Choosing fresh flowers can last through two seasons! Create an arrangement, in a liner, that can be switched to a different container that changes the holiday. This is the same arrangement in a different setting. The effect can change by changing the background. The pumpkin is the same. The Jack-O-Lantern for Halloween, and turn it around for Thanksgiving. Replace fall leaves for the black and orange accessories. Replace birds and squirrels for the witches. Add pine cones, berries, and fall leaves for ghosts.
Decorate for Halloween and easily change the setting, the day after, for Thanksgiving. After Thanksgiving is the best time to start Holiday Decorating!
0 Comments
 Make Halloween elaborate for small groups in 2020! It’s time to gather the bright colored blooms and decorate for a Spooky time. In 2020, it is suggested to gather in smaller groups - if gathering at all! Just because the group is small, does not mean the festivities have to be. Decorate heavily! Add many places of small decorations. This corner has Jack-O- Lantern, tombstone, skull, and eyeballs filled with small blooms, lying in a bed of fall leaves. Bright and humorous settings can change atmosphere of any setting. Fall is filled with many aromas. The scent of flowers, fall leaves, and spices announce the beginning of the Holiday seasons. This year would be a great year to brighten the surroundings with different decorating.
 Different containers are needed for low centerpieces! Not all floral designs are in vases. Table centerpieces usually are low on the table so guests can see over the arrangement. I use floral foam to provide stability and nourish the blooms. Here are examples of containers I use for these situations. One example is to use a small plastic or glass bowl. I use this concept at Christmas for small centerpieces. The bowl completes the design element, but can be upgraded by placing the centerpiece in a more decorative container.  The other example is to use a plastic liner for the arrangement. These liners are sturdy and can be used with decorative containers or baskets. Find a liner that sits flatly in the container. Try not to have too much space between the liner and the container or basket, or too snug. Try not to destroy the liner if it needs to be removed. Cut a piece of floral foam to fit the liner.  Soak the foam until saturated. This may take overnight, depending on the type of foam used. After soaking the foam, place it in the liner and secure the liner with pieces of waterproof floral tape. Place the liner in the container or basket. If the liner is lower than the rim of the container, place a piece of styrofoam in the bottom of the container and place the liner on top.
 Designing an arrangement begins with the vase! In this picture, I selected four examples of vases. Starting from the left is a budvase, a fluted bubble bowl, a large rose vase, and a straight budvase. Many people do not realize the information a designer needs to make a simple choice. What is the occasion? What is the design? How stable do the flowers need to be? How big a vessel is needed to hold the amount of water needed for the arrangement? A budvase is used for blooms with long stems. These usually are roses or carnations. The sample on the left with the ballooned base is most often used with multiple stems. This budvase holds no more than three stems. The straight budvase on the right is usually used with single blooms. The water of the vase assists in keeping the arrangement stable.  A rose vase is a tall, large vase the usually holds one dozen roses. The vase is tall and holds a vast amount of water to feed the roses. I take waterproof tape and make a crisscross on the top of the vase. This keeps the roses from shifting in the arrangement. The shape of the vase contributes to showing each bloom of the arrangement. This example of the bubble bowl is fluted. Many bubble bowls have a clean edge. This creates a truer bubble shape. This vases are perfect for tulips. Many times the stems are less rigid. The vase allows the stems to lay lower on the vase. In my opinion, these are the most popular styles used by many professionals. These vases are found most often on the shelves of the shop.
 Special tools may be needed to assist in the creation of exceptional designs. There are a few tools that will not be in your toolbox all the time. These are tools that you may not needed every day, but unusual designs may demand their usefulness. It is important to be able to make use of them when they are needed.  Flower Preservative is essential for fresh flowers. There are many ways they can be purchased. We used powdered preservative in the shop. It was offered in different container sizes and in boxes of individual packets. Individual packets are consistently available in wrapped bouquets. Often, more than one bouquet is used for an arrangement. In most cases, only one packet of preservative is needed for one container of flowers. Save additional packets for future uses.  Rose Strippers make preparing rose arrangements much faster. This tool can remove the thorns and leaves from the stem of a rose in one pull. The tool is used by holding the tool at the desired height on the stem. Do not have leaves below the water line of the vase. Carefully, squeeze the prongs together around the stem. Draw the tool down to the bottom of the stem. Be careful not to squeeze so tight that the bark is stripped from the stem. After practice, this procedure can be done in one movement!  Wooden Picks are great for securing objects into foam. It is useful to keep assorted sizes on hand. In the shop, we had three lengths – 3”, 4” and 6”. The smallest length was a thinner pick. They all came with thin wire attached to the pick. |
Categories
All
Archives
May 2020
|
RSS Feed