Making Faux Flowers Look Less Faux

Artificial flowers arrive flat, compressed and identical, and twenty minutes of work changes them more than the price difference between products.

They Arrive Squashed

Faux florals are packed tightly for shipping, which flattens petals and folds leaves against stems.

Straight out of the box they look exactly like what they are. Nobody photographs them at this stage, which is why the reality is a surprise.

Unpacking them the day they arrive, rather than the week of the event, gives them time to relax.

What to Actually Do

• Bend every side branch outward from the main stem
• Separate leaves so they sit at different angles
• Open petals from the centre outward with your fingers
• Bend stems into gentle curves rather than leaving them straight
• Vary the heights and shapes so no two are identical

Bendable wired stems, of the kind on the roses at floroom.net, are what makes this possible: each stem holds the shape you put it in rather than springing back.

Irregularity Is the Whole Trick

The single most useful principle. Real flowers are not identical, and identical flowers read as artificial from across a room.

Vary the openness of the blooms: some tightly furled, some fully open. Vary the stem lengths. Bend a few stems more than others.

Nothing perfectly symmetrical, nothing at the same height.

Steam Relaxes Fabric Petals

For silk and fabric flowers, a steamer or the steam from a kettle held at a distance relaxes creases and lets petals be reshaped.

Keep it well away from foam and from anything glued, and never apply direct heat to synthetic petals, which melt.

The Tools

Wire cutters that will actually cut a wired stem, floral tape, and a hot glue gun.

Scissors will not cut wire and ruin the scissors. Wire cutters cost very little and save a great deal of frustration.

Tape the Cut Ends

Every cut wired stem leaves a sharp end. Tape over all of them, particularly on anything held or worn.

Work in Daylight

Colour and shape both look different under a lamp.

Do It Early

This is the part that always takes longer than planned.

Keep the Offcuts

Trimmed heads and short stems are exactly what buttonholes, cake flowers and small table details need.

Photograph the Result

Once an arrangement looks right, a photograph is how anybody helping on the day reproduces it.