How top London florists do their Christmas flowers
Christmas decorations are essential to getting the festive season underway, and here at House & Garden we're particularly keen on decorating with foliage and flowers. It creates a natural, organic aesthetic that's an excellent antidote to all the tinsel and glitter of a modern Christmas (although we can't deny we love that too). Evergreen arrangements and those that use seasonal winter flowers such as ranunculus and cyclamens, are particularly lovely, and the use of dried flowers and fruits to substitute for expensive imported blooms works beautifully at this time of year.
We've asked three of our favourite London florists to create arrangements of Christmas flowers for us, with lists of plants and how-tos to make it easy to recreate them at home.
Line T Klein1/10Katie Smyth and Terri Chandler
Having started a book-and-bunch delivery service in 2016, the co-founders of Worm now specialise in creating dramatic arrangements. weareworm.com
"We are both from the south of Ireland, near the sea, and I believe we are influenced by that wild, natural aesthetic. At Christmas, we think it is important to stay true to the style you favour during the year, and not lose your personality to the traditional elements.
One of the biggest challenges for city dwellers is space, so we are always trying to find alternatives to the traditional tree without sacrificing the sense of nostalgia. We wanted these decorations to be forest-like and still have the scent of Christmas. The base for the wall decorations is chicken wire, which we curled into an L shape to fit the corners of the windows, then secured to fixtures using cable ties. Flowers and foliage can then be threaded through the base, using lichen to fill any gaps. Most foliage lasts well out of water, but for fresh flowers you need to use water tubes. This arrangement should last a couple of weeks.
The wreath follows the style of the wall decorations, without the fresh flowers. The base is a wisteria vine we twisted into a circle and then secured with wire. The beauty of the wreath is that the base can be made to any size and reused year-round by changing the foliage according to whatever is in season.
What we used for wall hangings and the wreath
Rose hips, dried asparagus, euphorbia, nigella seed pods, rabbit’s tail grass, eucalyptus pods, lichen, foraged twigs and pine.
-
Eucalyptus was dipped in glycerine to make it last.
-
Lichen is useful for filling in gaps.
-
Foraged twigs add interest to the silhouette.
Line T Klein2/10Richness and indulgence were our key concepts when it came to the table arrangement. We expect to see festive tables overflowing with food, so why not create the same effect with flowers? The palette of soft peach and clashing red was devised using flowers that were in and out of season – we wanted it to contain elements that felt as if they had been gathered throughout the year. Urns were filled with chicken wire to support the stems and to secure all the overflowing elements. Assemble it two days before Christmas and it should last for five days if you keep the water topped up.
Line T Klein3/10What we used for the table decoration
Roses, ranunculus, butterfly ranunculus, lisianthus, dried honesty, tulips, eucalyptus, red euphorbia, foraged grasses, Scots pine, pomegranates, apples, figs, plums and nuts.
-
The tulips were manipulated open to create a dramatic effect.
Line T Klein4/10Florence Kennedy
The founder of Petalon started the east London-based floristry business as a flower delivery service. petalon.co.uk
I tend to avoid the traditional Christmas colour palettes and the idea that decorations have to be glittery and festive. I aim for a natural aesthetic, with seasonal flowers and foliage that evoke the bleak midwinter that we actually experience at this time of year. It was while I was out walking my dog on Hackney Marshes that I was inspired to create decorations with a muted palette of browns, whites and chalky blues. The grasses and foliage I spotted at the marshes also became a key focus for the structure of the arrangements. These decorations are heavily influenced by where I am based, subtly reflecting an idea of home, which is important at Christmas.
Line T Klein5/10For the Christmas tree, I wanted to find natural alternatives to the traditional decorations. Instead of tinsel, I used a garland of bleached soft ruscus. This is held together using paper-covered wire that resembles twine. To create the clusters of flowers, I threaded individual strawflowers through small balls of chicken wire. Replacing baubles, I decided to hang some dried stems of white peppercorns towards the ends of the branches to finish off the tree. If you wanted to create this look on a smaller scale, you could try using just the heads of the strawflowers to form more petite bunches. For larger trees, you could add spray-painted dried leaves and twigs.
What I used for the Christmas tree
Bleached soft ruscus, strawflowers (dried helichrysum), dried stems of white peppercorns.
-
The strawflowers are from Essentially Hops in Kent.
-
The peppercorns are suspended from string, which adds texture.
Line T Klein6/10A chicken-wire base was the starting point for the chimneypiece decoration, with each stem being worked through. We foraged the dried grasses and teasels from Hackney Marshes – similar foliage can be found in most areas of the country. The dried elements of the arrangement will last indefinitely, whereas the fresh flowers need to be inserted with their stems in small water tubes.
The beauty of having dried decorations is that you can use them year after year. If you want to dry flowers from your garden, you can either lay them flat or hang them upside down for a minimum of two weeks.
What I used for the chimneypiece
Dried honesty seed heads, dried poppy heads, kochia, dried sea lavender, silver brunia, lisianthus, white cyclamen and Magnolia grandiflora leaves.
-
Lisianthus is not in season, but stems from Holland are still beautiful at this time of year.
-
You can use cut cyclamen flowers or potted plants, hiding the pot in the base.
Line T Klein7/10Philippa Craddock
The self-taught florist has an eponymous studio in Fulham and a flower shop in Selfridges Foodhall. philippacraddock.com
For me Christmas is all about fragrance – oranges, cinnamon and other warm scents. We have an Aga at home and the heat from it brings out the aromas. I like to keep the house as a respite at Christmas, so I prefer to stick to calm colours, but still have fun with arrangements.
One year, I filled the kitchen and dining room with Christmas trees, which was very effective. The beauty of flowers and foliage is their impermanence, so you can make bolder decisions without the pressure of having to live with them year-round.
What I used
Ivy, spruce, berried eucalyptus, asparagus ferns, flowering jasmine, blue thistle and fir cones (wreath only).
-
Ivy and spruce are the base foliage and are both easy to get hold of. Berried eucalyptus is a great way of adding texture without the worry of berries dropping.
-
The asparagus ferns are dipped in platinum paint.
-
Flowering jasmine has a light scent that chimes well with the earthier foliage.
-
Blue thistles introduce an interesting element of the unexpected.
-
Fir cones add structure and seasonality to the wreath.
Line T Klein8/10I wanted these decorations to have a gathered feel, as if all the woodland ingredients had been collected on a cold country walk. The trails of the wreath and the drop at the end of the banister are what make these pieces special – they create the idea of flow and natural growth.
Line T Klein9/10The banister decoration was made using the same foliage and flowers as the wreath, but without the fir cones. First, we used plastic sheeting to protect the banister, before positioning a garland of rope and gardener’s twine, which we used as the base to which everything was attached. Put this up a week before Christmas and, like the wreath, it will dry out but keep its shape, without shedding berries or leaves. To create something like this on a smaller scale, replace the resting end with hanging trails like those on the wreath.
Line T Klein10/10A handmade moss base was the starting point for the wreath. I then added the sturdier foliage, followed by lighter leaves. Next came the flowers, followed by the fir cones and thistles to finish. The wreath can be put up four weeks before Christmas and, although it will dry out, it will retain its shape – thistle dries particularly nicely. If you want to try creating a similar wreath on a smaller scale, use less foliage and add more fir cones to keep an element of structure. You could also be bolder with your choice of colour palette.
