Young House Love

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Budget Blooms: Starting The Year Off Right

Thump. That’s the sound of us falling off the fresh flower bandwagon last October. From the first of 2009 through September we were enjoying one inexpensive (and even free) bouquet for each month of the year (a super sweet Christmas present from the hubs). But somehow the end-of-the-year madness (toss in a few holidays, a growing family, a bathroom gut-job, and an impending nursery makeover) sadly derailed our year of budget blooms.

Well, John was determined to kick this year off right with a happy and cheerful January bouquet for me (actually purchased on 1/1/10- what a nice “fresh start” to the year). This month’s arrangement hails from the grocery store and only ran us $4. Nice. And to stretch our flower budget even further, I separated the blooms into two mercury glass candleholders-turned-vases and proudly displayed our mixed batch of daisies, mums, and alstroemerias in this rarely seen nook of our kitchen:

JanFlowers1

We love how they look sort of New Years-y and cheerfully festive with the cake stand full of ornaments and ceramic fruit… but of course since these flowers are all long-lasters we’ll soon be replacing the ornaments with some edible treats (cupcakes if we’re bad, fresh fruit if we’re good) as the month goes on.

JanFlowers2

We really like how the happy pops of yellow in the alstroemerias (they’re almost springy- which is encouraging on some of the coldest days) pair with the fresh green of the mums and the big white daisy (along with all the other white accents like the cake stand, ornaments, and lotus candle holder). It’s sort of a winter-white-meets-New-Year’s-sparkle effect… with an optimistic splash of spring tossed in for good measure.

JanFlowers3

And of course for $2 per arrangement we’re pretty happy with our re-commitment to at least one affordable bouquet per month. But what about you guys? Do you have any favorite seasonal blooms that you whip out each January? Is there any other greenery that you love having around to start the year off right (a gorgeously scented potted rosemary? a luxe bouquet of red roses?). Do tell.

Wanna see our first grocery store bouquet from last January? Itching to check out February, March, April, May, June July, August, and September too? Just follow the links for some pretty sweet cheap-o (and even free) bouquets.

Comments

  1. candace says

    I took your advice from an old post and picked up some Paper Whites…they are almost ready to bloom! I got some for my Mother-in-Law as well as a Xmas gift. *claps*

    Reply

  2. Lisa Becker says

    Hi! Love your site… I’ve told everyone I know about it! You guys are my inspiration.

    I always kick off the year with a tall, wide clear vase full of Narcissus bulbs, or white Amaryllis (super cheap at the grocery store after the holidays). It’s fun to watch them grow (especially fun with a toddler!), and they are a wonderful promise of impending spring.

    Happy 2010!!

    Reply

  3. Beth@321home says

    OMGosh! I know this post is about the flowers, but I LOVE the nook! Can’t believe we’ve not seen that before! I’m a huge nook fan, no matter where they’re found. :-)

    BTW, Sherry, how are you feelin’ about Nate getting his own show? We don’t get cable, so I’ll be left watching the few shows they post online, but I’m chomping at the bit anyway. :-)

    Reply

  4. Jacci says

    I love the paperwhites, too :) Didn’t get my act together enough this year to do it, but we usually have them in January. I plant crocus outside (planning to plant them at *this house* in the fall this year), so we start getting outside blooms by late February. There are actually a number of super early blooming bulbs that would look great cut for inside if you had enough planted. Winter aconite can be a great, sunny yellow for early March.

    ~Jacci

    Reply

  7. amelia says

    very pretty mini flower arrangements – and for $4! how could you go wrong! gotta love the nook too!
    Must say this combination of white, spring green and yellow are great nursery colours (perhaps with a dash of pink for the beanette)!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Hey Amelia,

      We definitely plan to have an abundance of white and green in the nursery with splashes of yellow (along with soft turquoise). Maybe we subconsciously picked flowers that reflect that theme?! Too funny.

      xo,
      s

  10. TheClassyWoman says

    I love the yellow, so warm for such a cold season!

    My hubby likes surprising me with flowers from the grocery store every once in a while and I like to do the same thing. The 5 different types of flowers in the bunch become 5 small little arrangements throughout the house for $3-$4. It really adds a little more ‘life’ to each room without breaking the bank.

    In the summer and fall I used our hibiscus flowers and bougainvillea clippings for various rooms, they have so much gorgeous color!

    I haven’t brought any fresh flowers in for the new year yet. Thanks for the reminder! :)

    BTW-Sherry, has anyone ever told you that you look like the actress Rachel McAdams?

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      That’s so funny, I actually get that all the time. I stare at her picture and never see it, but it comes up so often that I guess I’m in denial or something. She’s super cute so I completely take it as a compliment, I just wish I could see it!

      xo,
      s

  13. Sandra says

    Did you get the mercury glass candle holders and the tea light holder from Keep Good Company in Lakeside, by any chance?

    Reply

  15. D says

    So pretty and cheap! I always buy flowers from my local grocery store and split them b/w vases and wine bottles. There’s also a local wedding florist on the corner of my block that throws extra blooms into a barrel and sells them for cheap (spruces up a grocery store bouquet nicely!).

    Reply

  18. Jazmin says

    Thank you, thank you, thank you! I’ve been looking for the name of one of these flowers for months. I feel so foolish now realizing that they’re mums and were available right in my backyard (home depot)! I know that wasn’t the intent of this post, but thanks for helping me figure this out. haha

    Reply

  21. katie says

    i love alstromeria–aka peruvian lilies–and like to get giant bouquets with all different colors. word of warning, they do not dry well, if you’re ever into that, they’re super-fragile. =/ oh well.

    we are currently enjoying a spider cactus that somehow i haven’t killed in the past three years (it almost bloomed this year! so close!) and since our newlywed apartment is small, our christmas tree was actually a rosemary bush pruned in a christmas tree shape. my husband declared it his favorite kind–a christmas tree you can eat. =) it smells delicious, too.

    Reply

  22. Donita says

    Your flowers are so pretty, love the green, yellow and white combo. That nooks is so inviting looking.
    One of my favorite flowers is tulips, but they are not always in season, and if they are, they are expensive. SOOO through the high dollar months, on most flowers, we guy Carnations, they do not have an offensive perfume smell and they last a long time. We get them in soft orange, red or yellow, to brighten our living room. :-)
    Where did you get the white glass pears? I LOVE/COVET them. :-) lol

    Reply

  23. Donita says

    That would be BUY Carnations, not guy!!! Should have proof read before hitting the button. *SIGH* NOOK not nooks. LOL GEESH teaching me a lesson.

    Reply

  24. foobella says

    I’m going to get myself some flowers. I told myself this every month you posted about them. geeez.

    And that white flower? I’d call that a Chrysanthemum, wouldn’t you? I know they are in the same family, so maybe I’m being a bit picky. And really I don’t know diddly about plants, but when I saw it I said to myself, Chrysanthemum.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      You’re probably right! I’m terrible with flower names. As in, I prefer to just call them all “blooms” since I never get the names right! Slowly but surely our readers are teaching me though. I’ll get it someday…

      xo,
      s

  25. Jaya says

    Sherry- I started paperwhites too and they have grown really really tall but the tips are now starting to turn yellow? I googled that but couldn’t find any info. Are they dying or about to bloom? Do you know?

    Reply

  26. Katherine says

    I hate to admit this, but I tend to feel really guilty about splurging on fresh flowers – even the $4 variety at the supermarket. How sad is that? I think I should work on getting over that.

    Reply

  28. Jennifer H. says

    They’re SO lovely — great color combo. I also want to thank you for the inspiration; when I read about John’s gift to you, I told my husband what a great idea I thought it was and like the amazing guy he is, he took the bait and ran with it. He’s been diligent every month since March. (In fact, I was gifted with two dozen white roses from Costco just today. So much fun distributing them in different vessels throughout the house.) Thanks again!

    Reply

  29. andrea melberg thompson says

    Okay, this was December… but I bought a big bunch of all red small carnations at Costco for $9. I split them up all over the house before I entertained. They were perfect with my red theme all over the upstairs (our woodwork, accents are white). They were in those white vases you can get anywhere in various sizes and styles, which I of course had purchsed for less then 50 cents each. It looked GREAT… but I finally did throw them away after many weeks. Honostly, those babies wouldn’t die!

    Reply

  30. Caitlin @ That House On The Corner says

    Yay! Budget blooms are back! I was just talking about what a great gift idea that is with my coworkers last night. I love any and all flowers (soon I’ll be trying to propagate rose cuttings), but in the meantime I wish I could get my boyriend of six years to get the hint to surprise me with some budget blooms himself… Any tips on that lol?!

    Reply

  33. Emily Dykstra says

    Hi, Young House Love,

    I’ve been following your blog for about a month now and love your ideas. I’m particularly excited about when le bebe comes for you. Life with littles is fun. Challenging at times, but totally fun.

    Funny you should ask about flowers… I came up with my child-friendly version of flowers (read: thrives on neglect) in my most recent post. Thought you’d like a looksie:

    http://cookiecutterhouse.blogspot.com/2010/01/sanctuary.html

    Emily Dykstra

    Reply

  35. eldub says

    I daren’t declare my house holiday ready until I’ve whipped up what I think is the world’s prettiest fresh flower decor: I fill three stemless martini glasses with fresh cranberries and water and then poke in as many white roses or white carnations to fill – two dozen of each is more than enough. Simple, easy, cheap (especially with the carnations) and super-classy!

    Reply

  36. Natalie says

    My husband and I have been married for 5 years and my favorite flowers are “just because” flowers. At any given points during the year, he’ll show up with a bouquet for me just because. They’re typically a cheap bouquet from the grocery store, but the fact that they’re unexpected makes them my favorite of all.

    Reply

  37. East End says

    I’m so lucky to have a huge camilla bush over here in the east end. It blooms all winter long so I always have beautiful pink camillas in the house.

    Reply

  38. Jeanette says

    Alstroemerias are one of our favorites, too. Even here in Arizona, they last up to 10-14 days if they were purchased very fresh, which is easy with a nearby Trader Joe’s. Daffodils when they are in season are lovely. Our very favorite, by far, are orchids. They last for months, and we’ve even gotten a few to rebloom.

    Reply

  39. Kelly says

    Hi! I saw Beth’s post above about Nate’s show. I don’t have cable either and love to watch it online! I can’t find it though. Is he on HGTV?

    Thanks,
    Kelly

    Reply

  40. Hattie says

    I love these colors together! After Christmas, I’m always so ready for spring to hurry up and get here, so like you, I also have some perky yellow blooms in my kitchen http://littleredroost.blogspot.com/2010/01/sprinkle-of-spring.html Some are real and some are pretty fabric blossoms I stuck on cool twiggy branches. Thanks so much for showing something pretty and springy rather than cold and snowflakey. Here’s to Richmond warming up a little next week!

    Reply

  41. Lorena says

    Oh, I love fresh flowers. I try to always have them in my home. I especially love the alstromenias ~ they will usually last 2 weeks=)

    Reply

  42. Viv says

    I like the bouquets and how you’ve broken them up, but I really love how you put them in an unexpected spot for a double surprise.

    Reply

  43. Viv says

    I forgot to mention something that might come in handy as forced bulbs are blooming indoors right now. I often find that daffodils, especially, start to fall over once they bloom. I walked by a green grocer yesterday that had lots of pots of bulbs (Vancouver has fabulous green grocers with flowers out front) and had placed twigs with little branches horizonally across the arrangement to help hold it up. It looked so fresh and springlike.

    Reply

  44. Cheryl says

    I <3 grocery store flowers – so inexpensive, and I always separate them into different vases b/c they give you so many in a bunch. They also last quite awhile I've found, except sunflowers. Love the site:)

    Reply

  45. Wendy @ A Southern Accent says

    I was flipping throgh a magazine at Lowe’s today and saw a pictre of your living room in it! I recognized it immediately! It was a special issue on small spaces or something…wasn’t sure if you’d seen it or not, but they listed your site in it too!

    Reply

  47. Amy says

    Either Stargazer lilies (we can get a bunch for $10 at our local Wegman’s), Gerber daisies or some colorful Carnations. I’ve had carnations that lasted 3+ weeks before and at $5 a bunch it works nicely.

    Reply

  48. Lyndsy@ L Kae Interiors says

    I think it is so important to add some fresh flowers to your life, especially in these cold, dreary winter months!! The bright colors look great with the mercury. I love using Spider Mums and Star Gazer Lilies! You can split up a bunch of lilies, and with one bloom in each room, your whole house can smell wonderful for days! I am lucky to have a farmers market by my house that you can buy a bunch for $5.99! Thanks for the post!

    Reply

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