Flower Arrangement

Hydrangeas

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We love hydrangeas; they are one of our favorite flowers. It was one of our grandma’s favorite too; maybe that’s why we like them so much. It reminds us of her!! They are so simple yet have a significant presence with their large flowerhead. They always stand out, whether it is an all hydrangea arrangement or mixed with different flowers.

If you want to learn how to arrange flowers, hydrangea is a great place to start. They are easily accessible at most grocery stores and one of the easiest and least expensive arrangements to create.

Hydrangeas take a lot of water and can wilt quickly if not properly cared for. As soon as you bring them home, cut each stem at a 45-degree angle and put them immediately in water; this will allow the blooms to drink more water. When purchasing from your local store, often they come with flower food; make sure to use it.

If you are picking from your garden, after cutting them, boil water and dip each hydrangea stem into it for thirty seconds and then place it in a vase with room temperature water.

Hydrangeas drink water from their bloom heads as well, and spraying water on them helps prevent them from wilting. In case they do wilt, you can dunk its whole head in room temperature water.

Keep your hydrangea arrangement at a cooler temperature and away from drafts or direct sunlight. Replace the water every other day. With proper care, your hydrangea arrangement can last for weeks.

Potted hydrangeas look so beautiful and will last much longer than cut ones, especially if you pick one with few blooms and lots of buds.

Water the plant often, feel the soil, and if the top layer feels dry to the touch, it’s time to water it. Drainage is essential; make sure there are drainage holes at the bottom of the container you selected. Place your potted hydrangea where it receives bright light but not direct sunlight.

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Flower Arrangement

Flower Arranging Tools

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It is no secret that we love fresh flowers at home. They quickly brighten up any space and makes it more inviting. If you are new to flower arranging, the idea of creating your own bouquet can be a little overwhelming. But don’t get discouraged!! With the right tools, flower arranging can be fun and simple.

If this Spring, you feel inspired to start creating your floral arrangements, make sure that you have some basic tools on hand. And don’t forget: The first step to mastering a skill lies in the dedication and practice you put into that new hobby.

There are a lot of florist’s tools right there. But to make it simple, we have listed some of the basic tools that we use in our arrangements:

Floral clippers

A good pair of floral clippers is key to creating a flower arrangement and ensuring that each stem is cut correctly to allow the flowers to drink water.

Pruners

Thicker stems and branches can be a problem without the right tool. The branch cutters are similar to floral clippers but can easily cut and clip more rigid stems.

Floral Tape

Floral tape is a must-have! They come in different colors and can be used for wrapping stems and lining vases. We use the clear tapes more often than the green ones, but both work great.

The clear floral tape is helpful to create a grid on top of the containers to help flowers stay in place and add support. We replaced the floral foams with clear tape and the chicken wire, and we don’t regret it! The green waterproof tape can be used to secure the bases of stems together.

Chicken wire

They are also called ‘wire mesh’ or ‘wire netting’. Like the floral tapes, the chicken wire adds support to the arrangement and gives you control over the structure of the arrangement. They can be bent to help guide and hold your arrangements in large containers.

Flower Thorn Strippers

This tool is easy to remove thorns and leaves from the stems, especially from roses. Begin by pulling down gently down the stem of a rose. It is important, to begin with, enough space down from the rose head to prevent it from falling off.

Moss

Add green or Spanish moss for a more finished look at your potted arrangements, terrariums, and baskets. Don’t use the moss in a vase of water with flowers; use it in an arrangement that doesn’t sit in vessels of water. If using the green sheet moss, make sure to saturate it before using it.

Spray bottle

After we complete an arrangement, we finish it with a light mist of water to hydrate the blooms, especially the hydrangeas.

Optional: If you have a lazy Susan, prop your vase on it to easily move around your vase and check all sides.

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Flower Arrangement

Green and White Flower Arrangement

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Flower Arranging can be a little overwhelming for most people, especially if you mix different types of flowers and colors. This one is though super simple and easy to follow. We used small white ivory hydrangeas, ivory roses, and green hypericum berries, all of which can be found year-round.

The first step is to fill the vases with room temperature water; add warm water if the flower buds are tight and you want to help them open up faster. Don’t forget to add flower food to your vase water (they usually come with the flowers when you purchase them at grocery stores)! It will help slow down bacterial growth.

When trimming the stems, make sure to do it at an angle. Doing this ensures that the flowers will absorb plenty of water and nutrients. Remove all the leaves from the stems, make sure there are no leaves below the waterline. Start with the roses, slowly and gently, remove the guard petals that are wilted and/or have black edges.

Next, if you want the blooms to open up, gently blow onto them. Place three roses in the vase.

Next comes the green berries; place one on each side of the roses (don’t forget to remove all the leaves from the stem). Hypericum Berries make great fillers to any arrangement, and they also give texture and volume.
The following step is to add the hydrangeas to each side of the berries. Keep repeating this pattern until you have filled your entire vase. Refer to the video below. Happy Arranging!

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Flower Arrangement

How to Dry Hydrangeas

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It’s no secret that Carolina and I LOVE Hydrangeas. Hydrangeas are elegant, and their large blooms not only serve as a base for flower arrangements, but they are also stunning on their own. Fresh-cut or dried, hydrangeas are always stunning!

Hydrangea is a popular bloom for dried arrangements. By drying their blooms, we can enjoy their beauty for months. There are a few methods to dry hydrangea flowers, but vase drying is easier and helps preserve their color. There is also a silica method that dries the hydrangea in only 4 days and maintains the original shade. I have never used this method as I have read a few reviews saying it is expensive and risky to damage some of the petals.

There is not much secret to dry the hydrangeas blooms. It only requires patience as the process may take two or more weeks to dry. Follow some of my tips:

The first step, and probably the most important, is to identify when to cut hydrangeas for drying. Fresh blooms tend to wilt before they dry, so allow them to remain on the bush past their prime. You should only cut the flowers after they have already changed the color (vintage look) and started to dry while on the bush. But be careful and make sure to cut the flowers before they turn brown. Septembers and early October is usually the best time to cut them to dry and preserve.
Cut the blooms 10-15” long. You can even go longer depending on what type of arrangement you want to create. I personally don’t like to prune my hydrangeas too short, so I cut no longer than 15”.

Strip off all the leaves and place the blooms in a bucket or in a vase with water (fill the vase ¾ with water). I like to enjoy my hydrangeas before they dry, so I arrange them as I would do with any other flower arrangement and place them throughout my house while they dry. Just make sure Strip off all the leaves and place the blooms in a bucket or in a vase with water (fill the vase ¾ with water). I like to enjoy my hydrangeas before they dry, so I arrange them as I would do with any other flower arrangement and place them throughout my house while they dry. Just make sure to place them out of direct sunlight; otherwise, they will fade very quickly.
Monitor the water level and the blooms. Allow the water to evaporate naturally as the flowers dry but depending on the look and feel of the blooms you may need to add more water. If the water has evaporated and the blooms are still supple, you can add more water to the vase. When the petals look like paper, then stop watering and let the water evaporate completely.

Once the hydrangeas are fully dried, you can spray them with hairspray to help keep the blooms together. I usually wait until I arrange them in a wreath or a basket, then spray them with the aerosol.

Now, you are ready to enjoy your dry hydrangeas for months, even years! They look lovely in wreaths, baskets, and Fall arrangements. Enjoy!!!

Flower Arrangement

Dianthus Arrangment

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How stunning is this shade of Dianthus!? We love this flower because it has an extraordinarily long vase life. It’s a great one to add to your home decor. They come in many colors and textures, so there is one for every taste. You can easily find them in your grocery store.
They are simple flowers, but they can stand out in a room when combined with a gorgeous vase. Follow the tips below to help you replicate this arrangement.

For an environmentally friendly option, choose chicken wire instead of floral foam. Another advantage is that the flowers can drink naturally, helping with their longevity. Don’t let chicken wire intimidate you; they are easier to use than you think.

First, start by selecting one with large holes as it will be much easier to place the flowers. Next, cut the chicken wire in a square shape (a piece larger than your container’s base). The following step is to fold it into a cushion shape, ensuring the sharp edges are twisted in and tucked inside the rim of the vase. The objective is to create a cover for the opening of your vessel.

When creating your flower arrangement, one important tip is proportion, including the height of flowers. Traditionally, for a well-balanced arrangement, the length of the flower stems should be one and a half to two times and a half the height of your vase. If you’re using a tall vessel, the entire arrangement should be two and a half times the height of the container. For smaller vases, like this arrangement, the final bouquet height should be one and a half times the size of the vase.

Fill your container with water and place the dianthus in the vase. This arrangement is incredibly easy to make!!!

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Flower Arrangement

Hand-Tied Flower Arrangement

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It doesn’t have to be difficult or expensive to create your own floral arrangement! A flower arrangement can instantly transform your home decor or your tablescape. However, most people feel overwhelmed to design a bouquet. We will help you create a simple yet beautiful hand-tied bouquet with a selection of flowers that you can find at your local grocery store.

One of the questions we get the most is where do we buy our flowers? Most of them are from grocery stores. The blooms available in grocery stores tend to last a long time, and usually, they are low maintenance, cheerful, and very affordable. We agree that flower shops carry a larger variety and much better quality flowers. But for those who don’t know much about flowers, this can be intimidating, so there is no problem starting with the grocery store ones until you decide to move with different colors and shapes.

When selecting the flowers, one tip is to avoid buying the blooms fully open. You should also always check the stems and leaves. You want to make sure that they are firm.

The first step when designing a flower arrangement is to decide on a color scheme. It is best to work with one or two main colors. And when it comes to floral design, the green act as a neutral tone that accents any decor.

There are several different ways that you can design and create your own flower arrangements. The hand-tied technique is simple and very quick to master.

Start by following the steps below:

1- Once you have chosen your color scheme, select flowers that have fine stems but are full of flowers, like roses, alstroemerias and hydrangeas.

2- Strip the foliage and thorns of the stems and lay them all on your table. You don’t leave any leaves on your stems for a bouquet because most of them will fall below the flower line. You should also always make sure you do this before you start arranging the flowers.

3- Begin by holding a single flower on your left hand (or your non-dominant hand), and then, using your other hand, add the second flower on an angle (crossing the stems). Keep adding the flowers at an angle, working your way around it.

4- Remember: One hand holds the arrangement, and the other hand adds the flowers.

5- Make sure to always turn the bouquet and slightly drop the stems’ height to get a rounded shape.

6- Make sure to look at the bouquet from the top and ensure that the flowers are nicely spaced.

7- Avoid having many flowers of the same type sitting together. Make sure that you mix them up to create a cohesive arrangement.

8- If you are not happy with the arrangement, don’t be afraid to put it down and start again.

9- Once you’re happy with the way it looks, tie the stems together firmly with a string or a rubber band.

10- Trim the stems gradually to fit the container.

For these two small arrangements, please find below the list of materials we used:

– 16 pink roses

– 12 stems of pink alstroemerias

– Rubber band

– Floral scissors: https://amzn.to/39ju84j

– 2 Silver Plated Beaded Mint Julep Cup 5 inches tall : https://amzn.to/3oez2DW

Watch the video below for full tutorial

Flower Arrangement

Three Vases Holiday Season Flower Arrangement

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If you’ve been following us for a while, you know that we love flowers and flower arranging. Fresh flowers add color and bring life to any Home Decor!!!

If you feel intimidated by creating a flower arrangement at home, this three-vase arrangement might be a great start! This arrangement is a no-fail, and you will love it. It has a balance of simplicity and visual impact. The three different heights play a role in creating an impactful floral arrangement with minimum effort.

All you need is three glasses vases of different heights (these range from 15 inches to 9 inches), two varieties of flowers in the same color, and some foliage! We love the traditional red and green for the Holiday season, so we stick to this color combo here. We chose to work with red alstroemerias (18 stems) and red roses (12 stems). This arrangement would also look beautiful with amaryllis or red lilies.

The first step is to fill the vases with room temperature water; unless the flower buds are tight and you want to help them open up faster, you add warm water. Don’t forget to add flower food to your vase water (they usually come with the flowers when you purchase them at grocery stores)! It will help slow down bacterial growth.

This is a loose arrangement, so all you gotta do is to keep your flower stems long and just give them a little trim as needed. When trimming the stems, make sure to do it at an angle. Doing this ensures that the flowers will be able to absorb plenty of water and nutrients.

We prefer starting with the highest vase as this will dictate how high the other arrangements should be. Add the first set of flowers to the vase and tip them over. Make sure that there are no leaves below the waterline. Follow the same step with the foliage and the roses. That’s it!!! It is just three vases with flowers leaning on them! It can’t get any easier than that.

Watch the video here for the step by step.

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