Monday, August 26, 2013

Helpful Tips for Decorating with Faux Flowers

When it comes to decorating my home with flowers fresh blooms are the obvious choice.  But buying fresh cut flowers can be costly and I'm always sad to see them die so quickly.  

I decided to take a walk on the wild side and purchased a selection of artificial flowers yesterday.

With a small budget in mind, I was pleasantly surprised with the great assortment of flowers available at Dollar Tree.







If you choose to buy artificial flowers then I have a few tips to make your flowers appear less fake!  


1. When choosing flowers try to choose flowers that appear realistic and in season.



2. Remove the artificial greenery and replace with fresh filler greens that can be found in your own back yard.



3. When using a clear glass vase fill the vase with water. 



4. Give your flowers a few spritzes of water.  Cut flowers eventually wilt.  The weight of the water will allow each petal to naturally droop.  *Just be sure you don't saturate your flowers with water otherwise the dye from the flowers will run off onto whatever surface you place them on.




My final tip has do with purchasing a vase.  Toothbrush holders make the perfect decorative vase.  They are the perfect size for a small arrangement.  I've wanted a mint julep cup for a long time, but they can be expensive.  While browsing the bath section in Home Goods I came across a toothbrush holder that was very similar to the mint julep cups I'd seen.  Priced at only $5.99 I made my way to the register without a second thought.
   
Nothing beats a live plant, but decorating with artificial flowers can be fun and easy. 

33 comments:

  1. Very pretty! You really can't even tell they are artificial. If my daughter wasn't in the messy stage I would give this a try. I may have to wait a few more years on this one, but I'll definitely remember. Great job as always Brandi:)

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  2. They are very pretty. The little purple ones look so real. Great idea with the toothbrush holder.

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  3. I am not usually a fan of artificial flowers, but your tips might actually let me give them a try! They don't look fake at all!

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  4. Love this I can't ever keep the real ones alive but love how flowers just bring out that extra element in homes.

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  5. they are so beautiful, some even look so real. Thanks for the tips.

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  6. Awesome tips and love the display. I buy fake flowers for primary use as fillers when doing diaper cakes or fillers when boxing up embroidered towels. You post has inspired me.

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  7. Good idea about switching out the fillers! Def didn't think about using toothbrush holders, but totes makes sense.

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  8. I love your tips! My cousin got married this weekend and she used real flowers, not common in the AA community. They were SOOOOO ridiculously beautiful! I was like, man I know cuz spent a ton of money on these arrangements. These tips would be helpful I think bc ya girl just can't give up all that money to a florist!

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  9. Excellent tips Brandi! That water spritz and real leaves trick is genius! Thanks! I have a couple of artificial - I found orchids to be the most un-artificial looking plants because they do last a long time. :-)

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  10. Great tips Brandi, you are so clever!

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  11. very gorgeous arrangements! they don't look artificial at all!

    Delightful Ideas
    Hairclips Giveaway

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  12. Hi Brandi,

    Here in Rio de Janeiro is very difficult to find products so well made ​​that look natural.

    I think all your beautiful and practical examples.

    Hugs!

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  13. Great idea with the toothbrush holders! I never would have thought of that, but it's brilliant :) they have some really cute ones too.

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  14. Great tips! Especially the water drop ones! I love how it allows the flowers to open up more! Thanks for sharing will keep this in mind!

    ► XO • KIMBERLYLUXE

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  15. Great tips! I like the idea of spritzing them with water.
    Nice find on the cup!

    Pam

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  16. Brandi, please come make some flower arrangements for me. For some reason, it takes me forever to make it look decent. Perhaps I am trying to hard. lol Your flower settings are beautiful. :)

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  17. As a Stager I use good quality fakes all the time but do prefer real flowers in my own home.. But many don't mind and your tips are so good! I never thought to wet them and I love the tip about adding real greens with them! Genius girl!!

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  18. I agree with you Brandi! :-) I love real ones too but they can be very expensive and I love what you did with the fake ones (good ideas) :-) I love how you style them in the wood box very much! :-)

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  19. I really love this post, Brandi, all the flowers look so real. I love how you have arranged them all - the wooden box and the 'mint julep' cup are wonderful ideas. xo

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  20. Great ideas. My artificial flowers usually look pretty artificial-lol.

    Hope all is well on your end.

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  21. You offered some terrific tips, I always shy away from artificial because of the "too fake" appearance,but your tips make me have a second thought. Thanks for sharing...

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  22. Great tips! I love the idea of adding real greens to your artificial flowers. Smart!

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  23. Excellent tips. These are artificial? One can hardly tell. Have a fun weekend.

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  24. Thanks for the helpful tips. Your floral arrangement looks wonderful.

    Thanks,
    Helen

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  25. Very pretty!!!
    I agree - the flowers are usually very pretty - it's the greens that look totally fake - by removing them they look real!!! Great idea to replace them with real ones
    XOXO

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  26. great ideas! I love the idea of putting fresh green stems in with the fake flowers!

    Laura
    House Envy

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  27. Great tips! I have a lot of artificial flowers around our house because I can't keep things alive and also like you said they are expensive. Going to try a few of these to spruce things up!! Thanks!

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  28. I think I am going to have to try this. I am not really good a decorating with any kind of flowers, but this really makes me want to try my hand.

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  29. Great tips! I think having flowers just brightens a room. I love the milk glass jug on the sink. I just found one like it for my collection.

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  30. Yes, ma'am! You betcha! Faux flowers are the way to go when you don't have Bill Gates money to spend on the real thing every week! I'm rowin' that same boat with you, and boy, are my arms tired! :-)

    I love to shop Pier 1 and Z Gallerie clearance for realistic faux flowers. They have some really neat stuff. When you get it at 75% - 90% off, it's a blessing...especially if there is a lot of it left!

    Have you ever tried that "fake water"? I used to used it years ago, but after I got tired of the arrangement, it was either go through hell & high water to get the flowers out & clean the vase or just sell it in a garage sale. Neither option appealed to me, so I quit it. Maybe they've advanced. I may try it again.

    Great job, Brandi! Your inspiration paid off!!

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