Tropical Hand-Tied Arrangement

Video Transcription 

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 fabulous tropical hand tied bouquet. 

At first, tropicals can seem intimidating. Not all of us have them in our lives all the time, but right now a virtual vacation to the tropics is so in order, so for this bouquet I turned to our friends at Green Point Nurseries. I looked through their website and they have so many amazing blooms. You can see my table behind me is filled. For this bouquet, I wanted something very approachable, something very fun, perfect to do for anyone to set in their home or in their office. I'll be using Oncidium orchids, anthurium, some bamboo and some anthurium leaves. Just a few simple things to make a fabulous bouquet. 

Preparing the flowers is easy. Unpack them, give them a fresh cut, put them in water. You might want to break them down, make them a little bit shorter. The anthurium, they actually like to be soaked upside down for just a little while. I like to let them sit for about five minutes. They'll drink through their faces, becoming rehydrated and fabulous, perky. The Oncidiums, they can get a little tangled, they have so many laterals. So laying them out, giving them a little shake, gently pulling them apart, and then when you cut them, put them into the vase of water so that they're ready to go. You can dip them, just kind of face down. I don't like to soak them. They're so fragile, you don't want that, but they're so long lasting. Just a matter of making sure that you loosen them up, lay them out. You can see there's no foliage to worry about so you don't have to clean their lower stems, just loosen them, cut them and drop them in water. 

To make it easy, I laid the Oncidiums out across the table. That way they're not tangled together. The anthurium, taking a look at their faces, determining how they connect with each other, and then gathering them in your hand with a little bit of foliage, tucking it together. You can see how the faces radiate outward so that I don't end up with a direction, I want them to look natural. Maybe a little more foliage. Just lining them up in my hands, then coming back, with a few more. This time letting them come out a little bit, angling just slightly, then turning, angling, so it's a classic spiral, nothing new and different, just amazing tropical blossoms. Letting them continue on. Some can be a little higher, some a little lower. Then as I finish, start in with the Oncidiums, just kind of laying them into the hand then letting it turn, letting them drape so luxurious, and turning and turning again. 

As I finish, look at it in a mirror so you can see the front and the back. Turn it, add in any additional stems where you want to get a little more fullness, turning again, making sure everything's where you want it. Then coming back with the anthurium leaves. So, I started with the anthurium in the center and then I end within anthurium foliage at the base, creating a collar, springing it around and filling it in. 

To secure, tie it off with bind wire. You can use raffia, twine, whatever you prefer. Bind wire works well just to lash around, making sure it's nice and secure. I like to go around two or three times, then twist. Lashing it into place. Then you can wrap it in tissue or cut the stems and drop it in a vase. 

The recipe is easy. I know you always like to know, "What did I use? Where did it come from?" Everything was from Green Point Nurseries, shipped directly to my door. I started with seven of the white anthurium and three of the bamboo orchid. Then I added the 10 Oncidium and then seven anthurium leaves, tied it all off with bind wire for a lovely design. 

Working with tropical blooms does not have to be scary or intimidating. A little tip, if you find them scary, if they make you nervous, go ahead and order some. And then as you're designing, make something you're very comfortable with. If you like hand tied bouquets, do them in a hand tie. Don't jump into linear design the very first time, if that's scary to you. I always find if one part's scary, so the bloom is new and different, do the other part, not scary, a design you're comfortable with. 

For more creative inspiration, check out the website, Flower School .com. If you have questions, you can reach us through there or pick up the telephone and give us a call at 503-223-8089. Now it's your turn. What are you going to create with tropical blooms as you have fun and do something you love?