CHECK OUT OUR STEP BY STEP WALKTHROUGH ON HOW TO STYLE A BOUQUET AT HOME WITH OUR CEO, CARLY!
We all love flowers, that’s why you’re here right!?
And we’ve all had that moment when we pick up some flowers from the grocery store or local flower market with visions of an overflowing abundance of beauty living in our home for the next week. Nec minute, you’re just shoving them in some vase you don’t even like, frustrated it just isn’t working! Oh just me? Never mind this blog post isn’t for you.
Oh, the truth comes out. Read on sister. We got you!
STEP 1: CLEAN YOUR VASE
After you’ve purchased your flowers and brought those beauties home, the first and most important step is prepping your vase! Clean it with warm soapy water, making sure you scrub in all the little nooks and crannies! The little bacteria hiding in there will kill your flowers quicker than you can fry an emu’s egg in the outback! So make sure you wash it thoroughly and rinse it until the water runs clear. Add some freshwater until it’s about halfway full.
STEP 2: PROCESS YOUR FLOWERS
The second thing to do is to strip the leaves. 
These lovely green tidbits make handling the stems during the arranging more difficult and clunky but more importantly they introduce bacteria to the water within the vase, killing off the flowers much more quickly. So that very important first step of cleaning your vase thoroughly is also supported by trimming all greenery to sit above the water line.
STEP 3: LAY OUT YOUR FLOWERS
Now comes the fun part. Lay out all your lovely little blooming friends on your work surface so that you can easily pick up each stem. This makes the handling of the flowers much easier during the arranging and enables you to see all of your options. Even when you are making a mono chromatic arrangement, each individual flower is different and should be treated as such.
STEP 4: BEGIN WITH YOUR GREENS
We nearly always begin with our greenery and build a structure or base for the rest of the flowers. Using your non dominate hand to hold the base and weaving the stems through your fingers creating a self supporting structure.
STEP 5: ADD YOUR LARGE BLOOMS
Next, select your largest blooms and position them by sliding them into your greenery foundation. Add texture and depth by varying the height and angle of the flower.
STEP 6: ADD FILLER FLOWERS
Now add in your filler flowers. While every flower is beautiful in it’s own right there are some who are stars of the show and some who are the best supporters you’ve ever found! Things like wax flower, status, lisianthus, carnations make great filler flowers as they provided texture and color to your arrangement.
STEP 7: ADD FOCUS FLOWERS
Focus flowers are usually smaller than your larger blooms yet still stand out in the crowd and add fun features to your bouquet. We love to use ranunculus, anemones and anthurium in some of our bouquets from Primary Petals Direct. Add these to your bouquet by sliding them into place in spaces where they stand out, add height and interest to your arrangement.
STEP 8: WRAP THAT BABY UP!
We highly suggest that once you have spent all this time and energy creating a stunning masterpiece that you tape the bouquet to keep all your work held nicely together. For this we suggest using waterproof floral tape.
You can find it at your local craft store, flower market or buy it from amazon with this LINK and help a girl out! Pull a strip of the tape out and place it where you thumb is holding the bouquet, then begin to wrap the tape around the bouquet slowing removing your fingers until the tape has wrapped all the way around. We suggest taping 2 or 3 full wraps of the stems.
STEP 9: TRIM THE ENDS
Now that our bouquet is made and secure, we need to trim the ends down so that it fits into your selected vase. Use your vase to measure where you should cut your ends, then using a pair of sharp kitchen scissors or floral shears, trim the ends. Ideally cut at at 45 degree angle to provide a larger surface area for your flowers to absorb that fresh cool water from your squeaky clean vase!
STEP 10: STEP BACK AND ENJOY!
Now for the fun part! Step back and admire your handiwork and the natural beauty of nature’s bounty! Set your flowers out of direct sunlight and add fresh water every day. Give the vase a quick scrub clean to prolong the life of your flowers. And don’t forget to tag us @primarypetalssquad on all social media platforms so we can check out your gorgeous work!
with love and flowers,
Chloe and the PP Squad
