Flower arranging..beginner

Hi friends.

Tis the season around my house.   County fair season that is.

I love everything about our county fair.  I grew up on a farm with 6 brothers and one sister.  We spent our summers working on projects and getting them ready for the fair.

Now a days, I don't have any 4-H projects but I still like to be involved.

I love taking a few projects of my own every year and this year it was flower arranging.

My carnation tea-pot above is filled with mini carnations and baby's breath.

I found this cute tea-pot discounted down to only $2.  

Tea-pots are such a great vessel for arranging in.

Plus our fair has a couple of categories for them.

Polly put the kettle on, I believe it's called.

I used this farmhouse looking tea-pot for my late summer/autumn arrangement.

I will use this for a centerpiece on dining table when early Autumn rolls around.

I love doing wildflowers although I find them a bit of a challenge.

First of course you need to get out and pick them.  That's not hard for me although I have been known to keep peaking over my shoulder when I venture a little farther into the woods.

And here's why!

I took this picture of him late last June.  He had just passed in front of me about a mile from our home.   Needless to say, I am a bit watchful when I head around the wooded areas.

My final arrangement is one I created for Autumn.

The category at the fair is called bird watch, and you need to incorporate a bird of some kind into your arrangement.

I chose a pheasant that I had in my fall stash.

I bought this inexpensive wire container for a couple of bucks.

I then lined it with burlap and added a ribbon of sunflowers tied to one side of the handle.

Now for a few tips I've learned from the judges over the years.

 1.  When you are arranging your flowers, make sure the tallest point of your arrangement is one and half times the height of your container.

2.  Make sure you remove all the leaves that would be inside your water line.

Leaving them will contaminate your water and also drain moisture from your blooms.

3.  Use warm water not cold inside your vessel.  Make sure to make a new cut after bringing your flowers home and then fill your container with warm not cool water.

4.  I use a foam soaked in water for fresh flowers.  I like how it holds moisture and

creates a nice firm base to work with.

With silk or dried flowers I use the Styrofoam rounds or half moons.

5.  Try to think outside the box when creating an arrangement and don't be afraid to pull it apart and start over.  I tend to do that many times.

I am happy to report I received two blue's, two red's and one outstanding ribbon this year.

Have a great week friends,

Cindy

I am joining:

Coastal Charm for Nifty Thrifty Tuesday

Between Naps on the Porch for Met. Monday

The Scoop @ Confessions of a Plate Addict

Inspire me Tuesday @ A Stroll thru Life

Tips and Tutorials @ Stone Gable