BOUQUETS WITHOUT BLOOMS

During the Spring and Summer my garden is bursting with blooms.  I always gather them and bring them inside.  Now that it's getting colder, most of the blooms are gone. That doesn't mean I still can't have an arrangement in my home.  There is such a thing as bouquets without blooms.

I always turn to my shrubs.  I filled a vase with nothing but clippings from my Nandina bush. 

NANDINA BOUQUET IN A CHAMPAGNE BUCKET  

Most of the summer the Nandina is green.   As it gets colder, the leaves become tinged with red. 

 I added  it to a planter at the store.

NANDINA BOUQUET AT OUR STORE

Magnolia leaves are my favorite, especially during the holidays.

MAGNOLIA LEAVES AS HOLIDAY DECOR

 My cedar tree comes inside too. 
I added some around silver holiday spheres in my dough bowl.

CEDAR BRANCHES IN MY DOUGH BOWL

When the leaves change from green to reds, yellows, and oranges, I snap off a colorful branch
 and add it to a wicker-covered bottle on my  screened porch.
 At the end of my street is a tree that drops the most wonderful pods while releasing its leaves.  They look like huge pea pods and turn a warm brown, curling and twisting perfectly.  Here they're wrapping themselves around a vintage book.

BRANCHES AND LEAVES IN FALL COLORS

I put some of the colorful branches on the bench on my front porch too.

FALL BRANCHES AND MY FAVORITE PAINTED PUMPKIN

I even use branches without their leaves. 
When a friend cut down her birch tree, I rescued some branches and added them to a demijohn.

DEMIJOHN AND BIRCH BRANCHES ON MY STAIR LANDING

Actually, branches work as arrangements all year long.

DRIFTWOOD BRANCHES ON MY MIRRORED TABLE

Yes, I painted Harry Lauder Walking Stick branches orange and placed them into a vase.

PAINTED HARRY LAUDER WALKING STICKS

Shed antlers make arrangements without blooms too.

SHED ANTLERS IN A JAR

Feathers can take the place of fresh flowers.

FEATHERS IN A VASE ON MY MANTEL

What do you use as a bouquet alternative?

BOUQUETS WITH BRANCHES AND OTHER YARD FINDS

While I'm waiting for blooms from my garden, I love to use branches from my yard as bouquets.  I have a huge demijohn on the landing in my foyer.   It's the vase for some birch branches.

BIRCH BRANCHES IN MY DEMIJOHN

Sometimes I paint them.

PAINTED BRANCHES ON MY MANTEL

I painted these branches too and placed them into a vase with shells and sand to support them.

BRANCHES ON MY MIRRORED TABLE

BRANCHES REFLECTED IN MY MIRRORED TABLE

Branches don't have to be bare to work as a bouquet.  I have Nandina shrubs in my yard.
 They're a bouquet source all year long. 

BOUQUET OF BRANCHES FROM MY NANDINA SHRUB

I clipped some branches from my cedar tree and wrapped them around some spheres
 inside a dough bowl on my dining room table.

CEDAR BRANCHES IN A DOUGH BOWL

My yard pickings aren't limited to branches.  I even invade my neighbor's yard.   She has a  huge tree that drops the most wonderful seed pods.  I added them to an urn and complemented them with some of my shed antlers.

SEED PODS AND ANTLERS IN AN URN ON MY PORCH

What do you bring in from outdoors to use inside?

Mercury Glass Spheres

I love spheres.  In fact you might say I'm obsessed with them.  

Imagine how thrilled I was when I found some huge mercury glass spheres on clearance at 

Pottery Barn last December.  I bought three and have been hoarding them all year.  I knew that they'd fit perfectly in my dough bowl on my dining room table.

I lined the bowl with some cedar that I had clipped from my yard.  I hate those ugly cedar trees, but I must admit that their branches come in handy during the holidays.  They last a surprisingly long time indoors and make fabulous fresh wreaths.  I hate to admit it, but they last longer than my favorite, magnolia.

Mercury Glass Spheres in My Dough Bowl

Here's another view.  I love how the branches hugged the spheres. Notice the marks on the dough bowl that show it was shaped by hand.

Another View of the Dough Bowl and Spheres

I always use my cow hide rug as a table cover.  To sparkle it up, I added a sequined table runner.

Cow Hide Table Cover Layered with Sequin Runner

As I was taking the photos, we had a burst of sunshine.  It made the spheres sparkle even more.

A Ray of Sunshine on My Dough Bowl and Spheres

A Closer Look at the Sparkle

The spheres created quite a lovely pattern on the opposite wall too.

Reflections on the Wall from the Mercury Glass Spheres

My Dining Room

I am so glad I have the dough bowl.  I use it all the time for seasonal change ups.  Do you have a special find that you re-style over and over?



Of course I have some other ideas for you in case you don't happen to have three huge spheres that you've hoarded for a year or an equally huge dough bowl.

.
A wonderful urn will work with some ornaments.

Via

What about a compote with pine cones from your yard and apples?

Via

What about lining the vessel with feathers?

Via Pinterest

This container is filled with mini ornaments, but you could also use strands of garland.
The addition of the belt is so clever.

Via

I could see these as a centerpiece or on your mantel.

Via

You could use a tray as your container.

Via

Happy Decorating

Kathy


I've written about my dough bowl before here.

I've written about spheres before here, here, here, and here.

I