Tips on using winter greens to take us beyond "the holidays"
Commentary & photos by Cindi Sutter, Founder & Editor of Spirited Table® - Winter Greens Ideas by Ardith Beveridge, Tastemaker in Residence
The season for flower arranging reaches its peak at the end of each year. But for some of us, we crave something green inside our homes, to counteract all that white outside.
Let winter greens do some heavy lifting for you by providing inexpensive and simple “green space”. Sometimes, like today for example, I quit watering a vase full of roses and greens, because the roses were…well…dead. Big mistake.
Use these ideas to get you through the winter & take your skills beyond the typical Christmas/New Year applications.
- Water fresh arrangements at least once a day.
- Keep fresh designs away from a direct heat source which will dry them out.
- Set your design in a cool area during the time when it is not in use with a plastic bag sealed
- Use Crowning Glory from your local flower shop to keep the needles on longer and the green color.
- Mix winter foliages for color, fragrance and texture.
- Put dropped needles in a pot of softly boiling water with some cinnamon for a lovely fragrance that fills the room
- Use winter greens on the fireplace with permanent botanical garlands and greens to lighten the weight, it also makes it easy to refresh
- Keep all greens away from candles, as the candles burn down, remove more foliage from the design.
- Decorate with lanterns and hurricane globes
- Hang or add fresh branches to an artificial tree, wreath or wall decoration
- Decorate packages with winter greens - (you can use certain greens to decorate your Valentine gift)
- Decorate your mail box
- Replace dried out greens with fresh ones.