers. Beautiful design doesn’t matter if the experience of getting it isn’t smooth or human. So I’ve built a brand that values design excellence and truly responsive service.
At the end of the day, I see my work as a blend of fine art, personal narrative, and a deep love for thoughtful, meaningful design. That’s the heart of the Victoria Larson brand.
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