Saturday, February 25, 2017

A Spring Bouquet in Soft Colors

Lately, I found myself longing so much for some spring blooms to bring indoors. My garden doesn't have to offer much right now that would be suitable as a cut flower, so I decided to go for the luxury and buy a little spring bouquet.



I didn't have to search long until I fell in love with this one. It consists only of five flowers and one sprig of filler green but I find it so beautiful and very springy. Exactly what I was looking for! 



I love hydrangeas, especially the white or light green varieties, which are so popular with florists right now. And this big greenish-white beauty fits the bill perfectly. There were some issues with it, though, but I come to that later.



The bright-green small chrysanthemums add a little bit of a pop to the arrangement. Without them, I think all the soft muted colors of the other blooms could be a little bit boring.



Of course, I love this ivory white rose. So elegant!



I had never seen soft yellow stock before and I was so pleased to find out that this color exists in these lovely very fragrant blooms. They are among my favorites in the garden and as cut flowers.



Close-up of the tip of the flower stalk of the stock. Love the tiny, tiny blooms! So sweet!



As I mentioned earlier, there was a little hick-up with the hydrangea bloom. To my great disappointment in the evening of the day I bought the bouquet it had completely wilted. I really thought all was lost and feverishly tried to come up with something that I could do to help it perk up again. 



I decided to remove some of the big green leaves of the hydrangea flower stem (all photos in this post were taken after I had removed the leaves) and put the bouquet outside overnight because of the cooler temperatures than in the house and the humidity.

The next day when I took a look the bloom had rehydrated itself and was completely fine again. So obviously there was too much water evaporating over the leaves so that the flower couldn't take up enough water to sustain itself. In case you are dealing with wilting flowers you might want to try these two little tips as well. I hope it will help you, too.



Here I shot the bouquet more from above. It is astonishing to me how full and lush a small bouquet that consists just five blooms and one sprig of filler green can look. The stems of the blooms were much longer when I bought it, so I think the trick is to cut them really short and put them in a small vase to create this effect. 



The little silver birds that I put close to the vase to complement the arrangement represent the spring for me, too. I think the silver goes very well with the pale and bright green, ivory and soft yellow of the bouquet and emphasize its elegant ambiance. 

By the way, I would like to share with you that I bought this bouquet at Trader Joe's for only $ 5.99. It just shows that you don't have to break the bank to bring some spring atmosphere into your house and enjoy some fresh blooms. The bouquet lasted five days and the filler green is still living on and is now joining a rose that I brought in from my own garden. 

Maybe you would like to consider getting a little spring bouquet for yourself, too, I think it is so well worth it. Nothing can beat fresh and fragrant flowers in the house!  

Thanks for stopping by! Wishing everyone a lovely Sunday!

Christina





40 comments:

  1. I agree with you Christina flowers inside the house make my heart sing. It is a lovely bouquet. In the past I always bought one big bouquet but now I prefer to make several small ones. Even a single flowers in a small vase is just beautiful. I hope spring will come over to you soon.
    Have a wonderful day Christina.
    Warm wishes and rosehugs
    Marijke

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    1. Marijke, I only buy big bouquets for special occasions like birthdays or so simply because they are quite expensive.
      I am a big fan of putting a single flower in a vase, usually just a rose from my garden it totally changes the atmosphere of a room.
      Spring is definitively stirring here, but today we have another gray and rainy day...

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  2. Thanks for the good top Christina. I keep that in mind. And cut flowers...... they are in my house every week. From the store or from the garden. Love to see them. Groetjes Hetty

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  3. This is a beautiful arrangement. I love the white with just a little hint of green.

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  4. Liebe Christina,
    dein Strauß ist wirklich wunderschön!
    Herrlich diese cremigen Töne - so zart und frühlingshaft :-)
    Ganz viele liebe Sonntagsabendgrüße
    sendet dir die Urte :-)

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  5. It is lovely. I've had great success adding alum to a wilting hydrangea. Thanks for sharing at Monday Social.

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    1. Katie, welcome to my blog! I have never heard about adding alum to wilting hydrangeas. Thanks for the tip. Will try it next time!

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  6. I do love white hydrangeas. I've planted a couple now so maybe this year I'll have enough to be able to cut a bloom for a vase!

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    1. Jessica, ooh, I have to say I envy you a little bit that you have planted a couple of white flowering hydrangeas in your garden. They are so beautiful! I have two blue flowering in mine, but with the drought over the last couple of years they didn't flower properly and I almost took them out.
      Now with all the rain that we got this winter they will stay another year, but I won't plan new ones, since our intensive heat in the summer is not sitting well with hydrangeas.

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  7. I love real flowers. Such a pretty, small bouquet. Thanks for the tips! Have a lovely week.

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    1. Snap, a warm welcome to my blog! I am glad you liked the little bouquet!

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  8. It's an elegant arrangement, Christina. I used to plant stock (Matthiola) in a variety of colors from 6-packs every fall for winter and early spring blooms. The varieties I used had soft gray foliage and developed relatively tall (2-3 foot) stalks but those taller varieties seem to be completely unavailable in the garden centers now. It's a shame. I guess I need to see if I can grow them from seed next year.

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    1. Kris, hmmm, that is interesting, I have only bought stock for the garden pre-grown from nurseries so far and I have never seen a variety that becomes 2 - 3 feet tall. Sounds wonderful, though! Please let me know if you find the seeds for the taller varieties. I would love to give them a try, too!

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  9. Hi Christina,

    Your spring bouquet in soft colours is beautiful. I agree: it doesn't take much to bring some spring cheer into one's home even in the winter.

    Visiting from Amaze Me Monday,
    Poppy :)

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    1. Poppy, welcome to my blog! I am happy that you consider my little bouquet beautiful! And yes, a few flowers can go a long way and bring spring cheer into the home.
      Thanks for popping in!

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  10. The colours are so delicate and spring-like. Thank you for sharing your tips on how to deal with wilting flowers. I would not have considered removing leaves and putting the bouquet outside before. Well done.

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  11. Oh, das ist aber ein wunderschönes Arrangement. Die weiße Ballhortensie sieht einfach super aus. Zudem macht der Strauß richtig Lust auf Frühling.

    lg kathrin

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  12. You made the right choices on your flowers. Love them all, but the rose is my favorite. Thanks for your visit and nice comment.

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  13. What a pretty bouquet! I'm glad that you were able to resuscitate the wilting flowers.

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    1. Margie, I am glad that you like my little bouquet! Yes, I was very happy too, that I could revive the hydrangea bloom. After all it is the star of it! Imagine it gone and the whole thing would look quite sad.

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  14. So pretty! I can't wait for spring! Thank you for sharing at Dishing It & Digging It. :)

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  15. You have a good florist in your area. And I love The Prince rose header. I am thinking about the possibility of adding a couple more roses to my new garden. Beautiful photos.

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    1. Commonweeder, welcome to my blog and thanks for leaving this nice comment! The florist is actually "Traeder Joe's" a grocery chain in our area. Nonetheless I agree that sometimes they do have nice combinations of flowers in their bouquets, which are usually reasonably priced. I did notice though that over the years the quality of their blooms has gone down. You really need to watch out that you got some well grown ones.

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  16. Love the soft colors and lovely textures of this and I bet it smells amazing too! Can't wait for actual spring although we've had the mildest 'non-winter' here in Chicago in 146 years!

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    1. Lauren, welcome to my blog and thank for taking the time and leaving a comment! Only the stock smelled wonderfully, but there was no fragrance from the rose, which is always a little disappointing when a rose doesn't have any scent.
      I didn't have a clue that this winter in Chicago has been so mild. Good for you!

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  17. What a beautiful bouquet and the soft colors are very elegant.

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    1. Sandra, welcome to my blog and thanks for leaving a nice comment, I really appreciate it!

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  18. This is a simply stunning arrangement Christina! Those bright green chrysanthemums really do make it pop, and who doesn't love a classic rose. Thank you so much for joining us this week at Dishing It & Digging It!

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    1. Thanks, Angie! Yes, honestly without the chrysanthemums the bouquet would be plain boring! Sometimes it is just one little thing that makes or breaks it in flower arranging.

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  19. Christina, sooooo beautiful! And I really appreciate the tips for dealing with wilting flowers. Can't wait to try them.

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  20. Lovely bouquet and good tips, Christina! Thank you!

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  21. I love all those soft shades together ! Set off very well by the silver of the birds.
    Thanks for the tips on reviving drooping flowers, I think I would have binned it with our trying any first aid!

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  22. The flowers are gorgeous! Though the colors are simple, I find they just so delicate and lovely! Thank you for sharing with us. Happy Pink Saturday!

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  23. Dear Christina,
    lovely bouquet!
    I too long for spring and buying some flowers for your home indeed helps. I bought myself some tulips which make me look forward to spring and gardening.
    Best wishes,
    Lisa

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  24. Beautiful flowers!I love hidrangeas too! At my mother's home,they grow beautifully in despite of our hot summer in Rio de Janeiro. Thanks for sharing! Maristella.

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  25. I love, love this little white bouquet, and the silver birds is the perfect complement! I once bought some hydrangea blooms for a special occasion and was very disappointed when they soon wilted.

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  26. Christina, That is a lovely bouquet. Many of us are longing for some sign of spring. Snow again yesterday for us up north. The days a noticeably longer so it is around the corner.

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  27. Lovely, shades of green and white have always been my favorite to work with. Thanks for the share, Sandi

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