If the idea of flower arranging intimidates you or your schedule is packed, just keep it simple.
Here are some tips to get you started. Remember, most florists sell loose-cut flowers in addition to hand-arranged bouquets and, if you stop by your local Teleflora shop, you’ll get a chance to tap your florist's expertise about the blooms you buy.
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Complementary colors create floral drama. Above, larkspur and callas share the spotlight.
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• Get the proportion of flowers to vase right and the rest is simple. A bubble bowl or chunky cube calls for short-cut flowers, a tall slender vase should hold longer flowers, like gladiola or veronica. Typically, a vase should be about one-third of the floral arrangement’s total height, ie one-third vase and two-thirds flowers. For round/fat vases, though, the ratio should be closer to 50:50.
• Cut! If your flowers don’t sit right, you can always cut them shorter. But take one, hold up to the vase and eyeball a good height before you snip. That is a final decision, after all. :) But if you do make a mistake and end up cutting them too short, don’t worry, just pick a smaller vase. Always cut stems at an angle, change water daily and remove foliage below the water line to aid longevity.
• Here’s a quick way to dress up your place before a party. Cut large, wide flowers like daisies, sunflowers or rhododendron short and fill a low container(s) with water. The containers could be elegant glass bowls, simple Pyrex dishes, tea cups, etc., depending on your mood. Then just float the flowers in the water. Add a few votive candles around the flowers and you’re good to go.
• Choose a few different flowers all in the same color scheme, say cream-colored spray roses (about a dozen) and white stock (half a dozen). Roses go in first. Next, cut the stock stems slightly longer than the roses, and add in, starting from the center and working outward, basically, wherever you need to fill. Because they’re all the same color, you’ll have a terrific impact for not much money and two types of flower will create knock-out texture.
• That said, don’t be afraid to have fun with color, pairing orange and pink perhaps, or yellow and purple. Foliage is an economical way to add interest and texture. And here’s a secret: sometimes floral drama is super easy.
You can great a stunning look by putting a leggy flower like larkspur in a tall vase, then cutting some yellow roses, callas or lisianthus 4-6 inches shorter than the larkspur (so that the flower heads are just above the rim of the vase) and making a collar at the base. This takes 10 minutes, tops.
And the best part? Once you start doing it, you’ll get your own ideas and inspirations, and perhaps a signature floral look!
Flower Fact of the Day: Residents of West London’s Kensington Palace Gardens, aka “Billionaires’ Row,” are recruiting the stars of Chelsea Flower Show to design big-budget custom gardens, according to a recent story in the Daily Telegraph. Read more at: telegraph.co.uk/news/2571683/Billionaires-Row-residents-sign-up-stars-of-Chelsea-Flower-Show.html.
