How to Shop for Faux Flowers

Hi friends! Today we're talking about decorating on a budget. If you're like me you like to change things out with the season and that can get costly over time so I'm here today to show you a way to maximize your hard earned dollar but still create a beautiful warm and inviting home.

How to get the look for less? Its easy! Just a little imagination and know-how is all you need!

I have been looking for pretty floral pieces to update my home but decent floral can be pricey, and rightfully so. There really is a difference between a quality faux floral and the cheap retail stuff BUT you can find some nice faux flowers if you know what to look for.

Here are my top four tips for picking out inexpensive faux floral:

1. Shape & Size:
Faux flowers should be shaped in the same manner as the real flower.
Normally manufacturers of the mass retail version have the petals too widely spaced and the stems and leaves are usually not shaped correctly either, and the worst is if size is not quite right. Often times bulkier flowers like hydrangeas or lilacs will not be as full as the real deal simply because they are cheaper and the manufacturer is trying to keep costs down, and when they do that.....boy does it show!

2. Color:
Faux flowers should be the same color as the actual flowers. I can't stand when I go shopping for faux flowers and see a flower in several different colors that is not natural to the real flower, or they use one color and there is no variation. In nature, real flowers have dimension and light or dark spaces on them. They are not one flat color so your faux version shouldn't be either!

3. Texture:
Faux flowers should have the same texture as the real thing. For instance, lets talk faux tulips. The stem and foliage on a real tulip is thick and kind of waxy or rubbery feeling. Faux tulips should be the same, but most of the times the cheaper versions feel nothing like the real thing. The cheaper retailers use a standard material for the foliage as they use on other flowers and it is nothing like the real thing. Often times it feels like fabric and is matte with no sheen. The foliage on a real tulip is thick and waxy thus reflects light, and so should the faux version.

4. Movement:
I bet this is one tip you weren't expecting. Movement! Real flowers droop a little, have irregular petal shapes and move with the wind. Many cheap faux flowers are stiff and do not lean or hold themselves like their real versions do. A qualify faux flower should react similarly as the real flower when put in a vase or laid on a table. The petals should droop or land accordingly and not look stiff or posed.


Here is a floral piece I picked up a WM for $3 dollars. I separated it and made two arrangements with it.
Not bad for $3 bucks!

I cut three stems and put them in a flower frog I bought from a thrift store a long time ago.

And then took the other three stems and put them in this cute mini-hanging basket by my front door.

You do not have to spend a lot to have beautiful faux floral, you just have to know what to look for, so I hope you enjoy these tips and can keep them in mind the next time you are shopping.

Jennifer


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