Statement Yellow Glass Vase | Frida Kahlo Print | Velvet Mirror

1. Forget the Rules

Be creative and don’t worry about rules – rules are made to be broken aren’t they? If you want a riotous bunch of clashing colours go for it! If you prefer a few twigs and leaves then so be it. We all have different tastes and different ideas on what is visually appealing so don’t worry about what others think. Flowers and foliage are to be enjoyed and bring happiness not create stress. Experimenting with different vases and containers helps you to understand which shapes suit best. If the proportion doesn’t look right try adding foliage that gives height and or width. Think about contrast – a simple bowl of tulips interspersed with twigs makes a stunning arrangement.

Etched Green Glass Vase

2. Condition your Flowers

Condition your flowers and foliage by trimming the stems and letting them stand in a big bucket of water for a few hours for a good drink. Add flower food to the water or a dash of bleach and change the water regularly. Remove all leaves below the water line otherwise they will rot and smell. Some flowers like hellebores need the ends of their stems dunked in boiling water for a minute before going in a vase. If necessary use florist foam, marbles or a flower frog to keep flowers in place. Another good way to hold flowers in place in a wide vase is to crisscross washi tape or sellotape across the top in a grid and slot the flowers into it.

Zebra Vases

3. Add Foliage

Add foliage for contrasting texture and colour. Think about the colours and shapes of the flowers and how you can enhance them with added foliage. Ivy is great for trailing down the side of a vase and to add width, and ferns and grasses are wonderful for adding height and some spikiness. Foliage such as fennel and alchemilla mollis makes a fabulous frothy arrangement.

Faux Pink Protea Stem

4. Mix in faux

A great way to add lusciousness to a vase of flowers is to mix in some faux flowers and foliage. By doing this you get a really luxurious bouquet without spending a fortune. A bunch of flowers can be turned into something really special and eye catching with the addition of a few faux pink protea stems or faux blush eucalyptus sprays, and they last for years.

Looking at images on pinterest is a great way to see what it is you like and try copying it so that you get a feel for what works for you. Even a few flower heads in a selection of small containers grouped together makes for an interesting display and is quick to do. Above all enjoy and experiment!

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Zebra Vase | Golden Wing Bookends | Ulysses Butterfly Taxidermy Art

He is such a handsome chap this zebra vase, that he doesn’t even need flowers to make a statement, but he certainly creates real wow factor when filled with floral loveliness. It’s fun to play about with different types of arrangement to see what suits, and in this case the zebra vase lends itself to so many styles and almost anything goes. To give you some tips for flower arranging in the zebra vase we have styled him in 3 different ways so you can see how different he looks.

Super Easy

This small bunch of dainty chrysanthemum heads makes the zebra look like he is wearing a vibrant hat – or a dashing haircut- and it’s so cheap and easy to do with any small flower heads. It takes minutes to cut the heads and pop them in the vase, just enough to make a compact covering of the opening.

Intermediate 

He is perfect for a simple bunch of tulips, which are literally just plonked in the vase – we’ve added some fronds of greenery for extra height but they aren’t necessary – we just had them to hand so added some. As the tulips continue to grow when in water they droop beautifully over the sides of the vase.

Pro

For a real show stunner of an arrangement fill the zebra vase with an assortment of flowers of varying heights, and fill around with lots of greenery to give more height and depth. Because the vase only has a small opening it doesn’t take a lot to fill it and create a really lovely display. Some of the foliage in this arrangement is faux which is a great way to fill out your displays without buying fresh all the time.

What do you think to the different arrangements? Do you have a favourite? I really like the dainty chrysanthemums as he looks so cute!

Jacqui x

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Photography: Amelia Brooks/ Styling: Jacqui & Amelia Brooks

My hydrangeas are turning from white and green to soft pinks and are too gorgeous not to have a few indoors to admire. With the addition of dark pink sedum and wine red rudbeckias to accentuate the pink of the hydrangeas and some fern and ivy to bring out the green it makes a lovely soft blowsy flower arrangement. The swirl vase is very easy to arrange flowers in as the uneven edges at the top of the vase allow flowers to fall softly down for that cloud effect.

The metal urn was just crying out to be stuffed full of pink, red and orange flowers like a massive pin cushion and was so easy to do. As the urn has a hole in the bottom for drainage I placed a jam jar inside for water and then just snipped the flower heads to fit from taller at the centre to shorter round the edges for the pin cushion effect. I particularly like the combination of the cast iron against the autumnal flowers and copper.

The little pink glass vase was perfect for the left over flower heads and, with the addition of some foliage in greens and browns, looks lovely styled with the pin cushion flower arrangement and a copper watering can. It also makes a pretty little flower arrangement for a bedside table.

So, which is your favourite? I think for me it’s the pin cushion as it epitomises autumn. I’d love to hear what your favourite autumnal flowers are, so do let me know below.

Jacqui x

Photography: Amelia Brooks/ Styling: Jacqui and Amelia Brooks