Lilacs for Mom
Mixing and matching garden flowers and tropicals, you can create stunning arrangements for every day, but PERFECT for Mother's Day! In this Flower School How-To Video Leanne works with a Spring favorite -- the fragrant lilac - and pairs it with trailing jasmine vines and over-the-top phalaenopsis orchids in a fast, foam-free design. It's a show-stopper sure to please ANY mother -- enjoy!
Video Transcription
Mother's Day, one of the biggest flower holidays of the year. In this arrangement, foam free, fast, and yet fabulous. Let me show you how it's done.
The materials, the star of the show, lilacs, of course, but some people would beg to differ that the orchid brings in the charm and value. It's exotic, but lilacs, definitely one of my favorites. Then tucking in a few carnations for intensity of color, some jasmine vine and dusty miller. The mechanics, nothing but a classic pitcher. Nothing inside except fresh water filled with flower food.
To begin creating a classic round using the radial format, central binding point. Everything you learned in basic floral design. Nothing new, just exaggerating it with amazing flowers. Starting with a bit of dusty miller, three pieces will come around, giving me a nice triangle, then coming back with the lilac. Now I can cut it with my knife, but to be perfectly honest, sometimes it's better to just break and tear it, then cut it so that you get a really jagged edge that will make it last so much longer. The lilacs come in different colors. I've got definitely this darker purple, and then the light lavender, alternating them around. Filling in and repeating until you run out of blooms.
I could stop here and it's stunning, but sometimes you want something extra special for mom and Phalaenopsis orchids, they are extra special and stunning. Just giving it a cut, bringing one towards the front and letting it drape over, breaking the line, giving a little movement, and then bringing a second one, more towards the back and nestling it in with the lilacs. Then to finish, tucking the carnations, using them relatively low and going ahead and grouping them just to add some intensity of color to draw the eye inside the arrangement.
Last touch, just a little bit of jasmine vine to give more draping, carry the eye outward, add a tiny bit of texture, and more springtime fun. Mom is truly going to love this.
The recipe, I'll start. The pitcher is just from my prop shelves. It's one of my favorites. I have no idea where it came from. The flowers, I started with five stems of Dusty Miller, three in a triangle, two in the center. Then five each of the Lavender and the Violet Lilacs. Carnations, I used a total of 10. The Phalaenopsis, two stems, and then six stems cut apart of the Jasmine Vine.
Getting ready for Mother's Day means really getting all your flowers together and getting inspired for one of the biggest flower holidays of the year. You'll find more creative inspiration on our website, FlowerSchool.com. If you have questions, you can reach us through there. But now it's your turn. Pick some lilacs, create a recipe, and then design a fabulous arrangement for mom. Be sure to take a picture and post it on social media, #FloralDesignInstitute. That way we all can see what you do as you do something you love.
