When it came to creating a bagnin floral arrangement for any of my parties, I was, in the famous words of Cher Horowitz “totally clueless”. I was so bad in fact, I began to outsource the task and eventually ended up wasting hundreds of dollars on arrangements that looked like I’d put together myself, and seriously, who wants to waste a ton of money on arrangement’s when there are like much more important, pressing things you could be putting that money toward(HELLO COCKTAILS!)?
Thank God for good friends who are also creative and patient because upon hearing that I wanted to learn the art of floral arranging my friend Joel over at Blooms Brother’s Floral Designs offered to teach me the tricks of his trade.
With the help of Joel, I’ve narrowed down 7 easy steps to assist even the most clueless florists among us in attaining the perfectly curated arrangement. It’ll have you yelling “AS IF” to overpriced florists everywhere!
Joel is a frequent visitor of the Los Angeles Flower Market and usually heads there when he has a big job to do so I tagged along with him to learn what I could. What I learned is that I was totally overwhelmed with all of the choices. Having Joel there to explain the best vendors to buy from and the best flowers to choose made the process that much easier.
The trick is to choose 75% statement flowers and 25% filler flowers. It’s important to take your time and look at the coloring of each flower, examine the edges to make sure they aren’t wilted and close to dying. Haggle with the vendors as well because if you’re going to be buying in bulk they may give you a discounted price.
After choosing our flowers it was time to put together our arrangements.
We chose an open space where we could move around pretty freely and we had about 5 paint buckets on hand filled with water to hold our flowers for easy access when placing the arrangements. We also set up a swivel tray so that we could place the flowers at varying angles in our vase.
Supplies
Paint Buckets
Scissors
Floral Shears
Plastic Gloves
Chicken Wire
Cellophane
Masking Tape
Clear Tape
Swivel Tray
Open Space
Trash bag for excess stems
Step 1: Because of the type of vase we used to create the arrangement, we covered the bottom portion in cellophane. We used scissors to cut the excess away. To prevent leakage we placed the plastic tray that came with the vase on top of the cellophane.
Step 2: We used clear tape to create grids in the vase
Step 3: Begin placing your first statement flower at the edges of your vase. Follow that by placing a filler flower close to it.
Step 4: Create a pattern of statement flowers and filler flowers around your arrangement paying close attention to the even and consistent placement of these flowers around your vase. Don’t be afraid to turn your arrangement as you place your flowers using your swivel tray. 
Step 5: For flowers or plants without sturdy stems, wrap chicken wire around longest stem and secure with tape masking tape.
Step 6: Continue process 3 -4 until the arrangement is filled to your liking.
Step 7: Sit back and adore your beautiful new arrangement…
I’ve learned that everyone is a little different and there’s multiple ways to approach flower arranging. Do you have any fail safe tips when creating your own floral arrangements? I’d love to know in the comments below!
Ha! Loved Clueless! I got to meet one of the cast at a blog conference once and he was so nice! I wish I was artistic and could put together beautiful arraingments like that! 🙂
Clear tape to ‘grid’ out the area for flowers is a brilliant idea! I love huge gorgeous flower arrangements with tons of different types of flowers. Unfortunately my home is always super hot (california living I suppose) and I kill flowers…. all the time. seriously. I bought some at Trader Joe’s for a new-mom friend, put them in water immediately after I came home to deliver to her in the afternoon, and about an hour later my (well, her) flowers drooped over the vase! Ugh! Lol
Wow, these flowers are STUNNING. I have seen so many people show that you need to make a grid but I am always too lazy to do it. I’m going to treat myself to some flowers and see if I can take your tips to heart. Oh, and way to quote Cher…it makes me very happy to know that there are other people out there who still get that reference. This mama is feeling rather OLD this week.
Thanks for sharing!
Amanda
http://www.queenofthelandoftwigsnberries.com
This is fantastic! My mom is a pro at putting together floral arrangements, but I did not get those genes. When I try, it never has the right shape. I love flowers and would definitely buy more if I could put together an appealing arrangement. Thanks for the tips, Winter!
Thank you for sharing these tips with us. This is such a beautiful arrangement. I loved learning how to do this too. I’m going to have to use them.
Wow! Thanks so much for sharing this. I love flower arrangements like this, but I’ve never been able to make one successfully. Thanks for this great tutorial. =D
Once upon a time, I wanted to be a florist. I thought it would be fun to arrange flowers. Mind you, I can’t actually grow them because I’m a plant serial killer, but I love putting them together. Your arrangements are gorgeous!
Wow, that is a beautiful arrangement. You did a great job. I have been looking at flowers for Mother’s Day and I have to say not much compares to your arrangement. I am a bit afraid to try this myself, but I just may. Plus, Moms like homemade things better than store bought. At least that is what my mom says.
These are beautiful!
I would love to do this as a learning experience sometime.
You learn well and is very good.
Thanks for sharing the beauty!
I have learned some tricks from this. I would have used Floral foam in the bottom but I like the tape cross sections better. I love flowers and the Mart is an AMAZING place. Thank you
I love making arrangements but to be honest I usually just hope for the best – so I am completely grateful for the tips and the photos especially! I really need to learn some techniques!
Your flowers brighten my day and I always wanted to work in a florist shop and do floral arrangement! Maybe one day!
These were really great tips. I have to try them soon. I love flowers and I want more than just sticking them in a vase.
Yes! I cant wait to build my floral tool supply and try this arrangement out for size! Thanks for sharing.
I use the tape trick myself but never in a box like this one. I can’t wait to try out this awesome arrangement on my table soon. Thanks for sharing.
Beautiful work. I had no idea how to put a bouquet together. I love that you include succulents in it.