I was visiting a college roommate on Martha’s Vineyard, hoping for a little distraction after my very bad choices in romance had wreaked havoc on my psyche. I walked into her home deeply demoralized, and my eyes were drawn immediately to a cheerful dozen or so daffodils in a mason jar on her kitchen window sill. The sun was coming through the window, adding a vibrant glow to the flowers. I stopped on the threshold transfixed, my mood somehow lighter.
What sorcery was this? My friend had obviously clipped the daffodils from the yard, where daffodils were growing wild along the side of the house. This had never occurred to me. I thought of flowers in the home as being the dozen roses you received on Valentines Day and that was pretty much it, unless you were going to try to grow a flowering plant in your home like cyclamen or a Christmas Cactus.
A memory stirred, of my favorite childhood heroine Anne of Green Gables bringing in apple blossoms and other foraged flowers into her home. Why had I never done that?
From that day forward, I became a confirmed flower-a-holic. If I ever saw a good deal (i.e., cheap) for flowers I bought them, from grocery stores, street vendors, florists and farmers markets. And I started foraging in my gardens for flowers, leaves, branches — anything I could put in a little bit of water to bring the outside indoors.
5 Reasons to Bring Flowers Into Your Home
Here are 5 reasons to bring flowers into your home today!
1. Flowers make you feel better.
Studies show that bringing a little bit of nature inside has a positive impact on our psyche. The things around us help to shape our mood, so why not use flowers to increase our feelings of wellbeing and happiness?
2. Flowers brighten up your room decor.
From a small nosegay on your bathroom sink, to a Martha Stewart worthy bouquet on your dining room table, flowers make a room more beautiful and welcoming. Here’s a link to a Pinterest Board I curated with lots of ideas and tutorials!
3. Flowers make your home smell nice.
Some flowers smell fresh and soothing like lavender, others smell sweet and rich like roses. Keep a small “mom vase” of scented flowers on your desk for a little extra inspiration.
4. Flowers are an act of self-nurture.
It’s important to be kind to yourself and take care of yourself. For just a few dollars (or less if you pick them from your garden), you can show warmth and affection for yourself and bring a grace note into your life.
5. Because you don’t need a reason!
Life is short enough as it is. Don’t overthink bringing flowers into your home.
5 Tips for Bringing Flowers Into Your Home
So now that you’ve decided you deserve flowers, here are some tips to bring flowers into your home other than buying an arrangement from your local florist.
1. Pick the flowers in your yard!
It’s not too late to plant some wildflowers — or any flowers, if you don’t have any. Spring after the last frost date (Mothers Day in Northern Virginia) is the perfect time to sow wild seeds, to plant bulbs and shrubs, and to purchase annuals and perennial flowers. If you don’t want to grow them yourself, buy flowers on sale and enhance your bouquets with branches and leaves from your yard or your walks.
2. Care for your flowers.
When you bring your flowers home, snip the ends and strip all leaves below the waterline of the base you are using. Change water at least every other day, snipping ends and stripping soaked or limp leaves. Downsize your bouquets and put them in smaller containers as flowers start to fade. You’ll be amazed at how long you can extend one bouquet!
3. Collect a bunch of different sized vases and jars.
Vases and jars in a variety of sizes gives you options! You can pull out all of the lilies from a bundle of flowers and put them in one vase on your desk so you can enjoy the fragrance, and place the rest of them in your kitchen.
If you have smaller bottles and vases, you can create a multitude of arrangements. A single flowering twig in a small bottle can have an impact. You can group bottles together too, or scatter them around your home. Or you can drop one off at your neighbor’s front door!
4. Explore creative alternatives to vases
If it will hold water, you can put flowers in it! I’ve used tins, champagne glasses, teapots and teacups, salt shakers and more. I prefer messy and organic looking arrangements, so I like to give my flowers room to breathe, and let them spill over each other playfully in a vase.
5. Play with color and texture.
Vibrant colors such as red, yellow and orange promote happiness and optimism, soothing colors such as pink, purple and white promote a sense of calm and tranquility.
I hope this gives you some ideas on why it’s important to treat yourself to flowers and what to do with them once you purchase or pick them! Flowers bring so much joy and they cost so little.
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