{fashioned florals} mini wreath place card...

Here's a sweet and simple place card idea for this week’s Fashioned Florals—perfect in time for an Easter brunch, don’t ya think? I’m also jazzed that this requires nothing but scissors or floral shears to put together {not to mention that I rounded up everything up from my yard}! Free is always appreciated, especially when Spring's bounty is in high force here in Texas!

1. Supply time! This week's project literally took me only steps outside my front door to gather up some herbs and wildflowers—including lavender foliage, rosemary, primrose, blooming sage, blue bonnets, ventana, and finally, those stunning orange blossoms from my pomegranate tree.

2. Start with your hardiest branch {it was the pomegranate for me} and any other main blooms you'd like to incorporate. Don't worry about trimming any leaves from the larger branch, you'll want as much foliage as you can get for the wreath.

3. Wrap your branch into a circle by "tying" the loose end around some of the leaves. It stays, I promise! If it doesn't, just keep wrapping that loose end around and around until it sticks.

4. Next, wrap your second bloom {or third, fourth, etc...} around your main wreath, tucking the stems around the leaves to disguise any loose ends. 

5. Once you have a good start, move it onto your plate or place setting. You can then incorporate additional foliage {I used rosemary} around the outer edge, or tuck additional blooms into the mix. 

6. Finally, add in a personalized tag with your guest's name, and curl the paper a touch so that it tucks under the left side of the wreath. Voila! In all, this took me about 10 minutes or less for each place setting, and adds a little jolt of color to an otherwise ho-hum table setting. You could add some hardier herbs for a mini wreath that would look {and smell} delicious! — Liz

 {All photos by Liz for Oh Joy!}

{fashioned florals} a 15-minute flower garland ...

Today, we have the easiest little flower garland you've never made {Or maybe you have?}. Regardless, garlands might seem a little intimidating for those of you who haven't delved into the world of flowers. And this vertical edition takes no more than 15 minutes!

1. Start by gathering your supplies. I had some geranium, rosemary, white astrantia, pink astilbe, hot pink ranunculus, and those giant football mums as the stars of the show. Gather up your scissors, some of your trusty floral wire, twine, embroidery string, or wool to hang everything on.

2. Make your first bunch by twisting a small length of floral wire around some geranium, astilbe, and astrantia to make the sprigs for each bloom. Next thread a short bit of wire through the base of one of your big, beautiful mums—they're going to cover up the greenery bunch's wire, so don't worry about making it perfect!

3. Attach the mums to the base of the small greenery and sprig bunches by twisting your bloom's wire around the bunch. Repeat for the rest of your bunches, and feel free to vary it up! I alternated between the football mum and ranunculus bunches and threaded some single blooms with wire to attach on their own.

4. To finish things up, I would recommend pinning the string to a wall and working from the top to bottom. Starting with your first bunch, tie it to the string by looping it and forming a small knot. I found that this went really quickly as there are a lot of little wires in the back to help give extra traction and keep things sturdy. This would be so easy to reinterpret in so many ways, like adding extra bunches for a fuller look, or repeat the whole strand and create a "curtain" of garlands for a festive gathering. I think this would be perfect for a festive bridal or baby shower! — Liz

 {All photos by Liz for Oh Joy!}

{fashioned florals} a corsage pendant...

Let's change things up, shall we? I've got a fun little twist on wearable flowers that might interest you with nimble fingers and a little imagination! Let's take the usual corsage, but imagine it attached to a chain necklace {that you already own!} to put a little spin on a colorful pendant. Here's how...

You'll need: Three stems of carnations, a pink garden rose {nice and short}, as well as three sprigs of purple astrantia, some rose foliage, 4 to 6 short lengths of light gauge floral wire, and a gold strand from your jewelery collection.

Next, wire the larger blooms by taking a piece of the floral wire {flat and straight} and "thread" it through the bottom of the bloom, until it's positioned with equal amounts of wire on either side. Bend both sides down {bottom two blooms} and then twist the two wires together until they end {like the top two white carnations}. 

Now, with each of the larger blooms now pliable, group them together as you'd like. I took the three carnations together, with the intention of using the garden bloom as the top "finishing" piece. 

Next, attach the astrantia and the foliage by twisting a small length of wire around the new stems as they lay on top of the grouped carnations. There's no need to wire each individual piece. 

Finally, trim the astrantia stems as short as they can go, place the wired rose bloom on top and in the center, and eventually use that longer length of twisted wire to attach to your necklace. Blooms are a lot hardier than you'd think, and this will happily last throughout the day...perhaps for a colorful Sunday brunch outing? — Liz

{All photos by Liz for Oh Joy!}

{fashioned florals} pink and poppy...

While searching for a new dress for an upcoming wedding I'm attending, I came across this See by Chloé dress that was the perfect mix of pretty and dramatic. Knowing that Valentine's Day is just around the corner, I figured this group of stunning pink garden roses, delicious-smelling white sweet peas, Italian poppies, blush ranunculus, and bush ivy from the flower market would be perfect in this pink and punchy arrangement. Set in a low silver plate bowl and photographed against a black backdrop to make the most of the contrast, it makes the everything look straight out of a painting...yes?  — Liz

{left photo from Net-A-Porter, right photo by Liz for Oh Joy!}

{fashioned florals} a bouquet of spring brights...

This piece, "Pollen Shower" by artist Flora Bowley has such an unusual and striking color palette that I knew it would be a fun opportunity to put together something other than my usual color combinations! Heading to the flower market, I bought some dark kale, purple lisianthus, pink astilbe, lavender roses, white agapanthus and ornithogalum, some bright orange ranunculus, and I added some small purple ventana blooms from my garden for the smaller scale. The vibrant purple, pale pink, and orange is such a fun contrast that I decided to send this bouquet onto someone needing an extra pep in their day, tied with some bright blue ribbon! — Liz

{left photo from artforte gallery, right photo by Liz for Oh Joy!}

{fashioned florals} new year's whites...

With the new year comes my inevitable turn to simplicity, and this Long Island cottage's master bedroom looks like a perfect place to rest and rejuvenate. Taking cues from the warm, monochromatic palette of white, creams, black fixtures and a pop of green, I hopped over to the flower market to pick up some white ranunculus, peonies, scabiosa, carnations, hellebores, camelia foliage and privet berries and arranged everything in a slightly-traditional, but loose grouping. Keeping things on the classic edge, I used an silver pitcher to blend seamlessly into that East Coast vibe. — Liz

{left photo from House Beautiful, right photo by Liz for Oh Joy!}

{fashioned florals} orchid brights...

This Jenny Bowers illustration—in fact, a textile design for Roxy—jumped out with its saturated pinks, reds, and purples. There was something undeniably bubbly about it, and I decided it would be a great starting point to use the usual holiday colors, but put a vibrant twist into it! Picking up some seasonal red amaryllis, fuchsia peonies, ranunculus, lavender scabiosa, purple veronica, some sweet peas and some orchids from the flower market, I kept an eye towards keeping like colors together and using gradients to guide the arrangement. A simple silver julep cup adds a touch of sparkle to this little gem! — Liz

{top photo by Peep Show, bottom photo by Liz for Oh Joy!}

{fashioned florals} pomegranates and peonies...

As I stumbled across this strawberry galette recipe from Martha Stewart, I didn't even notice that strawberries are merely a memory of summer...instead, I was struck by the stunning red and green palette. Our current season has some equally beautiful florals and fruits in the same rose-red colorings, and that is exactly what I kept in mind when creating this arrangement. From the flower market I bought some poppies, lemon geranium, lamb's ear, and the pièce de résistance—those red tree peonies! At home I nabbed the last of the pomegranates off of our tree, some passion vine, and a touch of burgundy coleus. I kept things low and overflowing in a brass bowl, and even made use of some poppies centers sans leaves for a quirky touch. A cheerful little bowl of color to start us into the winter season! — Liz

{top photo by Martha Stewart, bottom photo by Liz for Oh Joy!}

{fashioned florals} peonies and pom poms...

After spotting this soft mix of neutral pom poms in Krista's bedroom, I knew that they'd be a perfect ruffly mix to re-make in flower form. I kept the soft palette of creams, pale yellows, and dusty peaches by shopping for some peach and butter yellow garden roses, white ranunculus, cream and peach stock, white amaryllis, dusty miller, and pale green lamb's ear. All assembled in a milk glass vase, the final additions of the winter season's first peonies were the ultimate addition to keep the entire arrangement light and airy—the perfect antidote to any November blues! — Liz

{top photo by Blue Eyed Yonder,  bottom photo by Liz for Oh Joy}

{fashioned florals} a sorbet bouquet...

This ladylike silhouette from Alice + Olivia's Spring 2012 collection just begs for a frilly and feminine garden party bouquet. With the skirt's color palette in mind, I gathered up some peach and butter garden roses, white tulips, peach yarrow, and whimsical craspedia from the store—while adding some mint, clematis leaves, oregano, and white ventana from my garden. As I arranged everything in a clear antique glass vase, I made sure to keep things loose and tumbling, a little romantic and unkept—perfect for a breezy afternoon lunch outdoors. — Liz

{left photo by Style.com,  right photo by Liz for Oh Joy}