Flower Recipe: "Cosmos with Company"

I tried out a recipe from my Flower Recipe book!

My 2 younger kids ended up making arrangements too, but they didn't follow a recipe. :)

The recipe I chose was "Cosmos with Company."

Ingredients:

20 stems of cosmos, assorted colors

5 stems of yarrow

5 stems of tweedia

5 stems of scabiosa

Vessel:

Tall ceramic vase

Okay, I had TONS of cosmos, so no problem there.

I knew I had some yarrow, didn't have either of the other two.

So I looked at the pictures to see what they were used for.

The tweedia had small flowers in a contrasting color to the cosmos.

The scabiosa were taller with bendy stems, sticking out above the arrangement.

Also, I don't own a "tall ceramic vase." Yet. :)

Quart jars would have to do!

I really wanted to experiment, so I planned to make 3 bouquets following this recipe.

The pint-sized jar was for my little buddy, my youngest, who wanted to do it too.

20 stems of cosmos (x 3): check!

As I looked around my flowerbeds, I realized my yarrow was not actually in bloom right now.

So I chose other flowers with a similar shape.

Bouquet 1: A Study in Pink

5 stems of sedum

(+ 1 Echinacea flower with a really short stem)

5 stems each of oregano, mums

I did not take pictures of the intermediate arranging steps.

Maybe next time!

 (The book gives instructions, with photos on how to arrange them.)

A Study in Pink: Finished Bouquet

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[Yes, 3 angles is probably overkill, but I'm using these pictures as a tool to learn and remember what I liked and didn't like.]

Assessment: I liked the colors together, but the sedum overwhelmed the cosmos in this one.

I either needed bigger/more cosmos, or fewer stems of sedum.

Bouquet 2: Ho Hum

5 stems 'Little Lime' hydrangea

5 stems each coreopsis, catmint

Ho Hum: Finished Bouquet

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Assessment: The coreopsis stems were too short for this arrangement! They basically got lost in the end. I liked the airy catmint and the clumps of hydrangea. Though this one is nice, it's also kind of boring. There's nothing that really makes it sparkle.

 (Not that it stopped me from giving it to a friend.)

Bouquet 3: Vivid Lady

 

1 'William Shakespeare' English rose

5 stems guillardia + 3-4 stems zinnias

I was going to just do zinnias, but didn't have enough, so then I cut the guillardia to add to it as well.

I could have done 5 roses probably, (there were enough blooming), but I didn't want them to become the focal point.

5 stems salvia

(By this point my daughter was home and eager to help, too!)

Vivid Lady: Finished Bouquet

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Another view

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Assessment: This one was my favorite of all 3 bouquets.

I thought the orange tones would clash with the pink, but happily, they didn't.

This one also had the biggest cosmos, which I think made a difference.

I gave it to my neighbor right after I had made it!

Just for fun, here's the one my little guy did: just cosmos and oregano.

He would go out, clip one stem at a time, then run it back into the house to put in the jar.

Arranging flowers, the cardio workout version! :)

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So what did I learn overall?

I need more flowers!!

(Ha! Are you surprised?)

I had enough for 5 stems here and there, but not much more than that.

Also, I'm not sure why I feel compelled to name the bouquets, but there it is.

This was so much fun!

Do you like playing with flowers too?

Made any pretty bouquets lately?