Rustic Wildflower Centerpiece
Wildflower styled floral designs are on-trend. For the professional floral designer creating these designs can be a real challenge. Most true wildflowers are not commercially available and do not have a long vase live. In this video how-to Leanne creates a design using feverfew, scabiosa pods, bachelor buttons and blueplurum to create a wildflower look. This combined with ranunculus, hypericum, celosia and astrantia results in a beautiful wildflower centerpiece. Enjoy
Video Transcription
Welcome to the Flower School .com video library. I'm Leanne Kesler, Director of the Floral Design Institute, and today I'm here to share with you a rustic wildflower centerpiece in a lovely compote. While the trend is for wildflowers, the reality is as professional florists they're generally commercially grown so today we've got feverfew, scabiosa pods, bachelor buttons, bupleurum, all giving us that just picked out in the fields look. Then, filling in with some gorgeous ranunculus, hypericum, celosia, and astrantia, to make it extra special, picking up on that blush, updated to maroon.
On trend with foam free design, we'll work with floral netting, pull off a section and then contort it, building an armature with multiple layers. That's the trick. If you have just one or two layers, it won't be secure. You need multiple layers, then fasten it down in, letting it fit to the container. Secure it with waterproof tape, then add fresh water mixed with flower food.
To provide a nice base for the flowers, I start with foliage, a variety of different things to create a nest of interest, nice texture to build upon. Some Israeli ruscus, a little bit of plumosa, maybe some leather fern, just feeding it into the weave of the floral netting, a little bit of fatsia, and as I work, radiating around a central binding point; some towards the front, some towards the back. Then of course, some breaking the line of the container.
With the form established, I can go back and add my wild flowers. I'm going to start with the bupleurum, with it being fresh water and flower food, it'll hold so well. Just taking it, placing it straight down in, maybe a little bit of the feverfew, again, giving it a cut. Placing it straight into the weave, a little more of the bupleurum, angling it to help break the line of the container. More of the feverfew and just alternating back and forth with the different materials, always thinking about radiating and give it that very casual, loose, designed look.
As you can see, at every stage you want to stop and look at it from all angles, make sure that it's pretty; so it was foliage only, it was a design. Now filling in with the wildflowers, it's a design. Now going back and adding in the rest to create focal emphasis, establish better spacing and, yes, even more texture. Texture is so on trend and as much as you think it's too much, in today's world you can never have too much texture. Tucking in the roughly ranunculus, drawing attention to the focal emphasis area, bringing in the color of the blush with the hypericum, maybe repeating a second stem, letting it extend a little longer. Bringing in the astrantia, again picking up that deeper color. The celosia, giving some nice drape. That feathery touch adding yet one more texture. Then the scabiosa pods capitalizing on the rustic theme, and a few of the bachelor buttons to add that touch of blue. Just repeat. Adding those materials, radiating, making sure it's beautiful from the front and the back.
With all the textures, it gives you a fabulous rustic look. Take a look at it from all sides. Make sure it's complete, there's no holes, the balance is good. Now as I was working, I tried to think logically in bunches for best value. Now, obviously in the foliages I did not use full bunches. I used four fatsia leaves, four plumosa, four Israeli ruscus, and four leather fern, so I worked in fours. Then, as I moved on to the wildflower look, feverfew, one-quarter of a bunch, bupleurum, one-quarter of a bunch. Then I started working logically in tens so that I use the whole bunch. 10 of the fabulous ranunculus, 10 celosia, 10 scabiosa pods, 10 astrantia, 10 bachelor buttons, and 10 hypericum. Again, looking at it from all sides, you can see it's a fabulous on-trend design.
Working on trend with textures, wildflowers, blush to burgundy, creates a rustic design that's sure to be a favorite. As you're working on your creations, do take a picture, I'd love to see it.
If you have questions about how to create it, don't hesitate to reach out to us. You can find us at the website, Flower School .com, or pick up the telephone and give us a call at (503) 223-8089 because now it's your turn. Create your own rustic bouquet with that wildflower look. Take a picture, post it on social media and tag Floral Design Institute. That way we all can see as you create and do something you love.
