Finding Joy While Designing Flowers During a Snowstorm

I am sure most of you live in areas where you have been affected by this very snowy and

very long winter.  Well, here is the Northeast we have been blanketed by snowstorm after

snowstorm.  One such storm happened on Sunday night lasting into most of Monday. 

 Thankfully, the weathermen gave us fair warning and with that knowledge I headed out

to Trader Joes to purchase some flowers so, I would have something to occupy

my time on Monday.  It worked like a dream, and I am here to show you the results.  

They have given me a glimpse of spring and have made me happy.

Before I show you the pretty part, I want to show you what we in the floral design

world call the mechanics of a flower arrangement.

Since I was doing this for my own enjoyment and not doing it for a client or friend I 

improvised with finding vessels in which to fill water and create the

arrangement.  I was using a wooden box for the centerpiece and to be honest

they are a pain to use unless they come with a plastic liner. Most do not!  Keeping the water 

contained without leakage in wooden box vessels takes some planning.

I used a low rectangular glass vase and also crammed a plastic cup next to it.  I floral

taped them together for sturdiness.  For added protection and water containment, I first placed

a plastic food storage bag in the well of the box and then placed my makeshift containers

inside.

You can see here where I started to create the base for the centerpiece.  This is the extent

of my mini tutorial but it gives you an idea of how you might improvise with what you have

when doing flower arranging.

This was the finished product.  I like fly-away and unconventional arrangements.

Not everyone likes them but since I was doing this for myself that was the style I chose.

I was thrilled to find these cream garden roses at Trader Joe’s.  Garden roses are so beautiful 

and I used them often when I did weddings.  To be honest, the quality of flowers 

you buy in grocery stores does not measure up to what you need when doing weddings.  Florists usually need to buy wedding flowers at the flower market.  However, it is always a thrill when I find specialty flowers available in local grocery stores, specifically when doing more casual arrangements. 

Trader Joe's is especially good for that.

You can see how lovely the garden roses are with their ruffled centers!

When beginning the arrangement I had oriented the prominent side to be the one with the solid white finish of the wooden box.  This view is shown in the above photo of the finished product. But, after creating the centerpiece, I discovered I might actually like the

"back" side better.  I thought the imprinted flower design of the box container would take away from

the arrangement.  I think I was wrong. The printed design on the box complimented the arrangement 

in the end.  Which side do you like best?  

(I did have that one rogue ranunculus that simply wanted to go where it wanted to go. That is the

beauty of floral design.  The uniqueness of each piece can make it charming, not perfect but charming.)

This ↓is why I like floral design and why it lifts my spirits so much.  Look at the

colors and the textures of the flowers!

Look at that pretty little pink ranunculus!  How dainty and beautiful

it is!

And you can find this beauty at your local grocery store!  Whenever you need an uplift,

consider buying yourself some flowers.  You don't have to be great at arranging them.  Most of the

time you can buy a bunch that has already been arranged for you.  Just cut them and place them in a vase.

I just love doing it myself.  Your joy might simply come from looking at them... and, 

hopefully, smelling them too!

And while I have your attention, one more thing about mechanics:  Make sure you cover up

your mechanics with greenery or flowers.  Please notice how you cannot see the vase or the plastic

cup inside the wooden box when looking at my arrangement.

Do your best to go around your container and make it so you only see pretty things, i.e. flowers

and greenery.

When all was said and done, I had just enough flowers left to make two bud vase

arrangements, as well as the large centerpiece.  Here is one of the bud vases. The other did not 

make to the photo cut.  Haha!  I might have saved the flowers I used for the other bud vase

and added them into the big arrangement. Luckily, I love looking

at all the arrangements I made.  You really can't blow it with flowers.  They 

are pretty on their own so just enjoy!

 What do you think you might do the next time a big snowstorm is predicted?

Buying some flowers is not a bad idea.  Take it from me :).

***I have not been compensated for writing this post.