Ever visited fancy homes on a home and garden tour or poured over magazines and Pinterest for hours looking at gorgeous flower arrangements with envy in your heart and a desire to learn floral arranging?

Of course, you have, but now there is hope for you (and me). There’s a new book available that makes flower arranging more approachable for us mere mortals. “Jane Packer’s Flower Course: Easy Techniques for Fabulous Flower Arranging,” written by celebrated florist Jane Packer, presents Packer’s highly regarded four-week course taught at her flower school–but in book form. The book lays out her wealth of experience and celebrated designs and puts them within reach of everyday flower enthusiasts.

Jane Packer is one of Britain’s foremost floral artists. She established Jane Packer Flowers in 1982, and in 1990 opened her first flower school in London. In 2004, Jane launched janepackerdelivered.com, delivering her trademark arrangements nationwide. She has outlets in London, New York, Seoul, Tokyo and Kuwait City.  Her clients include boutique hotels, film companies, designer stores, and devoted private clients. And now, you can fashion your own Packer-inspired floral arrangements.

This guide is broken down into three sections covering arrangements intended to be given as gifts, floral arranging and decorating for the home, and arrangements for celebrations including weddings.

And lest you think this book is just a visual smorgasbord of delicious floral designs, think again. While there are plenty of stunning photos in the book, the emphasis is actually on the practical how-to. The glorious photographs of the finished arrangements are accompanied by step-by-step photographs and super-easy-to-follow instructions. There is even a beginning overview of the tools and supplies that you will need for floral arranging, as well as a section on buying flowers and on conditioning and reviving flowers.

Projects range from the more rustic, like hyacinths and anemones in a bag, to the more modern, like a modern pedestal arrangement with sunflowers, chrysanthemums, and cabbage heads.

Believe me when I tell you that the book distils Packer’s floral expertise and style into one essential resource that imparts all the secrets of creating beautiful floral designs. It is a must for anyone who wants to learn how to do their own floral arranging.

Related on EcoSalon

Spring Floral Design Inspiration: Decorating with Florals
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7 Stunning Do-It-Yourself Flower Arranging Tips

Images from “Jane Packer’s Flower Course: Easy techniques for fabulous flower arranging” from Ryland Peters & Small publishers and photographed by Paul Massey

The post Floral Arranging Made Easy as Peonies with a New Resource appeared first on EcoSalon.

DIY flower crowns you can make to adorn yourself with blossoms!

Spring and summer are the seasons of music festival and weddings, both at which it is completely acceptable to adorn yourself with flower crowns. Of course, we think it is pretty much okay to rock a floral crown any time of year you feel so inspired to do so.

To get the floral crown look, you could purchase a fresh version from a floral designer (at great expense to your bank account), buy a dried/faux version online from someplace like Etsy, or make your own from fresh, dried or faux flowers. Making your own is probably the most economical choice, as well as being the more creative option as well.

Making flower crowns isn’t really as complicated as it may sound. First, you must make the decision whether you will use fresh flowers or not. For a wedding, you may desire the ephemeral beauty of fresh blooms, while if you want a floral crown to wear at the festival circuit,  a dried or faux flower crown might be the better choice. Make the decision, then purchase and/or pick your blooms. Fresh picked wildflowers are always a great choice–even if they don’t last long.

Supplies Needed to Make Flower Crowns:

• Flowers (dried, fresh or faux), greenery, ribbons, and other additions
• Floral Tape
• Floral Wire
• Wire Cutters
• Scissors
• Creativity

7 DIY Tutorials to Inspire You in Making Your Own DIY Flower Crowns

1. How to Make a Floral Crown – This DIY from A Beautiful Mess is for a pretty basic floral crown arrangement.
2. Easiest DIY Floral Crown How-to – This tutorial calls for making individual bunches and gathering them up with flexible twine wire.
3. Woven Wildflower Crown – This project is perfect to make while out a field of wildflowers. Your crown will wilt, but so will that field of blossoms soon enough.
4. Silk Flower Crown – This project calls for silk flowers and a glue gun and makes a much more permanent accessory that can be worn again and again.
5. Ribbon Tied Crown – The addition of ribbon ties adds some elegance to this project.
6. Fern Crown – Not every crown needs flowers. Consider making an elegant fern crown instead.
7. Frida Kahlo Inspired Crown – This isn’t a crown as much as it is individual blooms pinned in with bobby pins, but it is beautiful just the same.

Related on EcoSalon

6 Pro Tips to Make Fresh Cut Flowers Last Longer

Music Festival Beauty Must Haves

4 Easy to Get Eco Chic Looks for Festival Season

Floral crown image via Shutterstock

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Flower arranging may be an art form, but it’s one that is attainable by all of us. Sure, we may feel more comfortable leaving our wedding and other special occasions to the pros, but you should feel like everyday flower arranging is a skill you have in your wheelhouse.

If you aren’t quite comfortable with the notion of do-it-yourself flower arranging here are some tips to get you started. The key is to get in touch with your creative side, think about the effect you are looking to create and where you want to display your flowers. Arrangements for the mantle or table centerpiece will be very different from arrangements for the bathroom or a sunny windowsill. The most important thing to remember about flower arranging is to jump in and have fun. It’s not just about creating an end result, but also enjoying the process!

1. Use Wildflowers

Image: bernadettemacphersonmorris

The addition of Queen Anne’s Lace and Black-Eyed Susan flowers to this beautiful and simple  arrangement of Hydrangea blossoms is genius. Sometimes the prettiest flowers grow right in our backyards!

2. Create an Ombre Effect

Image: thedessinee

Pick a flower and choose a variety of shades of the same color family to create an ombre effect.

3. Volume

Image: InfoMofo

Keep it simple. Pick your favorite bloom and fill a container to the brim with it. Sometimes a simple statement can make the most impact.

4. Complementary Colors

Image: bobosh_t

Remember the color wheel? You know: primary, secondary, tertiary colors? Well complementary colors are those colors that are opposites on the color wheel, but that complement each other. Combinations like blue and yellow, red and green and purple and green can make striking arrangements like this pretty blue and orange example.

5. Texture

Image: torbakhopper

Use a variety of textures to create a visually stunning effect as in this gorgeously bold arrangement.

6.  Height

Image: David Blackwell

Use height to create drama as with this simple and stunning display that utilizes a tall slender vase to showcase tall beauties. The sleek and simple effect is the perfect showcase.

7. Vases

Image: Jinx!

Try a variety of vessels from everyday mason jars and coffee cans to vintage art deco vases and exotically-shaped blown glass vases.

Related on Ecosalon

Flowers That Add Color to Your Garden and Spice to Your Menu

8 Garden Secrets for Making Outdoor Blooms Last Inside

Create Gorgeous Late Summer Centerpieces from What’s In Your Backyard—Wherever It Is!

Top Image: aussiegal

The post 7 Stunning Do-It-Yourself Flower Arranging Tips appeared first on EcoSalon.

Create stunning centerpieces without stepping foot in a florist’s shop.

Years ago I used to buy flowers for my centerpieces and home floral arrangements, but then I started learning about unsustainable the cut flower industry can be. While I still do buy the occasional store-bought bouquet, I do try to only buy from sources where I can be somewhat assured that my flowers are local and are organic or at least are lightly sprayed.

* Tip – If you must buy store bought flowers, look for organically-grown or Veriflora Certified flowers at your local florist or other retailer.

However, more often than not, I head out into my back yard and the natural areas around my home to collect and forage elements for my centerpieces and other floral and natural displays.

In my neck of the woods, I can find stunning yellow forsythia in the spring, tiger lilies and Queen Anne’s lace in the summer, oak leaves with acorns in the fall, and pine cones and evergreen boughs in the winter. I find that creating my own floral arrangements from natural elements I have foraged is so much more satisfying and my hard work is often appreciated by my guests.

No matter where you live—the Pacific Northwest, New England, the Southwest or in the South—you too can create stunning centerpieces and arrangements from what is grown in your locale.

So, give it a try and and add some everyday natural beauty to your home or create a stunning and conversation-starting centerpiece for your next soiree!

Image: David Blackwell

Tips and Resources for Centerpieces

Plant your own wildflowers and native species to harvest for your flower arrangements. Your local office of the Bureau of Land Management, Cooperative Extension or Natural Resources Conservation Service would be good places to start. As might your local Native Plant Society, horticultural society or nature center.

Forage!  Find a meadow, woods or spot of shoreline and find your own flowers and natural elements. One note though, make sure to be sustainable in your foraging as well as  follow all local laws and regulations. It is illegal to forage in many national and state parks, and you would certainly want to gain permission to forage on private property. For identification of wildflowers you might find, the Peterson and National Audubon Society’s guide books are excellent. There are different books for each region of the US.

Finally, make sure to allow your creativity to shine through and experiment with different elements. Driftwood isn’t just beach detritus and moss isn’t just for between the stones in your backyard  when you are in the right mindset, but they can be integral elements to your next centerpiece!

Image: marco monetti (OFF)

Top image: Saídos da Concha

Related on Ecosalon: 

5 Fresh Ways to Bring Flowers Indoors

7 Ways to Indulge in the Edible Flower Trend 

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