Trimming Stems

Do-It-Yourself Decorating

Cutting a Stem

I haven’t told you yet, but all my peonies were actually on the same stem when I bought them. To cut them apart, I used special florist’s wire cutters (found near silk flowers in the store). These stems proved very hard to cut, but most flowers are easier! Stems also need to be trimmed if they’re too long to stand at the height you want. Measure them in front of the basket first, cut them, and then stick them in. Try not to remove and reposition them too many times, as it chews up and softens the foam (we’re talking about cheap styrofoam here!).

Secondary Flowers

Now I’ve filled out the basket with several smaller peonies, placed at a shorter height than the first ones. Next the arrangement is going to need some filler flowers—small, nondescript, neutral blossoms—which I did not have. So I was very happy to be doing this bouquet at my flower arranging class, since the instructor offered a whole bag of old flowers for us to choose from! What color do you think the filler flowers should be—yellow, tan, white, light blue, lavendar, or . . . ?