Special Day Bouquet
Make a gorgeous bouquet for any special day. Customize the flower colors to match your event and you’ll have a lasting keepsake. This is a perfect project for the DIY bride. Make smaller versions for your bridesmaids or get them in on the action and make them together! This is not a huge bouquet, but it is a good size, and you can certainly add or remove flowers as you’d like. Have fun and make some beautiful memories.
Supplies
• The following flowers on 18˝-long stems with a calyx:
3 finished peonies
5 finished ranunculus
3 finished anemones
8 finished wildflowers
• 5 greenery stems with 5 medium leaves each
• 5 greenery stems with 3 medium leaves each
• Twine or ribbon
• Needle-nose pliers
• Wire cutters
• Scissors
SPECIAL DAY BOUQUET
STEP 1: Arrange the peonies. Start by arranging the peonies in one hand.
STEP 2: Arrange the ranunculus. Add the ranunculus. I put a group of three on one side of the peonies and a group of two on the other side. These flowers will likely shift around as the arrangement grows, but this is a good way to build balance.
STEP 3: Arrange the anemones. Add the anemones. I put two on one side of the bouquet and one on the other.
STEP 4: Check the bouquet shape. The bouquet should have a rounded, slightly domed shape. Shift the flowers around to shape the bouquet as needed. Double-check the position of the flowers. For example, if all the peonies are in a straight line, move them into more visually pleasing locations. The groupings you started with are likely to change, and that’s ok. You want the flowers to be dispersed evenly in the bouquet, but without unnatural symmetry. Spread the flowers out a bit by pulling them away from each other and bending the stems outward. Continue to check the shape of the bouquet as you do this.
STEP 5: Add the leaves. Add the three-leaf stems to the bouquet. These are filler pieces. Tuck them in between the flowers one at a time in some of the open spaces. Space them evenly throughout the bouquet and position them so the bottom leaves are nestled among the flowers and the top leaves extend past the flowers a bit.
STEP 6: Add the wildflowers. Add the wildflowers in groups. I added a group of three, two groups of two, and a single flower.
STEP 7: Add the leaves. Add the five-leaf stems around the outside of the bouquet. Place the front of the leaves facing in toward the bouquet. Position the stems so the top leaves extend about an inch past the flowers. The bottom leaves should cover most of the wire stems around the base of the arrangement.
STEP 8: Secure the stems. Tie the twine or ribbon tightly around the stems of the bouquet, just below the base where the leaves end. I keep the twine attached to the spool to make sure I have enough to wrap the base of the bouquet. Make the free end of the twine several inches long.
STEP 9: Bend the stems. Make a bend in each stem about 3˝ below the twine, bringing the ends up against the base of the bouquet. Trim the wires so the ends meet the bouquet just below the twine. Use pliers to pinch each wire tight at the bend. This will prevent any sharp wires at the bottom of your bouquet.
STEP 10: Wrap the stems. Using the end of the twine attached to the spool, wrap the stems. Work your way down to about an inch or two from the bottom of the stems, then back up to the starting point. Tie the twine off with a tight knot and trim it.
STEP 11: Finish. Reposition any flowers that got pushed out of place while you were working on the stems. Your bouquet is ready for your special day and beyond! When your event is over, leave the bouquet intact or untie it and arrange your blooms in a vase.
ARRANGING YOUR BOUQUET
This is not an exact science, and you’ll have to make decisions based on what looks good to you. I like to hold the arrangement in one hand and add flowers with the other. I add one type of flower at a time, starting with the largest ones. I also like to work with odd numbers of each flower, making small, uneven groupings.
