3 Stunning Floral Arrangements For Every Summer Occasion

The key to elevating any summer fête, be it a picnic or a wedding, is with a striking spray of expertly-arranged flowers. Not an expert? You’re about to be. Kiana Underwood, the insanely talented floral designer behind Tulipina (and the most-followed floral designer on Instagram), just published her first book “Color Me Floral,” with step-by-step instructions on how to create her stunning, garden-style, monochromatic arrangements. Here, the San-Francisco based designer walks us through three of her favorites bouquets, and admits that, like us, she’s known to grab flowers at her local grocery store.

You don’t need to search high and low for the perfect summer florals.

“If you’re buying it in season, then it’s going to look summery,” says the designer. She touts dahlias, gardenias and peonies as great summer choices, but adds that availability is the most important part of her process for choosing flowers. “Whatever is at my disposal, I use it, whether it’s at a flower market or just Trader Joe’s”.

You can use a “recipe,” like the arrangements here to capture a specific mood, or you can do what Underwood loves most: invent something of your own. “At the market, I basically take what I’m drawn to and arrange with that.” Underwood follows her instincts to create what is “pleasing to the eye,” often blending unexpected colors.

“You can play with red and pink and blue, and hints of yellow—as long as the colors aren’t overwhelming each other,” she says. “When you play with color in ways no one else would allow themselves to, you create something that will stop people in their tracks.”

Just like your diet, floral arrangements can always benefit from added greenery. “When I think about summer, I think about wild, happy colors, and foliage helps that,” she says. You can step right outside and grab something from your own yard. “I’ll take leaves or grass from my garden, the neighborhood, even a plant in the house,” Underwood says. “You can even buy a plant from your local hardware store, and keep it to mix into your arrangements.”