Christina’s Favorite Flower Tools For A Style-It-Yourself Arrangement

Hey there,

Alas, your online flower delivery (or as we like to call it, a little mid-week pick-me-up) from Farmgirl just arrived at your doorstep. You ordered one of our style-it-yourself single stem varieties, like sunflowers or ranunculus, one of our big boxes of roses, or maybe even our 40-stem Fancy Pants Burlap Wrapped Bouquet (a stunner). You open the box, follow our care tips like your life depends on it, and can’t wait to get your new blooms into a vase and on your table! One thing we get asked over and over is to share our tips around how to keep the arrangement looking fabulous and intact from box to vase. Well, no one knows this better than the head farmgirl herself and absolute flower aficionado, Christina (also known as our founder and CEO!), who has a few secret weapons up her sleeve to make the process easy and efficient. And, you guessed it, we’re sharing them with you! Let’s dive into Christina’s go-to flower tools and why they’re essential to go from bouquet to tabletop vase like a pro (or for our more seasoned flower lovers, designing your own flower arrangements).

First thing’s first: unbox and prep your flowers.

Before we get into Christina’s faves, there’s a small bit of pre-work needed to get your fresh flower delivery vase ready. First, unbox your flower bouquet or arrangement and dispose of the packaging. Give your stems a quick trim (at least ½ an inch!) at a 45-degree angle to help those stems soak up as much water as they can once you drop them into your vase of fresh water. Now is also a good time to process off (or remove) any excess foliage or leaves that sit lower on your stems and may fall below the water line. The goal here is to prevent any leaves or flower petals from sitting in the vase water so bacteria doesn’t grow quite as fast. Now that your blooms have been given a fresh trim, they’re ready for their vase-up!

Nourish those blooms (feat. Arber Fresh Cut Flower Food)!

First up on our list is something Christina swears by and loves to use to help keep flowers fresher, longer: Arber Fresh Cut Flower Food! Think of this as the secret sauce that keeps your flowers nourished and thriving even after having used up the packet of flower food included in your online flower delivery (…or tossing it into your never-ending junk drawer). This magical mix helps balance the pH levels in the water, reducing bacteria and extending the life of your blooms. Just like we need our morning coffee (do we!), flowers need their daily dose of nutrients and this flower food delivers just that. Simply add it to your vase water and watch your flowers stay vibrant and fresh for days on end.

Our Holy Grail: Chikamasa Clippers

Christina’s favorite flower stem clippers for a clean cut? If you’ve followed Farmgirl for any amount of time, you’re sure to have heard us talk about these beauts – a total tool of the trade that we simply couldn’t live without, Chikamasa Clippers. These Japanese-made clippers are sharp, precise, and perfect for trimming stems at a 45-degree angle with ease. Plus, they’re super comfortable to use, so your hands will thank you during those marathon flower arranging sessions. Why trim at an angle? This helps increase the surface area for water absorption, ensuring your flowers stay hydrated and happy.

Dealing with roses? Consider this Rose Stripper/Thorn Remover tool your new BFF.

Roses are beautiful but those thorns? We’d be lying if we said they were our favorite part of designing arrangements after having been stuck a time or two (…or three or four). Enter our favorite Rose Stripper/Thorn Remover Tool. This handy thing quickly and safely removes thorns and leaves from rose stems (or any stem that feel a bit prickly!), making your arranging process a thorn-free breeze. No more pricked fingers or damaged petals – just smooth, clean stems ready to be designed, displayed, and admired, which is a must when we’re on the floor processing roses for your bouquets.

Design like a pro with chicken wire (yes, you read that right) and flower tape!

You might be wondering, what’s chicken wire doing in a flower toolkit? Well, chicken wire is a great tool to help create a sturdy, reusable structure inside the vase to design your flower arrangement. This helps hold the flowers in place, allowing for more creative and stable arrangements and much more control over the end result. It’s like having a floral scaffolding that keeps everything exactly where you want it, even if your arranging skills are a bit rusty (or if this is your first time!). Pro tip! Find a green colored chicken wire, like this Mklsit Chicken Wire, so it helps blend in with the stems of the arrangement. We also recommend avoiding any clear vases if you can to avoid seeing the chicken wire from lower angles.

We also love to use flower tape (about 1⁄2 an inch thick) to create a similar secured-in-vase situation, but this time you’ll be laying the tape across the top of the vase rather than within. Just be careful not to overlap the tape over the sides of the vase so you don’t see it. We love this Prudiut Green Floral Tape and Beadnova Floral Tape, both perfect for securing stems and creating vase arrangements that hold together beautifully. They’re strong and, because of their green color (trust us, it’s worth seeking out!) blends pretty seamlessly with the fresh flower stems and greenery.

Ready to style it yourself? Show us your vase!

Whether you’re a seasoned pro or just starting out, these tools will help you create stunning, long-lasting arrangements that are easy to create. So next time you get a delivery of farm fresh flowers, grab your tools from Christina’s list of flower essentials and get to work.

Ready to put these tips to the test? Schedule an online flower delivery with one of our signature burlap-wrapped bouquets or single stem varieties and show us your box-to-vase skills. Don’t forget to tag us on Instagram with @farmgirlflowers or #FGFLove.

xx,

Team Farmgirl