LIFEST YLE
Orchestrate Flowers
F
TO MAKE YOUR SPACE SING
lower arranging is an art form that nearly anyone can pick up as part of their home design repertoire to make every day and occasion feel fresh and unexpected. The elements of a successful arrangement are more or less universal, but there’s so much room to play within those parameters! THE VESSEL The foundation of your arrangement will guide your other decisions, or else let your floral choices determine the container you use.
Cylinder-shaped or bouquet vases work best for large, longstemmed blooms like roses or sunflowers, while bowl-shaped vases are perfect for shorter stems bearing vivid flowers such as carnations. Wider bowls will require floral frogs, wire or clay to provide more structure, but also open up many more possibilities for playing with shape and space. GREENERY Branches of eucalyptus, ivy, myrtle, pine, lemon leaf, ferns and others create a good base for your arrangement to grow
from, linking the flowers to their origin in the earth and providing contrast for their striking colors. All things green have been moving to the center of our color consciousness, and it’s entirely possible to create a botanical arrangement sans blooms, though they tend to be more soothing than eye-catching. FILLER BLOOMS Don’t let the term deceive you — these are an essential component of your arrangement and shouldn’t be randomly selected for inclusion. They typically occupy about one-third of the total inventory and provide volume, color consistency and support the power of your statement blooms. They often contain multiple flowers on a single stem, as do baby’s breath, delphinium, spray roses and stock. Most come in pastel shades that pair with most anything. STATEMENT BLOOMS These are the flowers that will provide the visual focus and stability to the design, displayed near the center of the arrangement or drooping slightly over the edge. They’re generally the largest blooms or have eyecatching colors and detail. Popular choices include roses, dahlias, hydrangeas, lilies, ranunculus, protea and anemones, but your choice of focal points can be as individual as you are.
54
Northern A Z Luxur y L iving VOL. 2, NO. 4
