1. Bergenia, particularly the type Bergenia delavayii. While in spring the leaves are a nice fresh green, in winter they are a deep pink rich in color that are very nice to use in flower arrangements. You can use two or three of these for the height along with a few deep red bergenia leaves, added to some flowers. This will work perfectly for a lovely winter flower arrangement.
2. Viburnum bodnantense ‘Dawn’, flowering from December to Februrary, is a strong shrub which can be used over and over to use branches from.
3. Fatsia japonica is a shrub that looks exotic, evergreen and is available throughout the whole year. Modern designs use it a lot. You can use the leaves fresh or preserved wtih glycerine.
4. A type of hosta, Hosta fortuneii, or Hosta undulata is another one used a lot for flower arrangements. It has a strong spalsh of white on green and the edges are nice flowingly wavy. It has a very interesting look in a flower arrangement.
5. Autumn Joy (Sedum spectabile) starts flowering late summer and the deep rosy-red heads of diferent sizes last for quite a while when put in water. During autumn the leaves change to a nice tan. Once brought into the house they dry quite fast, and they are absolutely gorgeous for giving the flower arrangement that nice round shapes that many dried flower arrangements do not have.

If you’re just now starting with flower arranging and want to grow your own plants, these should get you started, as they are the top choices of many flower arrangers, hobbyists and professionals.

All the periods are an inspiration for flower arranging, however Impressionists are those that influenced how art would evolve from the mid 19th Century until now, so they are really worth studying. Particularly important is their new use of color which gave a fresh breath to painting, which was so far focused on portraits and landscapes.

Some of the important painters of the times are Claude Monet, Renoir, Alfred Sisley, Camille Pisarro, and a few others, who used juxtaposition of colors on canvas for the eyes to fuse at a distance. This way their colors were much more intense than one could achieve by merely mixing paints on the palette. For example, blue and yellow formed in the distance green, red and yellow made for orange.

Also juxtaposing complementary coors used in large areas would intensify each other, while when using in smaller quantities, would get you a neutral tone.

Basically this new technical knowledge on colors and their variations allowed them to paint much more creatively, with much more dynamic skill, allowing for some really great pieces of art that will truly inspire your next flower arranging piece. Just give it a try and be amazed at the results.

As each piece is unique (there are no two pieces of wood that are identical), the possibilities of decorating your arrangement are truly endless and no 2 flower arrangements will be the same. Each piece will have a unique identity and individuality.

You can alter the original form by adding extra pieces as legs for achieving nice physical or visual balance. If you want to combine the pieces in one, drill a hole in each piece, and use a sturdy branch to fit neatly in the holes. Dip this into glue and force the sections together as a connecting peg.

You might need to prune a bit for a piece to really fit nicely in your decoration. At times the wood is an added support to your piece, but most of the times it is really the dominant element of your design. You can even form your piece of wood to become the container for your arrangement.

Make sure that you don’t add the wood just as an afterthought in your arrangement. Rather think how to incorporate it early on, when you do your design, so it becomes an integral part of the design, in a way that if it’s removed, its empty place will be sorely visible.

It is not always easy to choose the right color combinations that complement each other. Nevertheless, with a little practice, everyone can master it. I mean think about it, we all choose everything in our homes and on ourselves based on harmonious color combinations: the matching blouse and skirt or pants, or at home the furnishing, the tableware, etc.

We can learn a great deal about color combinations from nature. We can find them in flowers, in fruits and vegetables, in the various shades of grass…Color harmony is everywhere.

Each flower arrangement can be used to give a particular atmosphere. If you want to create a nice harmonic balance in your home, then try to stick to colors that go well with your curtains, your carpets, your tablecloth. Or if you want to lighten up a darker spot in your house, then choose nice light (white, yellow, light pink) colors and put the arrangement on a table in that corner.  If you find your room is too bland, enliven it with some brigher color flowers. Bright red, yellow, full of fresh green should do the trick.

You can always get creative in choosing your color combinations. Just look around the house, find the spot you want to put your flower in, and see how that particular area or room shows in your eyes. Then buy your flowers and create your flower arrangement accordingly.

• To have a more interesting design, make sure to use flowers with a different shape, size, colors and textures. There are really 3 main types of shapes that you will be using: line (where you are using straight types of leaves and flowers such as Iris Leaves and Foxtail Lilies), rounded (Carnation, Gerbera) and a mixture material for fill-in, such as small, ferny folliage. Line shapes are mostly used for the outline of your design and round shapes for the focal flowers.
• If you are working with lilies, always remove their stems because if not, either the polen will stain the flower, or clothing, furnishing and anything else it touches. Also this way the flower will last a bit longer.  Of course, make sure that you don’t cut the stems with the scissors, but always use your fingers to take off the stames, else it will not only look ugly, but unprofessional as well, and will cause discoloration.
• If you are using waterproof lining for your basket, always check that it doesn’t leak before starting the arrangement. You will not notice the tiny punctures, but they will cause ugly leaks! Just fill  your basket with some water and leave it in for about half an hour or so. This will be time enough to see whether your basket leaks!
• When you work on your flower arrangement, make sure that you use co-ordinated, balanced colors for flowers. For example, don’t have stronger colors on one side and faded colors on the other. This will not be very pleasing to the eyes!
• In your flower arranging, use flowers that vary in their stages of development. For example, use some blooms, then use some flower buds, etc. The buds should be placed at the top edges of the arrangement, half-open flowers can be placed pretty much anywhere  you like, but make sure that you place the largest flowers in the center of the floral arrangement. This will really bring out a nice balance to your flower arrangement.

You might wonder though how can you do anything when you have no clue of flower arranging. And going now to an online or offline flower arranging course might not be in your budget - or even mood.

Well, luckily it doesn’t take much to create your next beautiful flower arrangement, even if you know close to nothing about subject. It will only take you 5 main steps (and a few small in between).

First thing, you need to consdier what the flower arrangement will be for. What will be its purpuse, what place in your home shall it brighten up. You might think of a gorgeous buquet that goes on your dining table. Or something small that you can place on your bathroom shelf, or something that you want to give away as gift.

Next, you will need inspiration. What do I mean by that? If you’re anything like me, you will have a visual learning capacity. I learn by watching, by seeing, by getting inspiration from beauty. Go to your next flower shop and see some of their arrangements. They are pros at doing it, so you can get quite a nice feast for the eyes there.

Once you’ve been there, go to another flower shop and see if you can get any additional ideas from there. Everybody is different and people having different ideas, talents and visions, you will find some nice unique flower arrangements wherever you go.

Once you have your vision, go get your supplies. You will need a couple of things, but nothing that it’s not easily to be found either around the house or at your nearby supermarket or flower shop.

From your local flowershp,  pick up a few simple flower bouquets. If yiou’re getting several different types, make sure you’re getting flowers that either complement each other in smells, or some that smell and some that don’t. You don’t want to get many different flowers, each smelling strongly so your guests will get headaches from the mixture!

While you’re at your flower shop, ask for some floral foam, some floral wire and flower tape. Scrissors and other small tool you alread have lying around at home.

As step four, you’r ready to put your arrangement together. You’re ready for work! Grab a nice sharp pair of scissors you have at home as you will need to cut your flowers. Make sure that you always cut at an angle. Right after cutting, put them in lukewarm waterr.You need to do this right after cutting so that the air doesn’t go up the flower tissues and destroy the flowers prematurely.

Next, group the flowers together. For example, if you have smaller flowers, group them in a cluster,so they don’t get lose below a large pack. Use some flower wire and floral tape to wrap them around the stems, so the flowers stay together in place. You will find it so much easier to finalise your arrangement afterwards in a wase if you folow this last step.

Step five means get creative! See what you can find as a container for your arrangement and use it. You have an old teapot or coffee pot that you no longer use for their original purpose and think they would make some great containers for the flowers? Well then go ahead and use them! Also grab some flowers that you originally think might not go well together. You might just be surprised!

A common type of artificial bird for flower arranging is the red grouse. You can make it in size 11″ long and standing 7″ high. These step by step instructions should help you make your own.

What you need:

• floral foam block
• some thin stub wires
• Polyfilla
• some kitchen paper towels
• an old paintbrush
• some feathers
• glue (such as UHU)
• small piece of think white plastic and two tacks with flat black head (for the eyes)
• small piece of wood for the beak and a nail so you can fix it

Steps:

1. Draw the shape of the bird on one large side of the Oasis block (or any other block you have). Make sure that you have an additional piece of Oasis for the head, to increase the overall size of your bird
2. Cut away the unwanted foam and shape it all roughly with a knife
3. Finish this piece by rubbing with the hand
4. Take the stub wires and place 4 of them together. Leave the top 2″ plain and twist together 1.5″ for the leg. Then separate the remaining ends and bend out at right angles to make the feet. Repeat the step for the second leg
5. Mix in a small bowl some Polyfilla with water to make a creamy liquid. Take some cotton strips and soak them in the mixture
6. Bind the wires, leaving the upper untwisted wire free. Fix the feet to the bird by pushing the uncovered wires into the body.
7. Use paint to coat one side of the paper towel with the mixture and press these around the body of the bird. As soon as they are dry, they will strengthen the body.
8. While the bird is drying, make sure you sort the feathers by color and by size. You can use fruit packing trays from your grocery store to hold the sorted feathers
9. Glue the feathers to the bird, and start and the tail while working towards the head. Pay attention that the ends of the feathered are covered
10. When you finish with the bird feathering, you can carve the beak of the bird from a small piece of wood. Afterwards drive the point of a small nail into the back of the beak, then cut the nail’s head and push it into the base.
11. Now make the eyes by cutting small ovals of plastic and fixing them with some tape through their centers

This completes the project for the grouse bird to be used in your flower arrangement. If you want to make larger birds, you can join together blocks of foam with stub wires, but make sure you strengthen the join with strips of paper that you soak in Polyfilla prior to the paper covering being put on the body of the bird

The Christmas table center should be made low, so people don’t have to get up to talk to their opposite seated parties. A nice long, red or white candle can and should be placed in the center. The candle should be narrow enough not to interfere though.

So here is a typical Christmas flower arranging decoration for your table.

• Place a block of water soaked floral foam on a pinholder placed in a shalow dish of water
• Place it on a red covered base, to add some nice color to it
• Add the candle the middle, insert it in the foam, and take the long sprays of holy low out in the sides, while placing the shorter ones forwards and backwards
• Insert a couple of apples on sticks close to the center, and if you have some grapes, place them also in the front and at the back
• Fill the whole thing with some more greenery, some red carnations if you have, and some golden leaves
• Place this plate in the middle of your table, which should have a nice red tablecloth on it and let your guests enjoy their Christmas meal

For a New Year’s party, change the decoration in a way that it becomes taller. People like to stand, walk, even dance in the room, so a nice tall decoration will catch more eyes than a lower keyed one. You can also place leaves and flowers tied with ribbons around wall lamps, or above the mirror in the foyer. Make sure that the next festivities will be an event to remember for a long time!

Petunias, grown from seed are something that have been used for a while and they are quite popular. Petunias really thrive in the heat, so starting from June, you can use them in your decorations. Place a large bowl of white Petunias on the center of the dining table. Use a green cloth and set a few in some smaller plastic pot containers, they will look really lovely agains the green!

You can also use white larkspur, put them in a large display for height. White Nigella is also a beautiful one, you can arrange these at the sides and slowing down in front. Sprinkle with some green fennel in between and you will have a lovely decoration. Fresh green herbs are a nice addition (like the fennel just mentioned), you can use Angelica for example as well.

Another flower in fashion these days is gpsophila. The small white gpsophila can be nicely combined with white daisies if you’re thinking of a christening party.  Use a vase in which you place a water-soaked block of floral foam, and insert the daisies, followed by the stems of the beautiful and fragile white Gypsophila. And what about marguerites, which give a nice aura of simplicity no matter how and in which arrangement they are used. For the center, as taller flowers you can use roses, peonies and lilies.

There are endless possibilities for delicate, simple, yet beautiful white flower arrangements during the summer months. Just use your imagination and you will come up with endless possibilities!