Three Easy Tips to Help You with Floral Design

When it comes to floral design, all of us are continually growing and learning. And while those of us who have been doing this for a while can produce a very consistent and repetitive result, when you’re first starting out it can be difficult to achieve good design consistently.

While the basics of floral design are important to know (It’s not advisable to attempt an asymmetrical compote arrangement if you haven’t mastered the mason jar arrangement) and it may take a while to develop the eye for certain designs, there are also a couple tips that I’ve learned over the years to help ensure that your designs are consistently good.

tip #1 - Take a photograph out in the field

Sometimes it can be difficult to think about what to combine with certain flowers. Although color and seasonality are always good guidelines, some of the best inspiration for us have come from seeing flowers growing together out in the field.

For instance, at one point while out and harvesting I saw that echinacea and a volunteer cosmos ‘Dazzler’ were growing together. Although I wouldn’t usually have thought of designing with the two of them together, the bright pink of the echinacea and the cranberry-red of the cosmos really stood out in the evening light. It’s one of my favorite combinations now, and all because of a random cosmos plant reseeding into the area!

It may help to to take some time and observe the way that certain materials are growing out in the field too. I noticed the other day that the upright spires of vitex, agastache and salvias were all of similar shape and texture and in soft purples, pinks and blues respectively - perfectly suited for a beautifully airy and soft-colored arrangement.

This is particularly good for understanding the form and shape and lines of materials - although apple mint is generally thought of and used just as a foliage, it can also be utilized as a vertical or spire-like material when flowering. I wouldn’t have thought of it unless I had seen it out in the field (see the photo below) as well as having its vertical nature repeated by the upright form of the echinacea.

In essence, if it looks good out in the field, thee is a high chance it will work in the vase as well!

Taking inspiration from the field - the soft silvery flowerheads (and soft silvery-green leaves) of applemint growing in the foreground pairs well with the pink and orange echinacea in the background

tip #2 - Take a photograph of your arrangement

This is the most simple, and often easiest way to assess your arrangement.

Just by stepping back and taking a photograph, you can catch a lot of errors that you might not see when you’re stuck in the weeds (so to speak).

It’s amazing just how glaring some of those mistakes can be! I’ve caught broken or floppy stems, giant “holes in the middle of the arrangement, flowers arranged to look like a face, and so on.

By taking a look at your arrangement in digital format, you are able to see it in a new light. And especially if you’re looking to post it to social media, you will be able to see exactly what your followers are going to see. Best to take a look and make sure it is what you are envisioning!

Note that the photo doesn’t even have to be professional quality. A quick snap with your phone should be sufficient, and it’s something that you can just delete later.

I liked the look of it initially up close, but after taking this photo realized that it was far too loosely arranged. I also didn’t like the abundance of “stem” showing - I need to tighten up the materials.

Pulled together more, so it’s better. But now you can see the right side of the arrangement is much more full compared to the left side - and not in a good way.

Now it’s to a point where I am reasonably happy with it

tip #3 - Take a black and white photograph of your arrangement

This is a technique that we learned from garden design - if you take away the colors, suddenly the structure (or lack thereof) becomes very apparent.

Without the distraction of color (as lovely as it is) you’re better able to pay attention to the shape and form and texture and rhythm of the arrangement. Like some sort of magical lens, it allows you to see gaps or deficiencies in your design.

In particular, light or white colored flowers really pop - one of the reasons why pollinators and insects and humans are so drawn to them - so it can be easy to se eif you have too many or not enough in your design.

In addition, you’re better able to see the texture and the patterns of your design. Perhaps your design is all fluffy petals and not enough fine-textured filler or seedheads to add variety, making a very boring arrangement visually? Or perhaps your design has too many vertical elements and looks like a throne of swords when you look at it in greyscale.

This is one of my favorite tips due to just how powerful it is - it really just helps you to see your design clearly!

The black and white version of the photograph above. The light colored flowers - cosmos and the acidanthera - suddenly stand out very prominently, lit up like beacons in the arrangement. I can also see that there is a “hole” in the lower left side of the arrangement where ideally another light-colored flower should go.
I can also see that there is excellent rhythm as far as repetition of texture goes - interestingly enough, I have spaced out the umbellifer-shaped flowers (the caraway, daucus, ammi and the achillea) almost uniformly throughout the arrangement.

I hope this helps you with your designing

I’m usually a bit neurotic when it comes to floral design, and I find that I get into my own head a lot. These tips have helped me look at my designs a bit more objectively and to improve where needed (and to leave it alone when it’s good enough!)

Just using these tips can really help you improve your design very quickly, and I think that it just really helps by allowing you to see your designs in a different way.

If you have any questions, please leave a comment below! We also have a floral design eBook included in the flower farmer eBook bundle complete with awesome illustrations like the ones below if you’re wanting to learn the basics of arranging with flowers.