Big bouquets of tall flowers that have the perfect rambling imperfectly perfect look are favorites of mine. I love to create an arrangement that is interesting. With longer blooms in some areas, fluffy flowers to fill in the gaps and shorter ones to add charm near the base. The key is to use something inside the vase that supports the flowers- like a flower frog.
I shared a big bouquet of Queen Anne’s lace recently and got a lot of messages about how I got the flowers to stand up in the way that they did. So, I thought I would share my secret with you. It isn’t really that special, it is so easy to do and it works like a charm.
Flower Frog
Ever heard of a flower frog? No it isn’t a frog on a flower- it is actually something that helps hold flowers stems in arrangements. Of course you can just fill a vase with flowers and let them fall where they do- that is absolutely okay and I do it often. But if I am looking for something with more structure or am working with flowers that have a weaker stem or are super top heavy for example- a little bit of oomph in the vase goes a long way.
You have probably seen old vintage flower frogs in magazines – they are often repurposed to do things like hold cards or a photo. Those small metal frogs with all the prongs are the old school favorites for arrangements in small containers. I just picked up these 2 vintage ones at a thrift store recently- but you can find brand new ones just like these even now. I will link a few below.
Chicken Wire
For this big beautiful arrangement – I didn’t use a traditional flower frog. I made my own using chicken wire.
All you do is cut a piece of chicken wire- twice the size of the vase you are using. Fold it over and shape it to create a chicken wire ‘ball’ of sorts. It doesn’t need to be the perfect shape of your vase- just around the size of it so that it will fit inside. The most important thing is to make sure you have chicken wire on the bottom as well as the top for those larger, arching type of arrangements.
Place the chicken wire ‘ball’ inside the vase, add water and then start to arrange your flowers. Simply tuck the stem of the flowers through the chicken wire. For stems branching out- tuck from the sides more. For taller stately standing flowers- tuck in from the top. Keep tucking until you are happy with your arrangement – and voila.
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Happy Flower Arranging everyone!
Aussie Jo says
How bloody lovely
Marti says
AlwAys Love all your ARRANGEMENTS, really BEAUTIFUL😍I OFTENTIMES just make a grid on top of the vessel using tapE. The Greens &/or the shorter flowers hide the tape grid.
Karen B. says
What helpful tips. I love your flower arrangements and it’s nice to get your tips.
Karen B.