Warning: They’ll steal the show.
Arrangement instructions and floral photos reprinted from Color Me Floral by Kiana Underwood with permission by Chronicle Books, 2018. Header image by Elizabeth Messina. All other photos by Nate Underwood.
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.”
3-inch (7.5-cm) floral pin frog
Floral scissors/shears
Floral putty
3-inch (7.5-cm) floral pin frog
Floral putty
Floral scissors/shears
Dahlia (white)
Dahlia (peach)
Poppy
Viburnum
Dahlia (light peach)
Carnation
Ranunculus
Eucalyptus leaf
Dahlia (white)
Dahlia (light peach)
Dahlia (peach)
Carnation
Poppy
Ranunculus
Viburnum
Eucalyptus leaf
Using floral putty, secure the floral pin frog in the bottom of the vessel. Establish the structure with the eucalyptus leaves and viburnum.
Add the first shade of dahlia.
Add the remainder of the dahlias for a peach explosion.
Add the ranunculus. You can stop here for a simple arrangement.
To continue: Add the carnations.
Finish with the poppies.
3-inch (7.5-cm) floral pin frog
Floral scissors/shears
Floral putty
3-inch (7.5-cm) floral pin frog
Floral putty
Floral scissors/shears
Walnut branch
Young branch of weeping willow
Zinnia ‘Lime Cordial’
Limelight hydrangea
Ranunculus
Chinese lantern
Orchid
Siam tulip
Spray rose
Walnut branch
Chinese lantern
Young branch of weeping willow
Orchid
Zinnia ‘Lime Cordial’
Siam tulip
Limelight hydrangea
Spray rose
Ranunculus
Place the floral frog inside your vessel and secure with floral putty. Begin with the walnut and weeping willow branches to form the structure.
Add the Limelight hydrangeas.
Here insert the Chinese lantern.
Add the zinnias.
Add the Siam tulips. You can stop here for a simple and beautiful arrangement.
To continue: Add the spray roses.
Add the orchids.
As a final touch, add the ranunculus. I’m using this bunch because in addition to green it has some lovely pastel hues to match the flowers on the vase.
3-inch (7.5-cm) floral pin frog
Floral scissors/shears
Floral putty
3-inch (7.5-cm) floral pin frog
Floral putty
Floral scissors/shears
Chocolate dahlia
Cosmos
Angelica stricta ‘Purpurea’
Black tomato vine
Painted tongue
Crepe myrtle
Chocolate dahlia
Black tomato vine
Cosmos
Painted tongue
Angelica stricta ‘Purpurea’
Crepe myrtle
Place the floral frog inside your vessel and secure with floral putty. Begin with the tomato vines, as they are the heaviest elements of this arrangement and should be well secured in the floral pin frog.
Add the crepe myrtle.
Add the ‘Purpurea’.
Place the dahlias throughout the arrangement, including buds for texture and variety. Stop here for a beautifully simple arrangement.
To continue: Add the painted tongue.
Add the cosmos for more complexity and shape.
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