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We always love trips to the SF flower mart. With all of its rich history and abundance of color, it’s no wonder there’s a tried and true belief that flowers always tug at the heartstrings. Since Valentine’s Day is coming up (have you entered our DIY V-day contest?!) our homage to this traditional Valentine’s Day gift is a simple guide to building and spicing up your floral arrangement with local and seasonal flowers.
Here is our easy recipe for making a custom bouquet!
Winter Season Flowers:
pick 2-3 varietals
— anemone
— carnation
— chrysanthemums
— dutch iris
— evergreens
— gerbera daisy
— helleborus
— lily
— narcissus
— orchid
— pepperberry
— roses
— ranunculus
— sweet peas
— tulips
Any greenery can work within your bouquet, but we used a beautiful fern-like green called leather leaf, as well as a floral green called wax flower.
Materials:
Seasonal flowers from left to right:
— wax flower (greenery)
— anenome
— leather leaf (greenery)
— ranunculus
— spray roses
Tools:
— floral clippers or shears
— scissors
— decorative edge craft scissors
— ribbon of various widths, lengths and textures
— yarn (optional)
— embroidery string (optional)
— wrapping paper (tissue doubled up or craft paper)
— washi tape
— rubber band (save the one that comes on your flower bundles/bunches)
Process your flowers by ridding them of all rubber bands (save one to hold your bouquet when finished) and snipping off the ends of each stem to freshen the flowers. De-thorn any flowers so no one gets pricked!
Once the stems are stripped of leaves and prepped, it’s time to arrange your bouquet! Starting with your greenery (in our case, wax flower and leather leaf), hold one stem in your hand and place another stem with your other hand to start creating the shape of your bouquet. It’s easier to create the foundation and shape with greenery first.
Once your shape of greenery is secure in your hand, start inserting stems of flowers.
Some helpful tips:
— Fill in with the bigger flowers first, as they will create a focal point, then fill in holes with smaller (filler) flowers.
— Remember to rotate your bouquet to see that it’s being filled in at every angle.
— Your shape can be free-flowing, loose, bunched or color gradient — the possibilities are countless.
— If you still feel like there are some holes to fill after you have inserted all desired flowers, you can refill with more greenery.
Once you love your shape and color story (and your arm muscles are tired), it’s time to bundle! Take your rubber band that you saved earlier and wrap it around a couple of the sturdier stems (the greenery usually has more strength).
Trim the bottom of each stem for a fresh cut so that they can easily drink the water. Also, make the ends somewhat even so you don’t have one super long stem. Congratulations! Your bouquet is complete!
You’re almost there — just a quick wrap and you’re ready to surprise that special someone. Choose your paper color or print of choice and cut a large rectangle using the decorative edge craft scissors. We put the completed bouquet on the paper to measure. Once cut, fold in a triangle.
Once folded, place the arrangement on top with the pointed edge of the triangle underneath the bulk of the bouquet. Fold up about three inches of paper over the stems, then fold over one side of the triangle. Tuck this into the side and fold over the other side of the triangle.
Secure with washi tape!
Prepare your ribbons by cutting the ends at a slanted angle to create a polished finish.
Line up your ribbons to vary in length so they all drape at different heights. Wrap around the middle of your paper, knot and voilà!
This is a perfect gift for special loved ones, family or galentines! We’d love to see your creations. Share them with us on Instagram with the hashtag #bristagram.
