The scents of spring are disappearing.  The lilacs are gone and honeysuckle is fading fast.  There’s still a fragrance as you turn down our dusty road, but it’s evolving and being replaced by other sights.

Right now the charmer that has me captivated are the oddly shaped irises.  I never used to like these flowers.  I thought they were dated and more of a grandma flower.  I wasn’t a fan of their bold blue shades as they were a little too vibrant for my tastes.  But as time wears on, I’ve began to appreciate them more and more.

A wise flower lover once told me that “there are no bad flowers, only bad flower combinations”.  And I think perhaps this was the problem.  I’m not huge on highly contrasting arrangements that jump out at you, and every time someone paired them in a centerpiece, it was yellow and blue and just not my style.  However, I failed to realize 2 very important things.  1. There are ways to pair theirs blue tones in a more subtle manor that still celebrate their beauty (I actually have really learned to love blue flowers in recent years) and 2. Iris come is so many colors, so many that aren’t blue.  They have tones and variations that make describing their palette nearly impossible.  Those are the irises that have me really excited.

They started regain my attention when I heard of Iris Farms in Traverse City (about 1 ½ hours north of me).  I drove past and was so sad that I didn’t have time to stop.  I haven’t been able to set up a visit by want to desperately to make a trip.  Alas, I think it’s going to have to wait yet another year.   Then last spring I was about to attend Tinge Floral’s Workshop and the irises took center stage.  She designed entire tablespaces around these unique blooms and I was able to create an arrangement of my own using the most unusually colored brown ones, which were absolutely my favorite (and possibly my favorite centerpiece I’ve ever created).

Photography: Ciara Richardson Photography | Floral Design (1st two iris arrangements): Tinge Floral | Floral Design (last centerpiece): Shelby of The Day’s Design

Like last week, irises will be the theme this week and at the end of the week I’ll share a few of my favorite pictures from throughout the week in my Instagram stories.  Follow along with #TLJfloweroftheweek and tag your own irises as well.