It took me three or four tries to get this project done. I tried with grocery store flowers, but I couldn't get enough for the piece at a reasonable price. The same thing happened at the farmer's market. But recently, a flower farm near me opened their U-Pick schedule, and I was able to get it done the rate I got was $65 for however many flowers you can fit in a 5gal bucket. And I fit a LOT.

Spring Centerpiece - image 1 - student project

Because I didn't know what types of flowers would be there, I couldn't plan everything out in advance. So, upon arrival, I looked at what flowers there were the most of that were a mostly neutral palette. They had a lot of brightly colored flowers, so it was tricky finding something more neutral, but I found one that there was plenty of and chose those in white and blush. Then, for the rest of the flowers, I just aimed for sunset hues. I considered that I didn't know what length I would need them at, so I picked them as long as I could. I removed the majority of the leaves there at the flower farm, but left some on toward the tops, since I knew I'd want some greenery.

Spring Centerpiece - image 2 - student project

By the time we got home, the orange cosmos I'd fallen in love with had mostly wilted, so I was worried I wouldn't be able to use them I definitely ran into issues with not having enough of certain types of flowers, but tried to just keep them in loose clusters to follow the directions of the course. I also started with the base, creating a slight peaks/valley structure, then built it out from there. I finished late at night, so I waited until morning to take most of the pictures and then discovered that one of my snapdragons wasn't actually in the water so I cut it again and out it back into water. I'm hoping it'll perk back up. We'll see.

Spring Centerpiece - image 4 - student project

At the end of this process, I'm really happy with the product I made. I sent a picture to my mom and she asked if my husband had bought it for me, so I think it must look alright lol. I love how the yellows and oranges are brightening up my house. I hope it'll last a while, but even if it doesn't, I feel like it was time and money well spent.

Spring Centerpiece - image 5 - student project

If I could do anything differently, I would have checked my flower bucket before leaving to make sure I had more than 5 of each flower type, just in case. And I would have grabbed more cosmos that hadn't been out in the heat as long Now I know that can happen, so I wouldn't let that happen again. I would also purchase the right type of tape, because cutting clear packing tape in half to secure the chicken wire was a pain in the butt.

Spring Centerpiece - image 7 - student project

I would maintain the brighter-than-planned color choices. Right now, in southwest Florida, it's pretty hot despite the fact that summer doesn't officially start for a while, so the bright colors with a heavy pink focus seem to reflect the season well. They remind this teacher that the school year is almost over and summer is coming soon!! I also wound up liking the crystal bowl I thrifted. I wanted something opaque to hide the chicken wire, but the design cuts on the crystal hide it well. Overall, I'm really happy with how it turned out and would absolutely do it again.

Spring Centerpiece - image 9 - student project

Chelsea Torregrosa

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