Winter Bouquets

 

Flowers in a Poecelin Vase With a Candlestick and Silver Vessels

These paintings are by Ferdinand Georg Waldmuller, Austrian, 1793-1865

 

Bunch of Roses

I always look forward to blogging after I catch up on housework and various things like correspondence, grocery shopping and unfinished projects. There seems to be so much to do at home, and if I must go out for some reason, half the day is gone. When I do not post in awhile, people start asking if everything is okay and my phone rings with overseas calls, checking up on me with encouraging words.

It is still quite cold outside and there is not a flower in sight.

Today I was looking at a catalog that came in the mail that had pictures of beautiful artificial flower bouquets in the Victorian style. I do not like to spend money on things that I do not need and are not necessary, but I do like pretty things, so I try to make them if I can, with inexpensive or free materials. I decided it might be fun to scrounge around in that yard-sale of mine that has never taken place, and see if I could imitate the bouquets that I liked in this catalog.

 

Here is the first one. The floral piece came from an old Home Interior bouquet that I kept for decades - I do not want to tell you how long - and the candlestick was from a thrift store. The rose vine piece is attached with two-sided sticky foam floral tape. I would estimate the cost would be about $3.00 if using dollar store or Goodwill purchases.

The silver coated vase in the next bouquet I used was from one of my grandmothers but there are some just like it in Goodwill. The vine was broken off one I got many years ago.

I must digress and tell you that I did not want to go to the dollar store just to get some of this special tape, so my husband hunted around in his office and found some. He has everything so orderly in his office and his paper clips, tape, pens, and every office thing you can think of, is there. The family members have always gone to him to get something they can't find, and he comes up with a rulers, pencils, erasers, chalk, and even ink cartridges for old fashion fountain pens.

We have, over the years, borrowed paper and blank notebooks and felt markers from him, so, when his birthday comes around, we gather up all those borrowed items, wrap them up and make a huge pile if gifts on the table for his birthday party. He enjoys saying things like, " I wondered where that thing disappeared to" or " I have not seen that black marker in a year" and when he unwraps something like a three hole puncher or a postal scale he always acts surprised.

 

The bouquet on a candlestick that I created had three main ingredients: a latex vine pressed into some floral oasis foam, and a candlestick. If using Dollar Tree products, this would cost about three dollars. If your husband does not have the double sided sticky foam tape in his office, it will cost an extra dollar at the dollar store. Most ladies today have a glass or a jar and something they can use for flowers, even floral package toppers saved from presents, that can be used to create things without having to spend.

 

This is the one in the catolog. It costs $200.00! (I am hoping they really meant $20.00.). I have seen these at weddings cleverly made with candlesticks from Goodwill, all painted the same color and topped with exquisite silk bouquets. The cost is minimal when you use items you may already own.

Next is a bouquet made from some old silk foral vine that I had painted white glitter on. Since the vine has no stem, a clothespin is attached to it and pushed into the vase. It is a home-made copy of the catalog item below:

The one in the catalog, above, has a price tag is $400.00! I am hoping it is a typographical error and they really meant $40.00.

This one, above is also listed in the catalog as $400.00. The bouquet rests in a wrought iron piece that looks a little like a carriage.

 

Using the wrought-iron candleabra from my yard sale-to-be, and an old vine also in the yard sale pile, I tried to imitate the catalog bouquet. Since these two items were from a yard sale in the first place, the cost was less than a dollar, total. I did spray-paint the candleabra. You should not hesitate to paint your wrought iron. If it is black, it is just painted. Beneath black paint, wrought iron is just rust. Of course black is nice, to, and black paint works especially well on wrought iron.

When we were growing up in the 1950s, we liked to freshen up old furniture and shelves and just anything, with white paint to make it look shiny, bright and new.

 

I noticed when I was peeking at a home dec magazine at the grocery store, a few pages of centerpiece ideas. They were quite beautiful and very simple, much like women used to make a long time ago. The centerpieces consisted of a bowl with a candle in a cup, surrounded by fresh or fake florals. I have made one using Grandma 's bowl, above, with a led tea-light.

Here is one more floral piece I tried today, using tissue paper carnations in a blue canning jar. I really do intend to get rid of all these garage sale and yard sale items I have piled in a corner. I just wanted to play with them one more time.

 

I noticed some glittery tin vases in the floral department at the grocery store in several colors. You could easily imitate these by using a large plastic cup and covering it with glitter paper or metallic paper. I have put the tissue paper flowers in mine. Hunts spaghetti sauce cans have a nice white interior and can be covered in papers or painted to make pretty vases. I don't really need a vase but I needed to have creative time, and Put something on the blog.

If you pay much attention to the creative things people are doing with fresh plants and flowers these days, you may have noticed the cute wooden boxes with drawer handles or rope handles at each end. Some of them are replicas of old sewing machine drawers, and like the other floral things, they are quite pricey. Since I have no way to make a wood box, I tried my hand at a cardboard one.

 

Tape the ends of the box. Cut open one long side and fold it down into into the box to create an opening.

Glue some scrapbook paper on the outside. Fold a little of the paper to the inside edges of the box.

 

Slice off a piece of florist foam (available at dollar stores, two in a package) to fit the box and tuck it inside.

I added moss, but found it was not necessary.

 

Place silk flower stems in the florist foam and add green leaves. Punch holes in the ends of the box and, using jute rope, ribbon, string or wired ribbon, tie little handles on each end.

You may think you have no talent to arrange a fake flower bouquet, but just look around the house and you will see containers like this. These held bath products at Walmart one Christmas. All I did was wrap a dollar store ivy vine together and and put it inside the container. Of course this will go back I to my yard sale collection...I think.

 

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