I love having fresh flower arrangements year round.  At our home in Connecticut we have a modest garden, however, in the spring and summer there are enough blooms for me to make several arrangements for our dinner parties.  There is something very satisfying about cutting flowers from your own garden and using them to add the finishing touch to your dining table.  In the winter months I rely on buying flowers from the florist or supermarket but recently I was the lucky recipient of a bouquet from my girlfriends and I wanted to do something special with them other than putting them in a vase.  It is really easy to make a fabulous arrangement, below are the 4 steps I follow:

To start, you will need 2 to 3 dozen flowers, oasis (floral foam), florist tape or scotch tape and a footed vase.  Cut the oasis with a knife so it fits snugly in your vase and then soak it in water for a couple minutes until saturated.  Put the oasis in the vase and secure with several pieces of tape criss-crossed.

Begin by adding the greens, they serve as the backdrop to the flowers and help to fill in the arrangement.  Next, add flowers that have flimsy stems.  These flowers will lean which ever way they want, so it is best to use them first and work around them with sturdier flowers.

For the focal point, I pick my favorite flowers.  For this arrangement the Germini Daisies take center stage.  I then add the sturdier flowers making sure each variety is distributed so I have equal pops of color.  You will want to have stems of several lengths, I use the shorter flowers for the front and sides of the arrangement.  Having staggered stem lengths will allow each flower to be seen and the shorter lengths are perfect for filling in the area closest to the oasis to help camouflage it.

Finally, add flowers to fill in any open areas to create a lush arrangement.  If you water it daily it should last for about a week.

xo,
Sarah