Ariella’s inspiration: “I am a fool for flowers that shade from one color to another in a single blossom. A good example of this is the marvelous black-eyed anemone, pictured here, that shades from pale pink to purple to white. The contrast of the black center with such soft petal colors is startling. Once I determined this would be my focal flower, I searched for a worthy complement, finding it in the pinkish-white blossoms and leggy vines of Clematis armandii. These two are perfect foils for a footed vase: The anemones pop out from the center, while the clematis wanders horizontally, adding drama to the presentation.”
Tools & Materials
- Tall white-footed vase
- Flower frog Floral putty
- 8 white butterfly ranunculus
- 5 pale-yellow ranunculus
- 7 yellow mustard flower stems
- 6 Armand clematis vines
- 8 black-eyed, soft-purple-pink-and-white anemones
Step-By-Step Instructions
1 | Secure the flower frog to the bottom of the vase with floral putty. Fill the vase three-quarters full with water.
2| Trim clematis vines and arrange horizontally as a base layer. Cut some vines short so a few clematis blossoms concentrate toward the center, as they do here on the left of the photo.
3 | Trim and add the large anemones. The most dramatic should hold center stage in your vase, next to the shorter branches of clematis. Others can be trimmed slightly longer to add an airy quality to the mix.
4| Trim and add the butterfly ranunculus. Place some flowers low to hang over the edge of the vase; cut others longer so they curve out from the center of the vase. This enhances the floating quality of the entire arrangement.
5| Trim and add pale yellow ranunculus, which should be used for a soft contrast to the white and purple mix of the other flowers. Place them deep into the vase. I use only a few of these, mostly to add an element of yellow, which will be picked up by the smaller blossoms of yellow mustard.
6| Trim and add sprigs of yellow mustard flowers, filling in the open areas. These are flutter flowers. Some mustard flowers should hang over the vase; some should flutter above the other flowers.
ALTERNATE FLOWERS
Use branches of crabapple or pear blossoms instead of clematis. Trade anemones for pale purple tulips. Try narcissus or abutilon for smaller, white anemones and snip short branches of spirea to replace the mustard blossoms.
By Ariella Chezar | Photography by Erin Kunkel
Reprinted from Seasonal Flower Arranging: Fill Your Home with Blooms, Branches, and Foraged Materials All Year Round. Copyright ©2019 by Ariella Chezar. Photographs Copyright ©2019 by Erin Kunkel. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC.