Having fresh flower arrangements in your home can be a beautiful and warm element of your decor, but it might not always be possible to have bright blooms year-round unless you happen to own a greenhouse that’s home to many flowers. Since that’s not most of us, alternatives to a weekly fresh flower delivery can be an important part of decorating your home or even for your wedding.
If you love the vibe of fresh-cut arrangements but can’t have them all the time, don’t worry, we have you covered. There are many alternatives to fresh flowers that can bring that same natural element into your home. Whether you go with dried grasses, silk flowers, or maybe flowering plants, you have options!
Why Go Flower-Free?
Aside from having to order or pick up flowers and make an arrangement each week, there are many reasons why you might want to look into alternatives to fresh flower arrangements. Here are just a few of our top reasons:
Allergies
Having fresh flowers regularly is not always something everyone can do — if you’re a sufferer of grass, plant, pollen, or flower allergies, you know what we mean.
Some flowers like asters and daisies are particular cult tips for causing allergies, but even flowers that don’t usually bother you outside might cause an allergic reaction inside. Indoors, pollen is concentrated in a smaller area and builds up faster, which might cause a reaction that you don’t have outside. With some outside-of-the-box thinking, you can create allergy-friendly home decor.
A Life That Isn’t Flower-Friendly
If your life just isn’t conducive to having fresh flowers in your home, don’t worry. A black thumb, crazy pets, or small children doesn’t need to stop you from having lots of greenery in your home. Dried branches, palm spear fans, and other preserved plants can provide that earthy element without the danger of having an expensive flower arrangement destroyed. With some time to gather the right materials and get your DIY on, you can put together something durable, creative, and customized to your space.
Tips abound for creating decor pieces that are functional and durable — read on for inspiration on creating beautiful pieces that will stand up to your life!
Sustainability
If you’re putting more emphasis on having an eco-friendly/sustainable lifestyle, having fresh flowers at home as décor or for events is likely something you’re less than keen on. Using tips for sustainable or eco-friendly flower decor means you can help the planet by not generating waste, minimizing pesticides, water, and the fuel used for international/local shipping, etc.
Many fresh-cut flowers take seasons to grow, nourish, and harvest. The time and care that goes into them is admirable, but it does take its toll on the environment. In addition to the water it takes to sustain flowers for the months it takes them to get to maturity, there is the energy to power greenhouses, refrigerate the cut blooms so that they don’t open too quickly, and fuel to ship them to suppliers and finally deliver them to their final home. That’s a lot of steps and energy expenditure to bring a bouquet of roses to your door!
Creating a decor piece with dried grasses and reused materials allows you to upcycle pieces for which you might otherwise haven’t had further use. This helps keep unnecessary items out of landfills and gives you a chance to flex your creative, DIY prowess by piecing together some easy-to-find items into an entirely new home decor item!
Cost Savings
If you’re planning or have planned a wedding or an event with a tight budget, you’ve probably let out an audible gasp when you’ve been on the receiving end of an email containing a quote for flower arrangements. Fresh flowers are expensive, mainly for the reasons we outlined above — it costs a lot to get those flowers to you.
If you’ve lost your breath from a wildly expensive quote for event flowers, you’re not alone. For that reason, there are some creative and visually impressive alternate options below for you to consider instead of gritting your teeth and forking over thousands of dollars for fresh flowers.
Stay On-Trend With Dried Grasses & Fresh Flower Alternatives
Don’t think that being bereft of fresh flowers will mean your space will be lifeless and dull. There are many options you have to bring that same fresh-cut flower vibe to your home without having the cost and sustainability issues.
Fabric Flowers
Finding other visually appealing options for fresh flower arrangements has a side benefit – you’ll be totally on-trend. The interior design of late has seen tons of dried plants like pampas grass, dried wheat, cotton stems, billy buttons, and eucalyptus.
Fresh flowers will always have their place, but on a daily basis, these more sustainable and cost-effective options are perfect for bringing a warm element of nature into your home design. If you think that pampas grasses, dried wheat, and other preserved plants don’t quite have the cheerful brightness that fresh flowers do, consider silk flowers.
Wait, don’t leave yet! There are classy options for silk flowers that don’t invoke images of dusty, faded fake flowers with frayed edges and obviously plastic stems. Modern silk flowers are hyper-realistic — no fake dewdrops made of hot glue here. Sure, you can still find cheap ones that will look just that — cheap. But spend what you would on a bouquet of fresh-cut flowers on silk ones, and you’ll see what we mean. The level of quality has come a long way over the past decade, and you can put together an excellent arrangement for a song.
The trick to keeping your decor looking fresh with silk flower arrangements is not falling into the trap of having them out for too long. You would typically refresh a fresh-cut arrangement weekly, and while you don’t need to do that quite so often with silk flowers, you shouldn’t let them stay out in your rooms for months on end. When you put your arrangements together, plan to make at least three different ones. That way, you can rotate between them, keeping things looking new and fresh. Once you’re tired of those arrangements, mix and match your bouquets to make entirely new ones!
Dried Grasses
Pampas grass, wheat, and bunny tail grass don’t need to be rotated out. These pieces are dried and therefore not expected to be fresh. This is in contrast to silk flowers which are made to simulate fresh-cut flowers, so to keep up the image, you should rotate them frequently.
Pampas grass has been a trendy option in the past year. Most climates can accommodate outdoor pampas grass. When the growing season ends, pampas grass naturally needs to be cut to maintain the plant’s health. At that time, you can harvest the pampas grass to dry and use for interior decor.
Many of the larger dried grasses are quite tall and need to live in places that can accommodate their height. Think corners behind furniture in large vases or containers and sit on stands for extra height. You want these types of grasses to be feature elements in your room, and that means getting them up high. The bonus to elevating these ethereally dreamy grasses is that it puts them out of range of tiny hands, paws, and curious puppy mouths!
Dried Flowers
Dried flowers are gaining popularity nowadays. This is a form of flower preservation, where the flower’s shape and beauty are conserved to be used for events, home decoration, or even gifts.
Dried flowers are known for their longevity. They stay in good shape for a year and when colored, they can last up to two years. Fresh flowers only last up to ten days in compression. As a result, dried flowers can be used to make a long-lasting bouquet and arrangement.
Is also unnecessary to water dried flowers, they are the way to go for flower enthusiasts who don’t feel like they can take care of nature properly.
Fresh flowers must be prepared on the same day because they would wither and die. Because dried flowers have undergone a drying process, dried flowers will remain natural and attractive throughout an event or as long as you keep them in your house.
Is it possible to dry flowers at home? Yes, it is, you can find a lot of information on how to or even go to places where they save you ll of that time and sells you already dried flowers.
Give These Trendy Options A Try:
- Dried wheat
- Dried branches
- Pampas grass
- Bunny tail grass
- Billy buttons
- Palm spear fan
- Eucalyptus
- Fabric flowers
- Dried flowers
Flowers By Room
If you love eucalyptus in your bedroom and pampas grass in your kitchen, go with what you love — do you! Below are some suggestions for what types of fresh-cut flower alternatives tend to work well in each room but what you love is what you’ll love in your home.
Kitchen – A kitchen is a classic place for fresh flowers, and you can keep up that cheerful tradition with silk flower arrangements.
Living Room – Tall dried plants like palm spear fans work great in the living room space, where often you’re looking for a statement piece that pulls the room together.
Bathroom – Another excellent spot for fabric flowers. Small arrangements on your bathroom counter bring an element of sophistication to your restroom. Bonus if you put them in a glass vase and remember to refresh the water!
Bedroom – Pampas grass creates a dreamy, ethereal look that is perfect for bedrooms. Let this floaty plant soothe you off to sleep with its rustic charm.
If you’re a flower person, take a minute to think about where you could work in some of these options to your life, you can make a minor daily adjustment and create a significant change. These fresh flower alternatives are also great for your wedding. They can give your wedding a different, charming vibe and are often also budget-friendly for your wedding. Whether you want to make that life edit for environmental reasons or reduce allergens in your home, the options above will help you reduce your fresh-flower purchases while finding them equally beautiful.
