Floral Arrangement Tips

One of my favorite ways to relax is by arranging flowers; whether new to this activity or a seasoned veteran, young and old alike will find it peaceful and enjoyable. The goal of floral arrangements is to let your inner creativity soar and design individual variations upon themes of home gardens, wildflowers in the countryside and even botanical gardens like Edmonton’s own Muttart Conservatory. The result is an embodiment of nature’s grace which will reflect the life and joy of the flowers, for as Wordsworth once said, “’it's my faith that every flower/Enjoys the air it breathes.”

Color is a key element in floral arrangements; some will want to achieve pure and simple aesthetic beauty, others the meditative graces of feng shui and still others will be seeking color therapy. In truth, the choices and possibilities are endless and there are no real rules to inhibit your creativity. That being said, in my experience peaceful combinations are found amongst blues, purples, yellows and whites, while romantic colors include pinks, periwinkles and lavenders. Looking to create a more bold and dynamic effect? Try dark reds, blood orange, spice and hot pinks. Be courageous and try mixing rich and bright colors, use your imagination and place pastels and darks together…you may be surprised at the stunning art you can create. Be sure to take pictures as you will want to remember your work and potentially expand upon it next time!

Another important element in decorating with flowers is the vase; you may even want to start a collection in all shapes and sizes so you always have the perfect vase, whether crystal, mosaic, tiffany style stained glass, pewter, wood or just clear glass at your fingertips. Thousands of unique vases are available for purchase over the internet as well, making your task that much simpler.

Finally, here are some essential tips to create the perfect bouquet:

 

 

Cutting:

Early morning is the best time to cut your flowers since it is cooler;

Always sharpen your shears or secateurs regularly;

Be sure not to cut your stems too short; the longer you leave them, the easier you can arrange them;

Place the flowers in water right away after cutting;

and don’t stay with obvious, traditional combinations – choose a large variety to create an unusual bouquet.

Conditioning:

A trick to enhancing the life of your bouquet is to place your flowers in a deep bucket of fresh rain water for 1-2 days;

Always take off leaves sitting below the waterline of the vase so your flowers can “breathe”;

Trim soft stems to 10”-30” and tough wooden stems to 45”;

and place your bouquets in a cool, dark room with a preferred temperature of 1-5°C.

Arranging:

Cut stems at varying lengths in order to highlight and allow each flower to stand out;

Use depth and dimension – remember this is not a flat canvas but a three dimensional work of art;

Be sure to select vibrant foliage as well as flowers;

Don’t think about balance or restrict your flowers to a pattern, follow your instincts;

and the most important tip of all – use contrast in your color variations.

Whether you are composing the symphony of these bouquets as a gift, for a wedding, or just for your own decoration, floral arranging is sure to bring you many hours of pleasure and satisfaction.