Life is sweeter when we allow ourselves simple indulgences every day. For me, it’s starting every morning quietly, with coffee in a cup made by my great niece, watching the sunrise reflect on the lake. It’s melting into a hot bubble bath after a long day. It’s filling my home with treasures that brighten my heart and make me smile, like beautiful bouquets of fresh flowers.
Flowers are little miracles, a love note from nature, telling us to slow down and drink in. So I try to always have a few bouquets of flowers in strategic spots around my home. Spoil yourself a little, too, by adding fresh flowers to your home this summer. They can be a handful of wildflowers from a field, blossoms from your garden, an assortment from the farmers market or florist or a professionally arranged bouquet. Bev, our seasonal designer, arranged these stunning displays to inspire you to fill your home with flower power.
EXPERIMENT WITH NEW FLOWERS
Push yourself outside your comfort zone and try something new. It may be an exotic tropical flower in brilliant colors, funky grasses and seed pods, or a showy single bloom like a huge sunflower. If you have a garden of your own, stroll through and think of what you could snip off and bring in that you haven’t before. Maybe it’s some of that lovely, verdant greenery, like hosta leaves or fern fronds.
PAY TRIBUTE TO YOUR FAVORITE BLOOMS
While I love to pull in all kinds of flowers, I confess I have a few go-to favorites that I always want around my home. It may be cliché, by roses still make me swoon — always have, always will. In recent years, I’ve fallen big time for hydrangea blossoms. I grow them in my garden, so they are always on hand for a quick bouquet. Since I have never mastered the art of arranging fancy floral arrangements, I have to keep mine super simple and easy to execute. I pick vases with narrow openings, trim the flower stems short, and insert just a few blossoms. My bouquets always look simple, and sometimes a bit messy, but it suits me fine.
GET CREATIVE WITH YOUR VASES
Don’t confine yourself to creating arrangements in standard florist vases. You can use all kinds of containers for flowers. How about a pair of ceramic urns brimming over with a mixed bouquet of garden flowers? Jars? Pitchers?
If it can hold water, or conceal a vessel filled with water, it can be a vase. Scout through your china cabinet for some lovely pieces you rarely use, like an old tea pot or celery jar, and put them on display, filled with flowers.
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This column was adapted from Mary Carol Garrity's blog at www.nellhills.com
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