Full bloom
Tasteful floral arrangements make your interior match that spring exuberance outdoors
If you believe what you see on your Instagram feed, everyone’s home is full of fresh blooms carefully arranged in beautiful vases. As it turns out they are, in a way. “With all the new home decor shows, and Instagram, clients are much more aware of the possibilities of decorating their homes with fresh flowers and plants,” says Gloria Henry, principal at The Flower Factory in Vancouver.
“It is not unusual for us to see the same client each week purchasing fresh flowers for their home.”
While you can never go wrong with a classic arrangement of roses, or a full bouquet of carnations, Henry says the most on-trend (and also the most shareable) bouquets are a bit more undone than before.
“It’s a more relaxed, botanical style,” Henry says. “There’s a trend toward using a lot more greenery of different colour and texture.”
These days, a bouquet doesn’t have to be over-the-top to make an impact on your living space.
“If you’re thinking of what flowers to choose for your home or next event, a simple yet impressive option is to choose flowers that are beautiful on their own without much fussing,” says Alice de Crom, designer and creator of Floralista Flower Studio in Fort Langley.
“A few single stems in bud vases grouped together can be a very effective way to embrace the lessis-more trend.”
De Crom says a beautiful bouquet can be as simple as a handful of specialty blooms such as ranunculus, garden rose or protea placed in a bottle. The easy arrangement will add a “perfect finishing touch” to a room.
“You can never go wrong with all of one variety, either,” says de Crom. “Our favourites for spring would be a simple vase of fresh tulips, peonies or tall, flowering spring branches like magnolia or quince.”
So, are there any “it” hues for floral arrangements?
“Blush, peach and greys are always popular,” Henry says.
But there is also a moodier movement happening in flowers, even for the brighter days of spring.
De Crom says the overall trend is to introduce elements that are more “grown up” than their pastel counterparts.
“By adding deep, rich tones like merlot, burgundy and blackberry into a neutral colour palette, you create depth, dimension and juxtaposition,” she says.
“The overall feel of the colour palette remains timeless and muted — but there is a subtle sense of maturity and complexity to this beautifully mixed bouquet.”
She recommends playing with “muddy” colours — think earth tones such as creamy champagne and terracotta — as wells as the “dusty” pastels such as rose and smokey lavender that straddle the spectrum between dark and light in an otherwise all-white bouquet.
The moodier movement, and its impact on growing trends in the flower cultivation industry, has even forced a change in favour for some blooms.
“Carnations, for example, which have endured a reputation for years as ‘tacky’ flowers, are now being offered in some of these stunning colours and of the highest quality,” de Crom says.
“If you haven’t already, we strongly suggest giving these long-lasting, ruffled beauties a second chance.”
Pantone’s colour of the year — greenery — is also making a big impression on floral design. But rather than influencing the colour of the blooms, the hue has meant a whole host of new pieces of literal greenery being added into bunches and bouquets.
“Much to our delight, leafy branches, vines and textured foliage are making their way into every wedding and event,” de Crom says. “Everything from long-table garlands and hanging installations, to the simplicity of a single tropical leaf in a vase or potted plants.”
De Crom says the overall effect of relaxed silhouettes coupled with the copious amounts of greenery translates to floral arrangements that appear to be a modern take on the 16th-century still-life paintings from the Dutch masters.
“It’s lush, asymmetrical, garden-inspired floral arrangements in footed pedestal vases with airy layers, texture and depth,” she says. “These offer so much more to look at compared to the tight classic European ‘ball’ arrangements that where popular a decade ago.”
A discussion of current flower trends wouldn’t be complete without touching on a trend that has been wildly popular thanks to photo-sharing platforms (an especially popular resource for the wedding planning crowd) such as Pinterest. Are rustic, country-chic blooms still here to stay?
“The trend of burlap, lace, barn wood and mason jars is giving way and letting a minimalistic modern decor paired with lush romantic garden-inspired florals take the stage,” de Crom says.
“We suspect social media collections boards are partly to blame for the overdone country chic trend, which coincided with the DIY movement just as both were taking off.”
The trend hasn’t entirely disappeared.
“Vintage glassware, such as milk glass, is still going pretty strong,” Henry says.
“By adding deep, rich tones like merlot, burgundy and blackberry into a neutral colour palette, you create depth, dimension and juxtaposition.”