places i'm finding inspiration- the alternatives

the places i am finding the most inspiration lately have not been in floral pins on pinterest or wedding industry instagram accounts. I do love seeing what other florists are doing and using and how they are innovating with different product, but if i’m honest i come away from the massive intake, far less inspired than i was hoping.

I was dreaming a future home design and dune fencing came to mind. To use it at the fence on a property because I wanted to use something that had that movement and didn’t have the bulk that a traditional fence would have. This had me thinking about design- what elements do i naturally fall into without thinking about the alternatives- The ALTERNATIVES is where i’m finding inspiration.

Here are some of the alternatives i’m inspired by currently:

• a vintage tablecloth as a beach blanket

• a etched high ball glass as a toothbrush holder

• a vase for a base of a lamp

• a leftover tile as a candle base

  Sometimes i need to clear the clutter and wipe the slate clean a bit. letting my mind clear from it’s presets and come into something new. it is a balancing of presets- the things i know work and the design rules that make things impactful and beautiful. But i’m on the hunt to look beyond my “go-to’s” and design with personal first hand revelation.

So how does this inspire me as a florist?

For me its placement and editing.

• A flower you may first think of as a hero flower used as a base of an arrangement and letting other stems shine! like a base of ball dahlias all in one color with large caladium leaves and delicate chocolate cosmos.

• Or cutting off all the leaves of a lily and taking out the yellow centers to create an en masse work of art that is sculptural and formed but also has movement and dimension.

• Or one of my favorite alternatives is to be inspired by plants and how they grow and them mimic that in an arrangement. I love the way some orchids grow with there dense dark green base and then the stems coming up and being a focal- you can create alternative shapes that still follow the rules of design.