There is one thing to be said about having a florist as a sister. After helping her complete all of the floral arrangements for my brother's recent wedding - I have a new appreciation for the artistry that goes into flower arranging. Let me tell you - you haven't lived until you have single handily "fluffed" 500 white carnations.I love fresh flowers - I hate the price! I wish I lived in a better climate - where flowers grew wild and crazy, and I could wander through my garden with a little basket and cut fresh flowers daily. My house would be overflowing with Gerber's, lilies, mums and roses. However - the reality is - I live in a temperate climate where even bacteria has a difficult time thriving - and the only thing growing in my garden are dandelions.
The local grocery store has flowers - not great flowers - but it's the first thing I see when I walk through the doors pushing my daughters in that god-awful shopping cart shaped like a "car" but actually handles like a Winnebago with square wheels. I dig through the buckets - looking for something that looks half decent. Tulips are abound this spring - and cheap - so for $2.99 I grab a bunch and head home.
The "trick" is (according to my sister) is fresh water, cutting and "stripping". That's right - get naked! Well - get those flowers naked! Take off the leaves - ALL the leaves before cutting them and putting them in a vase. This is the secret that all florists don't want you to know! It may seem cruel - but so is moldy, slimy water. Besides - it's not the leaves we want to enjoy - it's the flowers. Leave the leaves for the trees. I stripped the tulips - cut them short and plunked them into a short vase. Simple, sweet and...cheap! And - then fun part about tulips is that they are the only cut flower that continues to grow (a fun floral fact I learned from my sister - oh yes - NOTHING is off limits when us two get chatting!)
So the next time hubby walks through the door with a grocery store bought cellophane wrapped arrangement of flowers (I won't ask the reason - it's none of my business really) - just remember to STRIP!
