As professional interior designers we are always decorating homes to the fullest having that "Grand reveal TV Moment" when our clients see their home fully complete for the very 1st time.
I personally feel that live flowers and greenery truly help finalize and finish a space. Yes, in areas that we will not be constantly replacing fresh flowers we do buy great quality faux ones. We love NDI Floral, Treemasters, New Growth Designs and LuxArt Silks for some of our faux sources.
However, nothing has the smell and texture of fresh and who doesn’t love flowers?
Our tricks include using flowers purchased at local grocery stores and making our own arrangements. Some of our favorite picks - Hydrangeas. We just love Hydrangeas. Stems can be cut short or kept long so they work in any type of vase. They come in beautiful colors including blue, green, pink, lavender and white of course. Trim down to fit in the vase of your choice and keep acouple of leaves on stems to make arrangement look larger. Publix and Trader Joes generally always has Hydrangea stems on sale for 3 for $12. Fresh Market is another source for beautiful hydrangeas under $20.
Tiger Lillies - We love the greenery, height and elegance of Lily stems. We use these in tall vases. We like to mix both closed and open buds. The only negative with these - the stamens will stain! So be cautious of fabrics and adjacent surfaces. These stamens can be cut out as well (again do this over the trash bucket as they will stain anything they land on!). We routinely buy these for $10.99 at our local grocer. Again, Trader Joes, Publix, Fresh Market & Whole Foods always has a great assortment for a great price.
Roses - We doesn’t love roses? We love using soft pastels or vibrant deep colors depending on the color of the space. You can’t go wrong, as you can cut them short or long. You can use a bunch or a single flower in a bud vase. Roses are easy to arrange (just be mindful of the thorns) and the final arrangements always look beautiful. We like to use roses on a bathroom makeup vanity or a Hers Master Nightstand. Easy to find anywhere (even Gas Stations sell roses!)
Greenery - Easiest to find and free. You can buy greenery in grocery stores OR just venture out to your backyard or along the public roadways. Be sure to have a good set of yard clippers for cutting and give all a good hose wash off before bringing into your home to ensure no critters or bugs ! Fresh greenery always, always provides that decorator touch. Again, you can cut them to any length to fit a short or tall vases. Venture out and add some branches too!
Happy arranging !!!