Yes, you read that title correctly. May. That was 3 months ago and I’m playing catch up. You know those rumors about having lots of time due to COVID and all the shut downs? Well it turns out if you work in the wedding or hospitality industry it was all just a myth. I’ve been busier than ever trying to adjust to the craziness of this summer.

So onto May flowers. These gorgeous blooms were here for such a short amount of time and I loved them throroghly. Per usual, I picked my flowers, took my individual photos and then complied them all into a single arrangement. However, a couple of the flowers refused to coorperate and open in a timely manor (enter dogwood and anemone). Which means that they are in my big and beautiful lilac filled arrangement, however you can’t really see them.

After about a week of them sitting in my studio, they decided to show off all on their own. So I made a second arrangement that gave them a little more of the spotlight that they deserve.

Anemone

You don’t find many black flowers. I think that’s perhaps what makes these little guys so unique. They stand out in a crowd and I get requests for them all year long.

However, their time to shine is really in the spring. In May is when the local ones show off. I can import them from places outside of Michigan during other months, sometimes with great success. But for the most part, I would much rather gather them from local farms and know I’m using the best of the best.

Dogwood

Dogwood is another spring favorite. It feels so fresh and cheeful. This particular branch was not sourced locally, as much as I would have liked to. I have yet to find a local source, besides one of the lakeside cottages in town and somehow I don’t think they’d appriciate me trimming their trees in the middle of the night.

There are mulitple blooms per branch, which means you get lots of impact per stem – always a bonuse when you’re buying and designing with flowers. The vase life on these was amazing, they stayed yummy and fresh for weeks. One bud might fade here or there, but then another would burst into life.

Lilac

Lilacs are one of my absolute favorites and Northern Michigan is loaded with oodles of these large bushes. Colors can range from white to lavender to dark purple, with a few even appearing more on blush. If I had to design an arrangement using only one type of flower, lilacs would be my top choice. I love the movement, texture and “wow” factor. We really need to more late May, early June celebrations to take full advantage of these breathtaking blooms.

Muscari

There’s something really special about blue flowers. They’re unusual and yet somehow expected all at the same time. They bring a little life to the spring landscape, which can often feel a little too brown before all the leaves have fully formed.

These little guys are locally found, a few stems randomly growing in my yard along with some more amazing ones from a local farm. Wholesale ones are pretty as well, but you might loose a few stems during shipping because they are on the delicate side, so just order extra.

Claire de Lune Peony

These are my favorite peonies. I love single petal varieties that show off their beautiful centers. Unfortunately, it’s pretty rare that I have a wedding or event at the time that these beauties are in prime season, they just bloom too early for Michigan celebrations.

Peonies begin in the wholesale market early spring, I normally start seeing them around February or so. Different varieties bloom at different times. In Northern Michigan, we don’t seem peonies until June – usually mid to late depending upon how cool our spring is. That window is not nearly long enough and I don’t know anyone who grows this particular variety. So I treasure them while I can.

Are we ready to see all of these ingredient together!? I’ve put together lots of arrangements and schemed up many designs this season so far, but this one still remains at the top of my favorite list. It makes me want to go back and do spring all over again.

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See what I mean about this one not letting the anemones and dogwood shine? Enter the next little guy that does a far better job of highlighting these beauties.

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Which one is your favorite? The luscious and large arrangement or the petite and simple one? I love them both!

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