How to Pick and Care for Flowers

“Buy yourself flowers, simply because they’re beautiful and you deserve beauty in your life.” —Karen Salmansohn

Isn’t that quote itself beautiful? Ah, it gets me so excited to talk about today’s topic: flowers!

I’ll say it, flowers are something that every home needs. Every home needs the life and beauty that flowers bring to any room they’re in. It’s remarkable how a vase of flowers can change the mood of a room (and your own mood!) 

When I know it’s time for new flowers, it feels like I’m doing an entire apartment reset  (sorta like how it feels to put clean sheets on your bed). It brings new life into your home, a new vibe, and a new area to decorate (literally all of my favorite things). 

When we go shopping for our flowers, we regularly go to Butterfield on the Upper East Side. Their flowers are high quality and simply gorgeous. We also love the Flower District here and there (it’s a good stop to get the most bang for your buck!) And don’t think we aren’t going to mention Trader Joe’s flowers; that’s a favorite, budget-friendly spot we love to grab some as well.

And, listen, we aren’t going to try to complicate the fun and relaxing act of selecting flowers. However, we all know that it can sometimes be difficult to figure out what type of flowers fit what you’re looking for and, let’s be honest, how to keep them alive for as long as possible. 

So, today, we are going to give you all some advice and tips that work for us when it comes to picking and caring for our flowers. Let’s dive right in, shall we?!

1. Starting with a vision

On most days when we plan to grab flowers, this is a crucial part of the process. There are some days that we notice some flowers and will grab them without prior knowledge that we were going to purchase them. But, most of the time, we like to start with a vision. And what that means for us can be a wide array of things at different points of time. 

Depending on our mood, season, and current aesthetic of our home—we will shape our choice around those factors. Somedays, when I feel our apartment needs some color, I’ll grab something with a pop of color. Or if I feel a certain corner of our apartment needs some life and exuberance, I’ll grab something more eccentric and lively. Or if we just want a little touch of something small, I’ll go for something more understated. It depends on multiple factors.

2. Searching for inspiration

This somewhat ties in with what I mentioned above, but some days I need (and want) inspiration from others. I’m no florist by any means, so putting together a beautiful and cohesive arrangement is something I have to do a lil’ research on beforehand. It is definitely a hard task to be able to put an arrangement together by simply eyeballing it, so I like to look around a bit sometimes until I find something that I’m intrigued by. I find inspiration everywhere—Instagram, Pinterest, magazines, and simple research from ole’ reliable, Ms. Google.

3. Look around your home for inspiration

This also very much ties in with both of the aforementioned bullet points, but looking around your home for spaces that may need some extra TLC can be extremely beneficial in this process. Are you wanting to fill that corner that feels a little bland? Have you been trying out a few different decor pieces on that hallway table and nothing seems to look the way you want it? Are you looking around your living room and feel like something’s missing? Does your bathroom feel sterile and need some life in it? Grab yourself some flowers and an ornate vase and I almost guarantee it’ll help whatever space you’re looking to work on. Additionally, you can tie in the colors in whatever room you choose to place them. It will make your space feel more intentional, connected, and pull together your color scheme. It will instantly tie together and elevate your home!

4. Where to buy

I think, with a lot of things, you get what you pay for. However, sometimes, with flowers, you can get really lucky and find some beauties for a great cost! Anywhere from Trader Joes, Walmart, Lowes, and Home Depot—you can find amazing flowers. You can also find beautiful flowers on the streets of New York City at a bodega or at your local florist. Truly, it is completely up to you and what budget you are looking for! 

5. Putting together the arrangement

Once you’ve purchased your flowers, this is where Pinterest, YouTube, and the internet really come in handy. I like to watch tutorials of people explaining their process in which they do their arrangements, why certain flowers/colors look better placed one way and not the other, and the elements of symmetry and asymmetry. However, there isn’t a wrong way to do it! If it makes you happy to put together roses and aloe leaves, then by all means! Do whatever makes you happy. I’m just speaking from the standpoint of trying to place things in an order that makes the exact piece stand out in the most harmonious way possible. 

6. Caring for your flowers

Now that you’ve got together your beauties, it’s time to make sure you can keep them alive for a while! Every flower is different and has a different life span, but I’ll tell you what works best for us. First, we make sure our vases are clean with no residue from a previous arrangement. We find it safest to change the water in the vases everyday and make sure that we put cold water in them. Regardless of where I place the flowers in our home, I also try to make sure they get a little sunlight throughout the day. If I have an arrangement back in our dimly lit bathroom, I’ll bring them to our living room windows to make sure they receive some love. If the flowers come with it, I’ll add the flower food to the vase as well. And truly, I cross my fingers from here on out!

We hope this helps you in some way! Also, if you have any tips or tricks, please feel free to share them with us!