Some simple FLOWER arranging Ideas!   Some important items you may need!

A few places that may be good to find the following materials: A Flower Nursery, Craft Stores, Large Department Stores, and Home Bulding stores may be a few places to start.

1. Scissors - Well balanced, with a quality Wide grip that fits your hand, that feature good leverage on the cutting edges.

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2. Secateurs - Used for cutting the Thick, woody stemmed foliage.  ( Be careful to keep the cutting edge and the flat surface it closes against clean  for easy use and so you dont leave a ragged edge.)

3.  Wire Cutters - For reel wire. BE CAREFUL NOT TO USE HEAVY DUTY SCISSORS -sharpened edges will become pitted and dull.

4. Knife - Safest type would be Jack knives (if you have young children present)

In some case the knife is better for cutting than scissors - To get a clean cut versus a possible crushing effect from the scissors.

• (crushing will injure the stem making it difficult for the flower head to get the nourishment it needs.)

5.  Florist's Foam - A light weight synthetic spongy material that can be cut to fit any shape of container.

Two types of Foam:

a. Green Foam - Used for Fresh flower arrangements and must be soaked before using

b. Grey Foam - For Dried flower displays.

I believe Foam is extremely important.  To me it helps you to manage the arrangement and keep flowers positioned where you want them, and to help keep water from evaporating.

6. Moss - For the decorative touch.! examples are Bun, reindeer, sphagnum lichen.

7. Florest Spikes - Useful to keep the stems upright, or at a very precisley angle.

Chirstmas time is great for Dried Flower and Fresh flower arrangments. An idea which you could try is to use tree branches from various Types of Fur trees (Douglas, Blue Spruce, Scott)to make centerpieces. You would put the Green foam and add water at the base and then stick the branches (size depends on how big you want your centerpiece of course) into the foam. The pieces would be smalller at the ends of course. Then add little figurines, Miniature Gift boxes, Pinecones, Ribbons, Raffia, Bows, etc. to decorate your centerpiece. I remember we use add a little bit of babys breath and then Red Christmas Style bows, Green Bows, Plastic holly,  and a candle in the center for decoration. It looks wonderful when you are done! Also if you have different fir trees to work with go ahead and mix the types -

Next week I will talk about Wreaths!

Thanks again

OurLittleBigStore.

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