Awe-Inspiring Arrangements
Fresh-cut flowers and a dash of creativity can brighten up any room. Follow these industry secrets from top florists to arrange a flowering success
Height advantage: Play with the space that tall flowers like calla lilies offer when creating an arrangement. Let their attractive stems to the talking as they lean in different directions. Image courtesy Rebecca Cole Design
Sure, Valentine's Day heralds love and romance, but it's also responsible for ushering in the arrival (and subsequent replenishing) of fresh-cut flowers in homes everywhere. Whether purchasing posies to declare affections, or simply to brighten a dreary
winter's day, consider going beyond the store-assembled clusters of red roses or riotously hued mixed bouquets. Creating a to-die-for arrangements needn't be a daunting or
expensive proposition, just listen to the experts.
"Even if you stick with grocery-store offerings, you can create big impact by buying in bulk," suggests Rebecca Cole of Rebecca Cole Design in New York City. "If you only have $25 to spend and come home with five bundles of daisies or mums, you're going to have a massive amount to play with. And when there's such an abundance, even the least expensive of blooms take on cache." Cole, who's also the author of "Flower Power: Fresh, Fabulous Arrangements" (Clarkson Potter, 2002), recommends placing about two-thirds of the flowers into one container, and then spreading the rest around the room, as a design echo, in several smaller arrangements.
"The main bunch should be cut down really, really low," Cole continues, "since common flowers often have scraggly stems. Most flowers are best enjoyed from above, not by looking at them straight on," she adds. Take off most of the foliage, and make sure just the heads show above the container, which should have a big, wide opening. For the rest, be imaginative! "Use demitasse cups or old medicine bottles and create a mini-arrangement of three flowers in each," suggests Cole.
More-expensive blossoms, conversely, pack enough punch that you don't need nearly as many stems, according to Cole. "Flowers like peonies or amaryllises can retail anywhere from $5 to $15 a stem," she says, "but you can buy just three or four and place one each in a cylindrical container. Take advantage of their height and let them each lean in a different direction. Other tall flowers like calla lilies also look great lined up like this. Their stems are attractive so they can stay at full height, giving a very clean, modern line."
Exotic blooms also are great alternatives to consider, says Eddie Zaratsian of Tic-Tock Couture Florals in Los Angeles. "French tulips are my first choice for romance," he says. "And nothing beats a bunch of really fragrant white casablanca lilies." For Allyson Boys of B. Brooks Fine Flowers, a San Francisco-based national network of high-end florists, great standouts are "flowers with big, round heads like hydrangeas, or those that come in unusual colors like vander orchids."
But resist mucking up these gorgeous creations with unnecessary greens, florists exhort. "Absolutely no fern or baby's breath," says Boys. "This look relies on the singularity of the blooms. If you must add foliage, try garden greenery like coleus or lemon leaf, or natural grasses."
Twigs can help flesh out tall or big arrangements much better than foliage, adds Cole. "Build up by layer," she suggests, "starting with branches; they're your support structure. They come first, just like you need to pour the foundation of your home before you can paint." If you're opting for a high arrangement, place it in such a way that flowers remain at eye level.
When practicing the delicate art of flower mixology, exercise restraint and stick to basic design principles. "Simple is better," says Boys. "A good bet is to stay with one color, such as pink, and look for a variety of blooms moving from blush to hot tones of the shade."
Think of playing with color as you would with your wardrobe, cautions Cole. "Just because you like color, you wouldn't wear a pink blouse and a green skirt and an orange jacket and yellow shoes, would you?" she asks rhetorically (we hope!).
Depending on the size of your bouquet, remember to limit flower variety to no more than three or four compatible flowers. Arrangements can be architectural and contemporary (calla lilies and birds of paradise), sweet and romantic (ranunculus and lisianthus), or bright and bold (gerber daisies and anemones). Thoughtlessly mixing moods will result in cacophony, not harmony.
"Different flowers also perform differently," says Zaratsian, "so that's a consideration. If your tulips start dying off before your hydrangeas, you won't be happy with your arrangement." Rely on a local florist for guidance when mixing blooms.
Once you bring the flowers home, give added oomph to your selections by foregoing the standard glass vase. Cole suggests wide, shallow bowls, ceramic boxes, and artisan-crafted baskets as good vessels in which to show off your assemblage.
"I've even put together tropical arrangements in a halved watermelon," laughs Zaratsian. "Old-fashioned English garden flowers like roses and hydrangeas always look nice in antique silver," he says.
Finally, add an element of the unexpected. "A super-sweet arrangement of pale pinks and lavenders is just lovely," says Cole, "but if you top it all off with a soft leaf like lamb's ear, it'll be like having too much candy!" To stop your teeth from hurting, she suggests incorporating spiky grasses or twirling branches. "A little edginess, a little surprise, makes a great bouquet," Cole says.
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