When someone asks me what my “dream job” is the first thing that comes to mind is florist. If you follow along on Instagram I bet you’re confused… because you’ve definitely seen me kill a plant or two. My husband tends to cringe when I return from Home Depot with a new addition. It’s because deep down he knows that the poor thing probably doesn’t stand a chance! Yet I keep trying. Because flowers and plants make me happy. I love having fresh flowers in the house and typically plan party decor around my flower of choice, not the other way around. So despite my black thumb, I will keep playing and keep learning.
Florist is definitely a “dream job” because I know that it’s probably not ever in the cards for me! 😉 However I do a pretty decent job taking budget-friendly grocery store florals and putting them together in a not-too-shabby way. While I’m obviously not an expert in the field (just needed to clarify in case the first paragraph wasn’t enough to disqualify me from that title!) a reader did suggest this blog post and I’m happy to oblige!
STEP ONE
Shopping for your flowers is the most important step! Sometimes I love the simplicity of a vase full of lone tulips. Sometimes I like to do a more formal arrangement. This specific arrangement was put together for a baby shower I hosted so I went a bit more formal. Head to your local grocery store and grab whatever catches your eye. I knew I wanted pink, white, and extra greenery so I grabbed tulips in fuchsia and white as well as pink roses to mix with my greenery. My best piece of advice is to visit multiple markets and grocery stores to see what’s available! Trader Joes, Fresh Market and Whole Foods typically sell flowers that last longer! If you can’t find a bunch of stems that you love, you may want to consider purchasing a few pre-arranged bouquets and taking them apart.
STEP TWO
After filling your vase a little less than halfway with water, separate your greenery from your flowers. Then trim each stem, getting rid of extra leaves and any that will go below your water line. Do this for flowers and greenery. I hold each one up to my vase of choice to gage how low I should cut the stem. I then cut the bottom of the stem at an angle in hopes that they’ll live longer.
STEP THREE
Add your flower food (almost always included with grocery store flowers!) to the water. For some bouquets it helps to make a tic-tac-toe pattern with tape to serve as a grid and placeholder. I skipped that step this go around but if this is your first rodeo – it’s very helpful!
STEP FOUR
I know all of the professionals recommend starting with greenery but I like to do the opposite. Probably because I love color! I start with my larger focal flowers (the roses in this case) and then add smaller filler flowers. Then I finish off with greenery. I like having a variety of greenery! It makes the arrangement so much more interesting!
STEP FIVE
It always takes me lots and lots of trial and error and re-arranging to get the look I’m going for. Don’t be afraid to get messy and play around until you get the look that feels right. Sometimes it takes adding a flower or two or clipping some greenery to get it just how you want it!
Even though I love a full looking arrangement, I almost always have extra! I would never ever throw a flower in the trash so I typically make mini versions of the original arrangement to display around the house! 🙂
PRESERVING THE LIFE OF YOUR FLOWERS
There’s nothing worse than spending so much time and money working on a floral arrangement only to discover that your flowers die within days! To keep your flowers sittin’ pretty longer you should change the water daily, remove wilting flowers and keep them out of direct sunlight!
I’d love to see the floral arrangements y’all create! Please send pics my way! 🙂
love y’all, mckenzie
