'A Subtle Trio of Lilies' Florals
Happy belated Easter! I wanted to spend the day chatting with family and a little R&R before I got back into the swing of things. I hope you had a restful day and celebrated with loved ones, whether in person or virtually. I’m thankful that I still had access to a few online floral sources as well as my local wholesaler. Although we aren’t seeing many flowers coming in through the international markets, I’m glad we’re able to take this time to focus on supporting our local flower farms. This particular arrangement is an ethereal mix of lily hybrids. Although subtle in differences, the unique texture, size, and fragrances of each lily holds its own. I love that from afar, there’s a uniformity to the type of flower, but upon further viewing, you notice the small differences in the tone of whites and creams, the shape of the petals, and the sweet blend of perfuming lilies. Soft plumes of queen anne’s lace and arching olive branches are the perfect way to finish off this arrangement. I’ve come to love and appreciate lilies for their elegance and beauty. There’s also a long and illustrious history to the lily. For an interesting read, Flower Magazine did a great write up a few years back.
‘A SUBTLE TRIO OF LILIES’ FLORALS
FLORALS + SUPPLIES
White ceramic vase (4-6” opening)
Floral snips
12 stems of ‘Crystal Blanca’ oriental lilies
12 stems of ‘Opus One’ oriental lilies
12 stems of cream asiatic lilies
3 bunches of white scabiosa
2 bunches of ‘Green Mist’ queen anne’s lace
12 stems of white tulips
1 bunch of fruiting olive branches
STEPS
Fill the vessel with water so stems will be fully submerged as you are arranging.
Using the chicken wire, create a cage-like structure that will give shape to the arrangement. Tuck in the wire around the opening of the vessel so it sits securely. I try to keep the wire structure on the smaller side to make it easier to hide using the floral elements.
Start with the olive branches to create a greenery base. Arrange a few branches further out to build an organic shape and the rest of the greenery to fill the interior of the arrangement. Pick out a few of your feature branches with the olive fruit and set aside for placement later on.
Next, arrange the scabiosa and tulips throughout the arrangement. These stems tend to be on the shorter side, so I do my best to stretch these blooms as far out as possible. These tuberous stems are a bit more fragile, so it’s easier to arrange them earlier on.
Take the queen anne’s lace and arrange the stems in varying lengths closer in and away from the arrangement to add texture and dimension.
Arrange the three varieties of lilies. Use a few of the larger blooms to help conceal the chicken wire. I like to arrange the stems with unopened lilies further away to create a bit of interest and as the arrangement continues to bloom, this will create a more unique and organic structure.
Take the remaining feature olive branches and arrange this in prominent spots. Olive branches create a nice drape and adds a subtle silver-green tone to the arrangement.
Top off the vessel with water and spritz the arrange with water for a finishing hydration. As the lilies bloom, the yellow or orange stamens within the flower should be removed. This will prevent the flowers from staining the surface below.
