Petal Powered

Life has been coming up roses for local painter Lulie Wallace. This College of Charleston grad created a name for herself painting bright floral motifs that have garnered national attention—her works have been sold nationwide by Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie, One Kings Lane, and Serena & Lily and featured in publications like HGTV Magazine. She’s now branching out with a textiles line from which she designs duffels, throw pillows, and pouches. And she’ll be showcasing it all at Stems next Thursday, March 14, from 5 to 10 p.m. We caught up with her for a chat before the big event.

Why flowers? My favorite things I painted in college just happened to be flowers. It’s what I felt the most proud of, so I decided to stick with it. I enjoy taking one thing and exploring the heck out of it.

Love from the blogosphere: A couple weeks after I was featured on Design*Sponge, Urban Outfitters and Anthropologie contacted me! It’s fun telling my parents about being featured on a blog—my mom said, “I don’t know what you’re talking about, but cool.”

On seeing her work for sale in Anthropologie: It’s my favorite store. To have grown up going there and then to see they like what I’m doing—it’s an honor.

Her textiles line: I find that my paintings fit better in a home than on a gallery wall. I feel like choosing to do fabric was an extension of that. I love having my hand in another realm of the interior design world.

Hidden talents: I play the guitar and piano, and I sing. I’ve sung in a couple of my friends’ weddings, but that’s the closest I’ve come to performances.

Favorite place to see Charleston in bloom: I live around the corner from the Unitarian Church, and its churchyard is beautiful. I walk my dog through the gardens there on a regular basis.

To view Wallace’s works and find details on her “Paintings and Patterns” exhibit, click here.

To read about more local artists, click here.

To peruse our calendar for more upcoming events, click here.