Sunshine Bright Hand-Tied-Bouquet

Welcome to the Flower School .com Video Library. I'm Leanne Kesler, Director of the Floral Design Institute, and today, I'm here to share with you a Sunshine Bright Hand-Tie, perfect for summer time. The inspiration for this bouquet was the fabulous pin cushion protea. It looks like a ball of sunshine, then adding in Tara roses in the soft yellow and spray roses. Foliage wise, fatsia, Israeli ruscus, leather fern and a little tiny bit of lily grass. Before you start the bouquet, take a moment and remove all the lower foliage and any thorns that might poke you as you're working. Just taking off, stripping them down, piling them by variety, which makes it a little easier to work. You can go all the way up. That's optional, it's not necessary, but the lower leaves, that is necessary. Then this variety, Tara, doesn't have thorns, which that's kind of a treat. The pin cushion protea, just lower leaves off. Even the foliage, removing the lower leaves, so that you just have the pretty part at the top, making sure that it's clean. Then, as you begin, cluster a few things in your hand. Maybe a little bit of foliage, a rose, a spray rose. Then the technique is that every stem you add goes into your hand at an angle. So you put the head off to the side and the stem at the opposite, and as long as you're consistent it will be beautiful. So you hold it in your hand, take your stem, and add it, and give it a turn. Add another stem. Give it a turn. Add in a stem. Maybe you want to bring in a little bit of foliage, just angling it, head in one direction, stem the other, turning, you can group materials, doing more than one at a time, or turn every single time. That, again, is a personal preference. 

Each time, just think about it, head to the side, any lower foliage removed, and then turn. Just keep repeating, turn, looking at the materials that they're balanced, that their faces line up beautifully. Balancing out the colors. Placing some things a little lower, and some things a little bit higher, creating depth in the bouquet. Then, as you're getting close to done, take a moment and look at it in the mirror, see if it looks balanced to you, because sometimes it's a little deceiving when you're holding it, and when you turn to look in the mirror you go, "Oh my goodness, I have a hole. I need another flower." 

Once you identify the balance and the color placement, add in your last few blooms. Whatever fits in your hand, turning, making sure that everything still lines up, as you're working, think about your stem placement. Everything should be bare below your hand, no leaves, everything spiraling around, then beautiful above your hand, lots and lots of bright sunshine color. Then last, taking a few fatsia leaves, and placing them around. Maybe a little bit of lily grass for movement. Again, spiraling it, turning it until you get the entire back covered with foliage. 

The finished bouquet just needs to be secured. You can use bind wire, twine, raffia, just holding it under one finger, and then wrapping above your hand snugly. Three times around, making sure you get it nice and secure. Then twist the two ends together, making sure all the stems will stay right where you want them. Then go back and cut everything to fit the vase that you plan to use, making all the stems the same length. 

You may have noticed the return of the bubble bowl. I thought that would never happen but it is, and it just makes me laugh. What goes around, comes around. If you've tried designing in them, it's actually a little difficult. The mouth is so large, but creating a hand-tie makes it to easy. You can just drop it in and everything stays right where you want it to be. Now this bouquet, absolutely perfect. Since you asked, the recipe is easy. Nine of the Tara roses, 10 spray roses, 7 pin cushion protea, 5 fatsia leaves, 10 stems of Israeli ruscus, and 4 stems of leather fern. That's all. Oops, and we forgot, a few stems of lily grass, then it's a beautiful bouquet. 

The classic hand-tie spiral style is a ball of fiery sunshine. Definitely one of my favorite designs for the summer season. For more creative inspiration, check out the website, Flower School .com. If you have questions, you can reach there or pick up the telephone and give us a call at 503-223-8089. And now it's your turn. What you are going to create this summer season? Be sure to take a picture, post it on social media, and then hashtag Floral Design Institute so we all can see what you do as you do something you love.