Flower arranging is one of those incredibly useful details to put in your hostess bag of tricks. It’s the workhorse that will get you through many a dinner party and pretty up your home. This past week, I was gifted with an opportunity to learn! Now that spring is on its way for you New Yorkers and everyone in Tokyo, I can’t help to be inspired by all things floral.
My friend Susan and I headed to the Unstructured Bouquet Workshop at Melbourne Flower School. Kim taught us how to create a natural look as we had coffee and tea. All materials and fresh flowers are provided and we took home our bouquet we made on the day. Here are some snippets from the day plus some great tips on making your very own flower arrangements below!
When you arrive at your desk, you will see some flowers already picked for you in a bucket with the right color pallet.
6 FLORAL ARRANGING TIPS
1.Always use a fresh product and work with a local grower or a specialty flower shop to get your blooms. Grocery store flowers are often several days old and they are often not handled properly.
2. Invest in a proper cutting tool so you can cut through stems effortlessly, and provide a clean cut that will make your flowers last longer.
3. Take one stem at a time and remove all the leaves except the one closest to the blossom. The outer petals of roses tend to brown naturally. Carefully peel a few off if you need to. Line them up in neat piles on the counter. Lay the flowers and foliage out so you can see what you’re working with. To make a design that is unique, use lots of different textural elements.
4. Use lots of foliage. This makes it easier to achieve a better shape. It holds the arrangement together, both structurally and visually.
5. Using a floral design tape or wire across the middle of the stems offers support and helps flowers to stay in place while you hold the bouquet in your hands.
6. Take a few steps back so you can get an overall view. Use a mirror to see what the bouquet looks like in your hands from the front.
Here is my creation from the workshop! What do you think? I loved learning so much, now I have this new passion for flower arrangements. When I arrived home, I made 2 more bouquets in a mini vase to bring to my office and my daughter’s kindergarten.
Now it’s time to set the dinner table, sit back, and enjoy the beauty!
EN 
JA
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