New to Floral Design? Few Basic Tips to get you started. 

Basic 101 in Floral Design

The number one question we get asked by far is – I want to open a flower shop, how do I design flowers? Although having a knack for creativity is important, there are some Floral Design 101 basic tips to help allow your creativity to come through in all your flower arranging. These are a few tips to get you started.

Florist Design – Tools

Supplies/Tools

We won’t go into too much detail on Supplies,  however  having the right supplies and tools is essential and will be a lifelong investment in your floral career.   Buy quality!

Tip: Best Florist Buy – Rose Stripper, do not remove the thrones completely this will allow air to get in the stem. 

Florist Design – Know your flowers!

Know Your Flowers

• Know the flowers that are available in your area  and of course all the flowers you will be selling at your shop.
• Every florist knows that greens and fillers are important. We can not stress this enough, study your greens/fillers, it is what  blurs the lines in your arrangements and makes all arrangements extraordinary.

Prep Your Flowers

• Your flowers need to last in order to ensure repeat customers,  Proper prepping will give longevity to flowers.
• Flowers love water hydrate them well immediately.
• Cut those stems and repeat every three days if possible.
• Feed your flowers with flower food.
• Buy Crowning glory a flower shop must have – this  will seal the surface of the flower and keep them hydrated.

Tip: Submerge the whole flower bunch in water first, yes the whole flower bunch in a sink. 

Three Categories of Flowers

These flower categories can be used by themselves or in any combination.

Florist Design – Big Mass Flower

1. Big Flower /Mass: This flower will be the center of attention in your design your eyes will gravitate to these flowers and tend to be typically round.

Florist Design- Line Flower

2. Line Flower: Tall flowers will be use for line flowers and will determine the shape of the arrangement, it may be easier to place this flower first in the arrangement .

Florist Design – Filler Flower

3. Filler Flower: This is a flower to fill empty spaces – however do not under estimate the power of the filler flower.

Tip:  Using hydrangeas? Dip them in Alum Powder they will last a long time. 🙂  

Arrangement Essentials in Floral Design

Essentials in Flower Design

Balance:

• Flower  arrangements that are symmetrical  including but not limited to vases and baskets. Imagine a line make sure each side carry’s the same amount of weight and this goes for all sides.
• If you do not want a symmetrical  arrangement keep in mind it still needs to be balanced to be appealing to the eye

Harmony:

• Color in the flowers, are they complimentary?   Your arrangement should have harmony as a whole each flower complements the other.

Proportion:

• This is very important if you are arranging mixed flowers you need great proportion as each flower will relate to the other in size – visualize your arrangement before you begin and make sure your proportion is on par.

Movement:

• One of our favorites is movement. Flower arrangements with movement are the hottest trend right now. This is a airy feel, great way to keep all your floral arrangements fresh and modern.

Unity:

• All flowers must complement each other and its vessel.

Tip: Take pictures from all angles of all your early designs within time you will be a pro – practice makes progress. 

101 Floral Design

Following these basic steps will get you on your way to flower designing, We do recommended interning at flower shop, Things that may seem simple like adding flowers to a vase does require a certain amount of technique, practice and creativity.  Florists please share your wisdom on basic flower design with new and upcoming florists they will be grateful.

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