How To Select The Best Holiday Floral Arrangement

If you’ve ever found yourself struggling to select a holiday floral arrangement for your table or to gift, you’re not alone! Sometimes, you just can’t envision what the best pick will be. Thanks to our partnership with Teleflora, we have some great tips to get you started!

The first step to choosing a floral arrangement is to follow the simple principles of designs. Understanding the basic shapes for flower arranging can help you choose wisely.

You’ll find a beautiful selection of holiday floral arrangements, (like the Deck The Holly Ornament Bouquet featured in our photos), for everyone on your list. I personally use Teleflora to send my mother flowers each year. I trust they’ll be fresh and bring her joy throughout the season.

There is no doubt that fresh flowers create a special aura in a home. To make the most of what holiday floral arrangements can offer, follow these easy steps:

Things to Consider Before Selecting a Holiday Floral Arrangement

The flowers themselves, the vase or the container, the colors and the style all work together to compliment the room decor and furnishings.  Ask yourself:

1. Is the room traditional or modern?
2. Which colors will complement the decor and furnishing?
3. What size should the arrangement be to give maximum effect?

Once you have these answers, consider the other aspects of arranging flowers.

Principles of Holiday Floral Arrangement Design

The main principles of design are proportion, balance, texture, color and harmony.

Proportion

A flower arrangement is in good proportion when it is the right size for the container. The general rule for the correct proportion is that the flowers and foliage that extend above the top of the container should be roughly double the height of the container.

Balance

Arrangements should give a sense of stability and should not appear lopsided. However, it can be either:

• symmetrical, where both sides are identical or nearly identical
• or asymmetrical where the proportion, though not identical, is in balance.

Texture

Flowers and foliage come in varying textures. Like smooth, rough, shiny, ruffled, glossy, etc. They can be put-together in any combination to make an interesting arrangement. However, care should be taken to see that the flowers and the foliage compliment each other.

Color

The choice of color depends mainly on the background to the arrangement and whether the desire is for a blending or contrasting effect.

Harmony

This is the ultimate goal of flower arranging. The flowers, foliage, container, accessories and design should all blend well and they should also appear as if they ‘belong’.

What Shapes Will Be Best?

Fresh flowers are arranged in many different shapes to suit the occasion, the position of the arrangement, and the container.

The basic shapes are:

• the pyramid shape or the equilateral triangle shape
• the circle
• the crescent or the half moon shape
• the fan shape
• and the right-angled triangle shape (this can either face right or left depending on the location).

The chosen shape dictates the size and shape of the vase or container that has to be used.

Although there is no hard and fast ‘rule’ to holiday floral arrangements, it helps to consider these elements. Knowing the basic principles of design and shape ensures that the flower arrangement you choose is well suited to the room and/or recipient.

Of course, you can toss all the rules to wind too, if you prefer! Sometimes you just fall in love with an arrangement. That’s perfectly acceptable, too!