Flowers for your house

I love flowers! There's nothing like a bouquet to brighten up your table, mantle, or desk. My husband picks out excellent flowers for special occasions.

For our first anniversary, he bought a replica of my bouquet.

For as many times as Chris surprises me with flowers, there are times when you just want something fresh and nice smelling to make your house a happy place.. And you don't always want to spend too much money on a bouquet. Here are a few tips for flower buying and arranging.

                              

Ask florists about weekly specials. At my nearest flower shop, if you arrive after 1 p.m. on Saturdays, loose stems are 1/2 off. I got this bouquet for about $7 last October. It added a nice pop of color to my entry table and the bonus was that I could choose the flowers myself!     

                        

Bouquets with alstromeria (the orange ones above) and daisies tend to be cheaper and daisies last a long time!

                 

This week I bought a $5 bouquet of white daisy poms with about 12 stems. I divided it up into smaller vases which I placed around the house.The fresh white color is so nice!

I cut the flowers so they would pop out just over the edge of the vase. It makes the bouquets look bigger.

Finally, I used new white flowers to freshen up a bouquet I got late last week from my CSA. Those flowers were looking kind of rough, but a few white ones perked up this grouping by my kitchen sink.

That's it! It's OK to spend $5 on yourself, even if you're on a budget, to give yourself a reason to smile as you walk through your house. Life's too short not to smile!